from Tom Chesek of the Asbury Park Historical Society *
You're probably familiar with the "sit-in," that form of nonviolent civil disobedience popularized in the 1960s…as well as offshoots that ranged from the "teach-in" and the "be-in," to John and Yoko's "Bed-In for Peace," and even "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In." But have you heard of the "WADE-IN"…and could you have already guessed that it originated here in Asbury Park?
A reaction to the segregationist policies of Asbury Park's founder James A. Bradley…policies that placed extremely tight regulations on the use of the (Bradley-owned) beaches and boardwalk by Black people…the "wade-in" was a creation credited to REVEREND JAMES FRANCIS ROBINSON, pastor of the St. Stephen A.M.E. Zion Church in what would become the west side of Asbury Park, and an outspoken advocate of equal rights whose "indignation meetings" would capture the attention of citizens from coast to coast. It was also a creative solution to a situation encountered by local African American residents, whose attempts at mounting dry-land protest marches on the boardwalk were met by the full contingent of the Bradley-organized constabulary (the actual Asbury Park Police Department would not formally be established until 1904, after the Founder had sold out his interests in the fast-growing city)…and on July 21, 1887, Rev. Robinson and his flock took a different path, one that led to the sea.
Designated a "Jubilee Day" by its organizers, the Thursday event saw a trio of excursion trains pulling into the Asbury Park and Ocean Grove Train Station…originating from the northern NJ locales of Newark, Jersey City, and Orange, and each carrying carloads of Black Jerseyans primed to enjoy an afternoon on the Asbury Park waterfront. First stop was at the Great Auditorium in Ocean Grove, where the assembled congregations joined in the singing of spirituals, and a succession of speakers celebrated the ideals of liberty and the promise of freedom. From there it was off to AP, where the plan was for the crowd to wade into the Atlantic and stretch out upon the sands of the beach.
While the Black beachgoers attempted to patronize the bathing suit concession (where the price of 20 cents would get a customer the rental of a swimsuit, a towel, and a changing room), their business was refused…but the peaceful protestors remained at the sand and surf, in numbers greater than Bradley's security detail could break up…and it was ultimately only Ma Nature who succeeded in sending everyone home, via one of her signature summer thunderstorms.
Unsurprisingly, the July 21 event was given little ink in the Asbury Park newspapers…but the New York Times, a paper that gave frequent coverage to Robinson's cause, made sure that readers across the region knew of the "wade-in." With Bradley's segregationist policies under increased scrutiny, the Founder took a first step toward addressing the "colored question"…restricting Black bathers to one specific span of beach, and then only during the "Commission Hours" of 5 to 7 am. When this move did not exactly prove popular, a stretch of sand between First and Second Avenues was officially designated as a Negro Beach in 1890, complete with Black lifeguards and bath attendants…although eventually hotel proprietors within that area (who in 1893 had pressured Bradley into posting signs officially barring "members of the colored race" from being seen on the boardwalk) would convince the city to move the Black beach to an all-but-hidden alcove located south of the Casino…an area variously dubbed "The Ink Well" or "The Mud Hole."Even long after Bradley's passing, and during the reign of "Friend of the West Side" Mayor Clarence Hetrick, that policy would remain in place; one of the most glaring signifiers of a set of Jim Crow-ish strictures that continued for embarrassingly long into the 20th century.
While the "wade-in" of July 21, 1887 was but a baby step in a long slog toward equity and real progress, it did succeed in calling outside-world attention to Asbury Park's "race issue," and in staying Bradley's hand from the more draconian "solution" of a complete and outright ban on Black bathers.
* With research furnished by Lorraine Stone, Charlie Horner, Kay Harris and others, the story of The Great Wade-In was one of many components of a "pop-up" exhibit by The Asbury Park Museum team, which was displayed in the lobby of The Berkeley Oceanfront Hotel in 2021. Entitled "Asbury Park: 150 Years of Change and Transformation — A Segregated Seashore"…and funded in part by a grant from Monmouth University…the multi-media installation told the "roller-coaster" history of the city's waterfront (here in the sesquicentennial year of AP's founding), as viewed through the lens of a DIVERSE but DIVIDED community. Featuring photo blow-ups, informational posters, a continuously screening slideshow, and display cases of beach/boardwalk artifacts through the years. (Photo of Black bathers at the Second Avenue beach…an image that was captioned "Pickaninnies in the Surf"…is from an actual circa-1890 souvenir booklet of scenes from Asbury Park and Ocean Grove)