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!
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.
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.
What a wonderful history - it must have been a great place to go to in its various hey days.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this Mary - looks a great beach too.
Have a great weekend Mary!
Gill xx
This is the time of year to enjoy it best before the crowds arrive. Nice photo!
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing history. It would have been a fun place to get dressed up and go to see one of Frank Sinatra's shows.
ReplyDeleteSam
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!
ReplyDeleteOh, how wonderful it must have been to attend a ball, dressed up in a beautiful ball gown, there in the 1950s!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGod bless,
When we were kids we use to go to oob because of all the rides and fun.
ReplyDeleteI grew up just outside of Wells Beach.
Cathy
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!!!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed learning about the history of the pier. It really must have been special in its day.
ReplyDeleteA pier at the beach is a beautiful thing!
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ReplyDeleteThis 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
This pier reminds me of the one in Eastbourne, England!
ReplyDeleteI 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.)
What a beautiful place to be able to visit - great for clearing the head (particularly when you consider all that history)!
ReplyDeleteRemind 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.
ReplyDeleteI'm just dropping by to wish you a lovely Mother's Day weekend.
ReplyDeleteSam