Island Beach was a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

that existed in

Ocean County Ocean County is a county located along the Jersey Shore in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Its county seat is Toms River.New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, United States, from 1933 to 1965. Island Beach was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

on June 23, 1933, from portions of Berkeley Township, Lacey Township and Ocean Township. The referendum that approved the borough's formation was passed on August 18, 1933.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 201. Accessed September 23, 2013. Most of the land that made up the new borough — worth — had been purchased by

Henry Phipps Henry Phipps may refer to: * Henry Carnegie Phipps (1879–1953), sportsman and financier * Henry Phipps Jr. (1839–1930), entrepreneur and major philanthropist * Henry Phipps, 1st Earl of Mulgrave General Henry Phipps, 1st Earl of Mulgrave, ...

, a partner of

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

, in 1926. Phipps had hired Francis Parkman Freeman to act as foreman of the Island Beach estate, and Freeman and his wife Augusta Huiell Seaman shared the various local government positions between them. The population reached a peak of 31 in the 1940 Census, and following a government-ordered evacuation during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

for work on

Operation Bumblebee Operation Bumblebee was a US Navy effort to develop surface to air missiles (SAMs) to provide a mid-range layer of anti-aircraft defence, between anti-aircraft guns in the short range and fighter aircraft operating at long range. A major reason f ...

, the population had dropped off to 13 by

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

and was down to 11 in the 1960 tally, the last before the borough was

disincorporated A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally owne ...

.New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990
,

New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The New Jersey Civil Service Commission is an independent body within the New Jersey state government under the auspices of the ...

. Accessed February 18, 2015. The borough lasted until July 6, 1965, when it was absorbed into Berkeley Township. The territory now comprises

Island Beach State Park Island Beach State Park is a New Jersey state park located just south of Seaside Park on the Barnegat Peninsula in Berkeley Township, Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. The park is operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Pa ...

Notable residents

* Augusta Huiell Seaman (1879-1950), author of

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

."Augusta Seaman, Author since '07; Writer of Many Children's Books Dies at 71--Serials Appeared in St. Nicholas"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', June 5, 1950. Accessed January 23, 2008.

Notes

{{coord, 39.8434, -74.0887, region:US-NJ_type:city, display=title 1965 disestablishments in New Jersey Berkeley Township, New Jersey Former boroughs in New Jersey Former municipalities in Ocean County, New Jersey Geography of Ocean County, New Jersey Ghost towns in New Jersey Populated places established in 1933 1933 establishments in New Jersey