The Boardwalk

The Wildwoods Boardwalk, celebrating its 100th birthday, remains a living, thriving, pulsating celebration of the American imagination. There, history stands side-by-side with 21st century innovation, and the American dream is lived out every summer evening along its more than 70,000 wooden planks. Bright lights and neon dazzle the eye as they did in the 1920s. A wooden roller coaster stands next to its steel counterpart, while just down the boardwalk teens corkscrew through virtual reality. Favorite boardwalk foods -- pizza, ice cream, funnel cakes, cotton candy, fudge and fries -- still rule, but now they’re joined by trendy bottled water, tortilla wraps, and Mahi Mahi. The idea of a boardwalk originated when a railroad conductor, Alexander Boardman, got tired of cleaning beach sand from his trains. He suggested constructing a wooden walkway for seaside strolls. Atlantic City dedicated the first boardwalk in 1870. Thirty years later the City of Wildwood laid its first boardwalk directly on the sand along Atlantic Avenue, from Oak Avenue to Maple Avenue, just 150 yards long.

Boardwalk Photo Gallery - Click on any image to view larger image.