A Timeline of Atlantic City History

• Pre-1783 - Lenni Lenape tribe

  Long before Atlantic City was founded, the island where it would be developed, thick with woods and lined with dunes, was the summer home of the Lenni Lenape Indians, an Algonquian-speaking people. These original summer residents named the island Absegami, meaning "little water", a term for the bay denoting that the opposite shore was in sight. Over time the name was transformed into the present-day Absecon Island. Early colonial settlers in South Jersey largely ignored the island because it could only be reached by boat.

• 1783 - First permanent settlement

  While the exact date of the first permanent settlement has never been determined, it is generally agreed that Jeremiah Leeds was the first to build and occupy a year-round residence on the island, building his home in 1783.

• May 1820 - Dr. Jonathan Pitney

  

  Dr. Jonathan Pitney moved to Absecon village to practice medicine and begins to promote the healing powers of the salt air and sea. He advocated for a health resort on the nearby Absecon Island.

• March 19, 1852 - Railroad

  Camden & Atlantic Company received a railroad charter. The first train to Atlantic City from Camden arrived on July 1, 1854.

• March 1854 - Incorporation

  The city was incorporated. "Atlantic City" name is selected by a civil engineer from Philadelphia, Richard Osborne, who prints it on a map of the city.

• January 15, 1857 - Absecon Lighthouse

  Absecon Lighthouse was first lit.

• June 26, 1870 - Boardwalk

  The first boardwalk was 1 mile long, 8 feet wide, and stood 1 foot above the sand. Designed to prevent sand from being carried into the hotel lobbies by the strollers’ long dresses and shoes, later boardwalks were more permanent. It later became an official Atlantic City street, Boardwalk.

• 1876 - Easter Parade

  The Easter Parade is held on the Boardwalk for the first time.

• About 1883

  Salt water taffy is first sold.

• 1887

  Rolling chairs debuted on the Boardwalk.

• June 12, 1892

  The Atlantic City Beach Patrol began. Atlantic City had the first paid, professional lifeguards in the country.

• June 18, 1898

  Steel Pier opened as an amusement pier.

• 1902 - Incubator Babies

  Martin Couney, an early advocate of neonatal care, starts an infant incubator exhibit on the Boardwalk, saving hundreds of tiny babies before it closed in 1943.

• January 1904 - Atlantic City Free Public Library

  Atlantic City Free Public Library opened its doors and moves into a building funded by Andrew Carnegie.

• July 1910 - The Atlantic City Aero Show

  The Atlantic City Aero Show lifted off for the first time, with the Wright Brothers and Glenn Curtiss flying high.

• September 7, 1921 - First Miss America crowned

  The first winner was 16-year-old Margaret Gorman, representing Washington, D.C.. She was awarded a Golden Mermaid statue.

• May 31, 1929 - Convention Hall dedicated

  Now known as Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City Convention Hall was the largest auditorium in the world without columns or supports. U.S. Vice President Charles H. Curtis attended the dedication.

• September 14, 1944 - Great Atlantic Hurricane

  The hurricane destroyed more than half of the Boardwalk. Whole sections of the Boardwalk, with rails and benches still intact, were blown blocks inland.

• May 26, 1978 - First Atlantic City casino

  Resorts International opens.

• March 13, 1984 - Usry elected

  The City's first African American mayor, James L. Usry, is elected. He remained Mayor until July 2, 1990.

• May 1, 1997 - Convention Center

  The new Atlantic City Convention Center opens near the end of the Atlantic City Expressway. It is one of the East Coast's largest convention centers.

• 2003 - The Walk

  The first shops at The Walk, a shopping and entertainment complex, open.

• 2004

  Atlantic City celebrates its 150th birthday.

• September 30, 2006 - Bader Field closes

  The name "airport" was coined to designate Edward L. Bader Field, which opened in 1919. It was the oldest operational municipal airport in the country when it closed.

• October 2012

  Superstorm Sandy comes ashore.

• 2014

  Four casinos close due to the economic downturn.

• May 27, 2016

  Municipal Stabalization and Recovery Act signed into law.

• 2018

  Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall renamed to James Whelan Boardwalk Hall

• September 2018

  Stockton University returns to Atlantic City and opens a new campus.

• March 2020

  COVID-19 Pandemic. State of New Jersey issues health directives.

The ATlantic City Experience Exhibit
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