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Atlantic County, NJ

Atlantic City is among the most important communities in the nation where the Civil Rights Movement unfolded.  The Civil Rights Garden is a serene oasis of plants, trees and flowers honoring the long journey of African Americans, and indeed all Americans, toward a full measure of rights under the United States Constitution.  The Garden is among a select few places in the nation that commemorates the legacies of the American Revolution as hammered out by people of color.

A moving tribute to the voices and architects of the Civil Rights Movement, the Garden is the setting for the annual January 15th Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event, as well as a number of others, including the Fannie Lou Hamer commemorative ceremony. Among her many accomplishments, Ms. Hamer challenged the all-white makeup of political candidates at the 1964 Democratic Convention held in Atlantic City.

The Carnegie Center provides support for many of these events as a venue for accompanying lectures and receptions. During the school year the Library Center provides classroom support space to students from the region’s schools that visit the Civil Rights Garden.

http://www.acmuseum.org/

Atlantic City Historical Museum

From Atlantic City’s earliest days the natural beauty of its beaches served as a magnet for the millions of tourists who came to escape the heat, breathe the salt air, and improve their health.

In season, tens of thousands of families enjoyed the sand and surf. Off season, hundreds took the benefit of the salt air wrapped in blankets and shielded from the wind, or took brisk rides on horseback along the water’s edge.

From the beginning city council recognized the need to assure the safety of visitors on the beach. In 1855 the council appointed William S. Cazier the first “constable of the surf.” In those early years the constables donned bathing suits between the hours of eleven and one to be ready to respond to any emergency. With the opening of the Boardwalk in 1872, the first organized volunteer lifeguard service was formed. These brave souls had to pass the hat after each rescue. Not until 1892, did Atlantic City organize a paid beach patrol. Early in this century the Atlantic City Beach Patrol expanded to include medical services and today is one of the largest professional lifesaving organizations of its type in the world.

The first bathing suits to grace Atlantic City’s beaches were of wool flannel covering much of the body and worn with canvas shoes, straw hat, stockings, and often a corset. The first bloomerstyle bathing suits appeared in 1907 and by the early 1920’s, censor’s armed with tape measures were enforcing city ordinance, which prohibited trunks or skirts from rising more than a few inches above the knees. By 1928 women were allowed to bathe without stockings, but not until 1940 were men allowed to swim shirtless.

http://www.acfpl.org/

All Wars memorial Building

The All Wars Memorial Building at 814 Pacific Avenue opened on April 24, 1924. It was used as headquarters for the City’s white veterans’ groups. The building boasted a 600-seat auditorium and a dining room that seated 280. This building was purchased and demolished by the Trump organization in the 1990’s.

The other building, known variously as the Westside or Northside All Wars Memorial Building or the Old Soldiers’ Home, is located at 1510 Adriatic Avenue. It was dedicated on August 15, 1925 and served as a center for the resort’s black veterans. The building originally included dormitories, which were later converted in two 1,500-seat auditoriums and meeting rooms.

Rheims Post 564 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars began campaigning in 1920 for a building for veterans. Wounded veterans were often sent to the seashore to recover, but there was not a home for black veterans. In February 1921, the City commissioners authorized the construction of “a building to be dedicated to public use as a permanent memorial commemorative of the services of the soldiers and sailors of the colored race of the City of Atlantic City, who have served in any war in which the United States has participated” (City of Atlantic City Public Ordinance No. 6, 1921). Various individuals and corporations donated more than $45,500 for the construction of the Old Soldiers’ Home.

The Old Soldier’s Home served as the center for the City’s Northside residents and members of that area’s Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, and the United Spanish War Veterans for many years.

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