Sea Breeze, New Jersey

Populated place in Cumberland County, New Jersey, US

Unincorporated community in New Jersey

Sea Breeze, New Jersey

Unincorporated community

Ship John Shoal Light

Sea Breeze

Location in Cumberland County (Inset: Cumberland County in New Jersey)

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Sea Breeze

Sea Breeze (New Jersey)

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Sea Breeze

Sea Breeze (the United States)

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Coordinates: 39°19′16″N 75°19′13″W﻿ / ﻿39.32111°N 75.32028°W﻿ / 39.32111; -75.32028
Country|  United States
State|  New Jersey
County| Cumberland
Township| Fairfield
Elevation

| 3 ft (1 m)
ZIP Code|

08302

GNIS feature ID| 0880444[1]

Sea Breeze is an unincorporated community located within Fairfield Township in Cumberland County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.[2] It is located on the shores of the Delaware Bay.[3]

## History

[edit]

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In 1887, steamboat travel between Philadelphia and Sea Breeze began. After two aspiring businessmen from Gloucester restored an old Civil War boat (named the John A. Warner), a regular service was run throughout the summer to Sea Breeze's amusement pier. Later that year, The Warner House opened at Sea Breeze. The Warner house was a 40-room hotel, complete with a bar, and offered bathing as well as numerous recreational activities to visitors. Annual clambakes and boat races were also held. The Warner House burned down in 1890.[4]

By the early 20th century, Jesse Smith built Sea Breeze's second hotel, The Seabreeze Hotel. During this time a man named Harry Griffith would rent rowboats on the bay, and is alleged to have provided alcohol during Prohibition. The new hotel suffered a similar fate as the Warner House and was destroyed by a fire in the 1940s.

Following the repeal of Prohibition, Griffith obtained a liquor license and opened the Sea Breeze tavern. Although it started out in a nearby barge, it later expanded to three rooms. By the 1940s, Griffith's daughter Mae had added food to the tavern. Although Harry Griffith died in the 1960s, the tavern was run by his family up until 1985, when it was destroyed by Hurricane Gloria.

The hamlet is home to a small community of seasonal homes and does not have many year round residents. There is one road in Sea Breeze, Beach Avenue and it is unpaved. There are no marinas or businesses, but Sea Breeze is still used by salt water fisherman and bird watchers.

A row of summer houses in Sea Breeze

In November 2008, six of the 19 homeowners in Sea Breeze asked the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to buy their properties. A recently constructed seawall had been badly damaged by the waves, leaving the properties at great risk.[5]

After the remaining homeowners agreed to sell their property to the state, the properties were demolished.[6]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Sea Breeze". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
2. ^ Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed June 9, 2016.
3. ^ Gannett, Henry (January 28, 1895). "A Geographic Dictionary of New Jersey". U.S. Government Printing Office - via Google Books.
4. ^ Conahey, Patrick W. Sr. "Fairfield Township History - Seabreeze", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, October 6, 2009. Accessed March 2, 2025. "During the steamboat era in 1877, two men from Gloucester purchased 120 acres and built an amusement pavilion and steamboat landing. They rebuilt a Civil War ordinance boat named the John A. Warner. During the summer it ran daily excursions from Philadelphia to Sea Breeze."
5. ^ "Town's property owners want state to buy them out". Archived from the original on December 4, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2008.
6. ^ "There’s An Abandoned Beach Town Off The Delaware Bay In NJ", WPST, March 7, 2023. Accessed March 2, 2025.

## External links

[edit]

* Fairfield Township

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States

County seat: Bridgeton

Cities|

* Bridgeton
* Millville
* Vineland

Map of New Jersey highlighting Cumberland County

Borough|

* Shiloh

Townships|

* Commercial
* Deerfield
* Downe
* Fairfield
* Greenwich
* Hopewell
* Lawrence
* Maurice River
* Stow Creek
* Upper Deerfield

CDPs|

* Arrowhead Lake
* Carlls Corner
* Cedarville
* Centre Grove
* Cumberland-Hesstown
* Deerfield Street
* Delmont
* Dividing Creek
* Dorchester
* Dutch Neck
* Fairton
* Fortescue
* Gandys Beach
* Gouldtown
* Greenwich
* Heislerville
* Lakeside-Beebe Run
* Laurel Heights
* Laurel Lake
* Leesburg
* Marlboro
* Mauricetown
* Milmay‡
* Money Island
* Newport
* Othello
* Port Elizabeth
* Port Norris
* Roadstown
* Rosenhayn
* Seabrook Farms
* Seeley
* Sheppards Mill
* Silver Lake
* Sunset Lake
* West Park

Other
communities|

* Bowentown
* Buckshutem
* Cohansey
* Cumberland
* Hesstown
* Jericho
* Sea Breeze
* Seabrook
* Springtown

Footnotes|

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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* United States portal

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