Wildwood Music Memories: Entertainment & Nightlife, Volume I, 1885-1969
About
Discover the Wildwoods' rich music history from 1885–1969. Journey through iconic venues, legendary artists, and the rise of rock & roll in Volume I.
From the authors of Wildwoods Houses Through Time and Images of America: Hunt’s Pier, Wildwood Music Memories: Entertainment & Nightlife, Volume I, 1885–1969 takes readers on a historical and nostalgic trip through the Wildwoods’ legendary live music scene from the resort's beginnings to its heyday.
It is the first in a series spanning decades, genres, and venues. At their height, Wildwood and North Wildwood were as happening as New York, Miami Beach, and Las Vegas. From hotspots like the Starlight Ballroom to the Surf Club, the Riptide to the Rainbow, and Club Avalon to the Manor Supper Club, readers are transported back to when the Treniers and Bill Haley & the Comets sparked a rock & roll revolution, Chubby Checker launched a world-changing dance craze, and the Isley Brothers performed with an unknown Jimi Hendrix.
Generations of fans arrived by train—and later the Garden State Parkway—and danced to jazz, swing, rhythm & blues, country western, and rock. And it all happened in bars, cafés, and nightclubs in the Wildwoods, New Jersey.
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ISBN: 9781634996532
Publisher: America Through Time
Date: 11/30/2026
State: New Jersey
Series: America Through Time
Images: 102 photographs
Pages: 110
Dimensions: 6.5 (w) x 9.25 (h)
The book charted at #1 in House & Hotel Photography and was a bestseller on Amazon.
Press for Wildwoods Houses Through Time
February 2019
In her new book, "Wildwoods Houses Through Time" (Fonthill Media), lifelong Wildwood resident Taylor Henry dives into the history of these older, overlooked homes, revealing a different side of local history.
Press of Atlantic City: Local student publishes book about the Wildwoods’ architectural history
March 2019
A local graduate student recently published “Wildwoods Houses Through Time,” a book about the architecturalhistory of the four Wildwood boroughs.
Rowan Writing Arts Spotlight: Taylor Henry, Recently Published Rowan Alum
2019
Taylor Henry, a recent graduate of Rowan’s Writing Arts program and current student in the Master of Arts in Writing program, published her book Wildwoods Houses Through Time. The Writing Arts department was thrilled to hear of Henry’s success as she is one of the first students to have a book publishing through their undergrad experience.
May 2019
Rowan University Adjunct Professor and host Paul Perrello welcomes Rowan graduate, journalist and author Taylor Henry to talk about her new book “Wildwoods Houses Through Time” and her work to document some of the architectural riches that grace the South Jersey shoreline from North Wildwood to Wildwood Crest.
June 2019
Wildwood Houses Through Time is Taylor's first book and will be available for sale after event.
Philadelphia Inquirer: The state shut down the Shamrock bar. Some think Wildwood will never be the same.
July 2021
[A developer], meanwhile, is building 26 townhouses and 12 condominiums on the former St. Ann’s Parsonage, a 1909 Tudor that was a rare example of Victorian “Stick-Style,” notes Henry in her book Wildwoods Houses Through Time.
October 2021
Taylor Nicole Henry began volunteering with the Wildwood Historical Society in 2017 and quickly rose to become its youngest president in October 2019. During that time she authored the book Wildwoods Houses Through Time that showcased local vernacular architectural and began the popular blog @Tiny Churches documenting NJ places of worship.
December 2021
“Before the building boom, a Wildwood Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) formed in 1997 in response to Olivieri’s study,” Taylor wrote in her book “Wildwood Houses Through Time.” “The HPC did not last, likely because of a lack of means to enforce preservation, combined with hostility from property owners toward municipal influence over the aesthetics of their properties.”