Friday, April 26, 2013

OOB Pier


A beautiful Spring evening in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, and a view of the historic pier.  The flash of light in the background is from Wood Island Light in Biddeford.  

I love this place - what's not to love about 7 miles of sandy beach!  Below is a little history and an old photo of the pier!  


The Pier first opened to the public on July 2, 1898, offering entertainment of all types - including concerts, dancing, lectures, and a casino located at the very end of the pier. The 1825 foot structure was built with three pavilions by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company for a cost of $38,000. 

The Pier has seen many hardships over the years. In November of 1898, the pier and casino were partially damaged by a storm. The Casino was rebuilt in 1899. In August of 1907, a fire destroyed the entrance.

Once again, the pier was rebuilt in 1908 only to have one of the pavilions swept away by the great storm of March, 1909. This storm caused extensive damage and the casino was shortened by 1,000 feet from its original length of 1,825 feet. 

The middle of the century saw the hay-day of the Pier Casino Ballroom, which held as many as 5,000 people. The Ballroom was noted for its moving picture shows and live entertainment, featuring acts such as Frank Sinatra, Xavier Cugat and Benny Goodman. Celebrities and Dignitaries alike made this one of the premier spots to visit on the East coast.

the years, a series of storms ebbed away at the pier causing the casino to be razed in 1970.......then, the great blizzard of 1978 destroyed what was left of the pier. The Pier, as we know it today, was re-opened in 1980, and houses many shops and restaurants.

Currently the Pier continues to undergo transformation and was featured in the 2002 Motion Picture, "In the Bedroom," which received an Academy Award nomination. Today, the Pier's reputation for food, entertainment, and fun keeps vacationing families and people from all walks of life coming back year after year.



15 comments:

  1. What a wonderful history - it must have been a great place to go to in its various hey days.
    Thanks for sharing this Mary - looks a great beach too.
    Have a great weekend Mary!
    Gill xx

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  2. This is the time of year to enjoy it best before the crowds arrive. Nice photo!

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  3. What an amazing history. It would have been a fun place to get dressed up and go to see one of Frank Sinatra's shows.
    Sam

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  4. Wow, what a long and constant presence for the beachgoers at OOB! It certainly has undergone changes over the years! I love the Moxie ad in the roof in the old picture at the end of the post! hope you're having a great weekend, dearie!

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  5. Oh, how wonderful it must have been to attend a ball, dressed up in a beautiful ball gown, there in the 1950s!

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  6. Great post, thanks for sharing!
    God bless,

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  7. When we were kids we use to go to oob because of all the rides and fun.
    I grew up just outside of Wells Beach.
    Cathy

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  8. Great post, very interesting! It must have been a blast back in the day, Xavier Cugat, Sinatra... You live in a great area, lucky you!!!

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  9. I enjoyed learning about the history of the pier. It really must have been special in its day.

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  10. A pier at the beach is a beautiful thing!

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  11. This just made my heart leap for joy. I love the OOB pier and walking that beach. Thank you, thank you.
    I am so homesick for Maine.

    Cheers,

    Sharon

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  12. This pier reminds me of the one in Eastbourne, England!
    I wonder why piers such as this one, that was so large and had buildings on it for entertainment, were not built very often in the USA? Too expensive, I suppose!
    Glad you still have this one to enjoy!
    (There were two piers in Brighton, England but one of them burned down years back, they keep the bare bones of it in the water.)

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  13. What a beautiful place to be able to visit - great for clearing the head (particularly when you consider all that history)!

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  14. Remind me to bring my sneakers this summer when I visit. We can take a walk down to the center. Remember last year we were already to go and it started raining. Did we have thunder and lightning too? BTW, great post.

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  15. I'm just dropping by to wish you a lovely Mother's Day weekend.
    Sam

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I'm thrilled you've stopped by and I always enjoy your comments! Thank you!