Sea Isle City is a city in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The city, and all of Cape May County, is part of the South Jersey region of the state, along with the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area and the Philadelphia metropolitan area.New Jersey: 2020 Core Based Statistical Areas and Counties, United States Census Bureau. Accessed December 22, 2022. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's year-round population was 2,104, a decrease of 10 (−0.5%) from the 2010 census count of 2,114, which in turn reflected a decline of 721 (−25.4%) from the 2,835 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023. Visitors raise the population to as much as 40,000 during the peak summer season from Memorial Day to Labor Day.Wilson, Michael. "Where Police Rookies Get Their Feet Wet", The New York Times, May 22, 2009. Accessed July 4, 2011. "That season has arrived in Sea Isle City, a small coastal community about 140 miles from New York and 75 miles from Philadelphia whose population starting this weekend swells to 40,000 from about 2,600 and stays ballooned through Labor Day." Sea Isle City is located on Ludlam Island, which also contains the Strathmere section of Upper Township.

Sea Isle City was originally incorporated as a borough on May 22, 1882, from portions of Dennis Township, based on the results of a referendum held six days earlier. The borough was reincorporated on March 31, 1890. In March 1907, portions of Dennis Township and Upper Township were annexed to Sea Isle City. In April 1905, portions of Sea Isle City were annexed to Upper Township. On April 30, 1907, the area was reincorporated as the City of Sea Isle City, based on the results of a referendum held on April 20, 1907.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 115. Accessed May 30, 2024.Honeyman, Abraham Van Doren. Index-analysis of the Statutes of New Jersey, 1896-1909: Together with References to All Acts, and Parts of Acts, in the 'General Statutes' and Pamphlet Laws Expressly Repealed: and the Statutory Crimes of New Jersey During the Same Period, p. 255. New Jersey Law Journal Publishing Company, 1910. Accessed October 1, 2015. The name derives from its location on the Atlantic Ocean.Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 278. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed October 1, 2015.

History

Sea Isle City was founded in 1882 by Charles K. Landis, who was also the founder of Vineland, New Jersey. The main street in town, Landis Avenue, is named for its founder. The oldest building in Sea Isle City is The Colonnade Inn, a Victorian building dating back to the 1800s. From 1885 until 1924, Sea Isle City was the location of Ludlam's Beach Lighthouse. The structure was moved to the corner of Landis Avenue and 35th Street (3414 Landis Avenue), and was a private residence (offered for rental) for many years. A non-profit group, The Friends of the Ludlam Beach Lighthouse, was unsuccessful in its efforts to raise enough money to save the building from demolition by moving it to a new location and restoring it. It was demolished on September 21, 2010, to make way for new town homes.Greenberg, Ted. "Historic Lighthouse Gets Demolished", WCAU, September 22, 2010. Accessed November 5, 2013. "Demolition began Tuesday on a Sea Isle City landmark after a failed bid to save it. The former 1885 Ludlam Beach Lighthouse, situated about a block from the beach at 3414 Landis Ave., was torn down to make way for new homes."

The oil tanker MV Sea Isle City was renamed for this city when it was reflagged and registered in the United States in 1987 during Operation Earnest Will. It was struck by a Silkworm missile off Kuwait on October 16, 1987, wounding 18 crew members and seriously damaging the ship.Mann, Jim. "Silkworm Missile Off World Market, China's Envoy Says", Los Angeles Times, November 25, 1987. Accessed August 4, 2011. "On Oct. 16, a Silkworm apparently fired by Iranian forces heavily damaged the Sea Isle City, one of the Kuwaiti oil tankers re-registered under the American flag as part of the U.S. tanker escort effort."

Coastal storms There have been many hurricanes and huge storms that have hit the small island of Sea Isle City, New Jersey. The storms of the 1890s, 1920s, and the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane have been some of the worst natural disasters to hit the coast of New Jersey. The Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962, a major Nor'easter that hit on March 6, 1962, tops all other storms that have hit the area in the recent past, with three days of continuous rain. Many people evacuated in time to save their lives, but came back to find their homes and assets destroyed. Eventually, the only way out of town was the causeway, and when that flooded, rescuers had to use helicopters to evacuate the rest of the town. It was categorized as a "100-year storm," in which almost every beachfront home or property was destroyed or damaged.Urgo, Jacqueline. , The Philadelphia Inquirer, November 7, 2009. Accessed August 4, 2011. "Building booms occurred after severe storms battered much of the New Jersey coastline in 1944 and 1962. In Sea Isle, the 1962 nor'easter destroyed or significantly damaged nearly every beachfront structure."

About a week later when the storm had subsided, Sea Isle City citizens moved back into their homes and began the needed revisions. As a result of the storm, a "dune line" was formed, and this caused beachfront businesses and homes to move back from the shoreline an average of one block.

Tourism Sea Isle City has long been popular with summer visitors and has made efforts to draw tourists beyond its "cheerful but sleepy profile". The printed message on its signature water tower was changed from "Welcome to Sea Isle City" to "Smile! You're in Sea Isle City".Strunsky, Steve. "Shore towns make waves to be your vacation choice", The Star-Ledger, April 12, 2018. Accessed June 25, 2026, via Newspapers.com. "Sea Isle City, a Cape May County town largely overshadowed by the Wildwoods and Cape May City’s much-hyped Victorian charm, released four new YouTube videos last week under its 'Forecast is Fun' campaign to raise its cheerful but sleepy profile. This after having clung to quaint marketing techniques that included the annual Sara the Turtle Festival and repainting the logo on its water tower from 'Welcome to Sea Isle City' to 'Smile, you’re in Sea Isle City.'"

The "Sara the Turtle Festival" is one of the city's annual festivals, celebrating a fictional turtle named Sara. Aimed towards families with young children, the festival features live animal exhibits and face painting meant to educate children about the local environment."Sea Isle City's 2013 Sara the Turtle Festival Was Largest to Date", Cape May County Herald, June 21, 2013. Accessed November 5, 2013. "Sea Isle City – The 2013 Sara the Turtle Festival attracted hundreds of children and their families to Sea Isle City's Excursion Park on June 20. The annual event, which is hosted by Sea Isle's Division of Tourism, featured live animal and environmental exhibits, a 'Diaper Derby' for crawling babies, 'Turtle Races' on the sand for older children, a live performance by 'The Turtlesingers' and other free entertainment." The city hosts a Polar bear plunge every February, holding the 25th annual event in 2019, featuring many participants dressed in costume.Rose, Lisa. "Polar Bear Plunge in Sea Isle City features sleet, Speedos and bikinis", The Star-Ledger, February 19, 2013. Accessed November 5, 2013. "Sleet rained down on folks in Speedos and bikinis in Sea Isle City this past weekend, as the town hosted its 19th annual Polar Bear Plunge. The cold jump in the ocean was only part of the politically incorrect spectacle, which featured a phantasmagoric costume contest and a ceremonial crowning of a Polar Bear King and Queen."

In 1999, the city's only amusement park, Fun City, was closed and the land was sold for development of beach homes. In 2009, a new amusement park called Gillian's Funland was opened on JFK Boulevard by the bay as a public-private venture between Sea Isle City and neighboring Ocean City mayor Jay Gillian. Funland was permanently removed, however, following the 2013 summer season for financial reasons in part due to losses from Hurricane Sandy.Ianieri, Brian , "Sea Isle amusement park closes for good", Press of Atlantic City, February 22, 2014. Accessed July 21, 2014

In 2011, Sea Isle City began a $14 million makeover to create a public corridor from the bay to the ocean. Plans included a new boathouse on the marina, installing a new playground and basketball courts on JFK Boulevard and erecting a pavilion and band shell at Excursion Park on the city's Promenade overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.Miller, Michael. "Sea Isle City officials hope bay-to-ocean corridor will lead visitors to local attractions", The Press of Atlantic City, May 5, 2011. Accessed July 22, 2014. Sea Isle City became one of the first municipalities in New Jersey, along with Salem and Egg Harbor City, to implement LED streetlights powered solely by wind and solar energy. The lights were installed at the Promenade at JFK Boulevard by the South Jersey Economic Development District and the New Jersey Institute of Technology.Procida, Lee. "Egg Harbor City and Sea Isle City to test hybrid streetlights", The Press of Atlantic City, May 11, 2011. Accessed July 22, 2014. "Egg Harbor and Sea Isle cities will join Salem as the first in the state to get streetlights powered solely by the wind and sun, a technology with the potential to take tens of thousands of lampposts off the electricity grid in southern New Jersey."

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 2.75 square miles (7.13 km2), including 2.20 square miles (5.71 km2) of land and 0.55 square miles (1.42 km2) of water (19.93%).

Sea Isle City is a beach town with most of its housing used for vacation rentals and second homes. It has a beachfront promenade starting at 29th Street and ending on 57th street and several arcades, shops, restaurants and bars in the center of town. The epicenter of the town is John F. Kennedy Blvd. (41st Street).

Sea Isle is not an "island city" as it shares its land on Ludlam Island with Strathmere, which is part of Upper Township. Neighboring Ocean City, however, is an island city as it includes the entire island.

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the city include Ludlam Beach and Townsends Inlet (located at the south end of Ludlam Island).Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015.

The city contains a small Italian-American enclave and community known as Fish Alley, formed by poor Italian immigrant fishermen and their families. The enclave, originally consisting of shanties, contains various docks, ports, and Venetian-style canals, and it still serves as a port and home for multigenerational Italian-American fishermen. Fish Alley is also home to various dockside Italian seafood restaurants that are largely supplied by, owned by, and sustained by the Sea Isle City Italian-American fisherman community.

Sea Isle City borders Avalon Borough, Dennis Township, Middle Township, and Upper Township, along with the Atlantic Ocean.Areas touching Sea Isle City, MapIt. Accessed March 5, 2020.Cape May County , Coalition for a Healthy NJ. Accessed March 5, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.

Demographics

2020 census