Found! Early Beachwood WWII Honor Roll

Courtesy of borough residents and BHA members Lynn and Tom Paro, the Beachwood Historical Alliance has digitized a series of photographs taken by Daily News NJ News Editor Ralph Sharpe between 1935 and the 1940s, a period when his family vacationed in Beachwood.

While the majority of these fantastic images will be saved for publication in the Beachwood centennial book and possibly other BHA publications, we’d like to share with you at least one photograph,  showing an early version of the Beachwood Honor Roll, which listed the names of borough servicemen off fighting World War II. As you can see, the list shown on that board carries less than half the names that would go on to appear on the final Honor Roll, seen today in Neilson Memorial Park. This Honor Roll was placed near the Beachwood Circle, adjacent our Borough Hall/Firehouse (demolished in the late 1990s and today Welsh Farms) and across from the Beachwood Circle Shop (today Carpetland) where Beachwood and Atlantic City boulevards intersect.

Three of the men on this Honor Roll – William Neilson, John Jerue and Richard Kavanaugh – were later killed in action, also reflected on the later version, produced after the war had ended. Neilson Park is named for William Neilson, who was the first casualty from Beachwood.

Listed in this early Honor Roll are, in order, 46 of the final 103 shown on the later memorial plaque:

Leon Smith
William Smith
Frank Gargan
Wallace Boud
Francis Ward
Peter DeMeige
John Jerue
Robert McDermott
George Grimm Jr.
Charles Sigrist Jr. (the Jr. is dropped from the later Honor Roll monument)
Richard Boutillette
William Perry
Louis Perry
Andrew Galatian
Edward Hilbert
Henry Perry
Milton Hall
Alfred Schmidt
Marshall Fellers
Charles Fellers
Earl Cummings
Harold Norris
William Norris
Pershing Randall
Harold Galatian
John Sprock
William Neilson
Fred Reeves
Earl Closson
Donald MacQueen
Hamilton Price
Buell Snyder
Thomas Spencer
Dudley Mill
Richard Kavanaugh
George Jerue
Lester Sigrest
Ernest Joy, M.D.
Richard Wagner
Wallace Hager
William Lockett
Jack Whittaker
Robert Hughes
George Hughes
Joseph Rioux
George Reynolds

In coming months and years, the Beachwood Historical Alliance will be producing a series of profiles of all those from Beachwood Borough that have fought in our nation’s wars, from World War I up to current day. Anyone with information, photos and contacts regarding borough service men and women are asked to write us at beachwoodhistoricalalliance@gmail.com

Snapshot of the Past – Beachwood Clubhouse from the Toms River

Today we just wanted to share a quick post of the Beachwood Clubhouse, as seen from on the Toms River, undated (though it would certainly have to be from between 1915 and the time of its burning, prior to World War II).

The site of the clubhouse today, a parking lot with stairs leading down to the water, sits directly across from the Mayo Park Playground on the bluff overlooking Windy Cove. It offers one of the best views in the borough, and includes a couple of picnic tables nearby.

Photo courtesy Joan Disbrow-Morris.

Winter Storm – Beachwood, December 19th & 20th, 2009 – Final

Today we have the last part of our photo set from last month’s winter storm that blanketed the borough with two feet of snow. Enjoy!

December 19th

December 20th

Photo Policy: All images Copyright (c) Beachwood Historical Alliance. Any use not explicitly permitted (ie – downloading and selling them) is strictly prohibited; violators will be prosecuted.

Beachwood Historical Alliance – One Year On

Hello!

The Beachwood Historical Alliance hit its one-year mark this month, and so I wanted to thank the members and contributors that have helped make our organization – and this website – such a success over the past twelve months, as well as offer a quick assessment and word of my own about the future.

First – to our members, contributing past and current residents and borough officials: without your encouragement; attendance and participation in these early meetings; recollection of places, people and events since passed; and photographs, documents and other artifacts to offer historic visual ties to our borough, the Beachwood Historical Alliance would be nothing more than a failed good intention and empty website. A special mention also goes to my family and the families of all those who have given their time to this organization. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Next, a short assessment and recap of the year.