The History of Cape May, NJ

A canal, dug from a natural shallow creek, runs from Cape May’s harbor to the Delaware Bay making Cape May an island. This simple fact is fundamental to understanding Cape May.  But first here are some fairly well-known facts about Cape May, New Jersey:

Though it is an island, Cape May is a part of a “cape,” a strip of land projecting into a body of water. Settled by whalers and fishermen in colonial times, Cape May has been the destination of vacationers since “resorting” to a different location began, making Cape May America’s oldest seaside resort.

In 1878, Cape May City nearly burned to the ground; the reconstruction that followed has left a plethora of Victorian era buildings like no other in America.

With roots as a U.S. Navy base prior to World War II, Cape May’s Coast Guard Training Station continues to be an integral part of Cape May.

In 1976, Cape May was declared a National Historic Landmark City.

Cape May (“Cape Island”) is made up of Cape May City, the boroughs of West Cape May and Cape May Point and a township (“Lower” which is not to be confused with Middle and Upper – all of which comprise Cape May County).

The year-round population of Cape May is about 4,700, a number that has varied little for over a hundred years.  That number can swell to more than 40,000 on some summer weekends.

Because of the canal, Cape May is separated from the rest of New Jersey, both physically and metaphorically. Unlike other “Jersey shore” towns, Cape May City still looks like “small town America” complete with tree-canopied streets, right out of a Norman Rockwell painting.

Written by: Cape Publishing Co. 2011, www.CapeMay.com