Bathing Pavilions. Beach, Atlantic City, NJ. Library of Congress, ca. 1904 - Courtesy http://www.nps.gov

It was the engineer Richard Osborne who named and designed Atlantic City. Realizing the potential of the location In early 1850s, Dr. Jonathan Pitney visualized it as a health resort spa. In 1852, along with a group of business investors he obtained the railroad charter. This brought the Camden & Atlantic Railroad to Atlantic City.

The City has never looked back since that memorable undertaking. Situated on the site of Absecon village it was duly incorporated in 1854 as Atlantic City. The resort/spa town succeeded beyond anyone’s imagination! Wealthy families from Philadelphia and other places on the East Coast flocked to the new resort.

The beaches of the town were reinvented by the creation of the first boardwalk in 1870. Townsmen laid wooden planks upon the beach so that it could be enjoyed even during hot summer days. Along with the boardwalk came eateries and amusement stands to make Atlantic City a major tourist attraction.

Vacationers and invalids coexisted happily in the Victorian-era town, living in ornate wooden boarding houses and enjoying the boardwalk in the rolling chairs that were invented in the city in 1884. The first of a half-dozen amusement piers was built in 1882, contributing to the city’s carnival-like atmosphere.

By 1887, heavy tourist traffic got a second rail line for the city. In 1895 a visitor returning from Europe introduced to local merchants German-style picture postcards which instantly became popular on Atlantic City souvenir stands.

With the first Miss America Pageant held here in 1921, every one had heard of Atlantic City. The Atlantic City Auditorium Hall on the boardwalk opened in 1929. It was in 1929 that Charles Darrow introduced Monopoly, the board game that made Atlantic City’s streets - household names throughout America!