Barnegat Peninsula

The Barnegat Peninsula, also known as the Island Beach Peninsula and colloquially as "the barrier island", is a 20-mile long, narrow barrier peninsula located in Ocean County, New Jersey, that divides the Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. It is a vacation destination and summer colony area and is heavily dependent on the industries of tourism; real estate; and fishing. The Barnegat Peninsula is one of the most sought-after areas on the Jersey Shore for tourists and local home owners alike. Notable communities on the peninsula include Point Pleasant Beach, Bay Head, Mantoloking, Lavallette, Ortley Beach, Seaside Heights and Seaside Park. The southern 10-miles of the barrier island is preserved in its natural state as Island Beach State Park, New Jersey's longest stretch of undeveloped coastline.

Geography

The peninsula divides the Atlantic Ocean from Barnegat Bay in Ocean County, New Jersey. It stretches approximately 20 miles from Manasquan Inlet in Point Pleasant Beach in the north to Island Beach State Park in the south. It is separated from Long Beach Island to the south by the treacherous Barnegat Inlet.

The area surrounding the peninsula were described by Henry Hudson, in 1609, as "...a great lake of water, as we could judge it to be ... The mouth of the lake hath many shoals, and the sea breaketh on them as it is cast out of the mouth of it." The name of the peninsula is derived from that of the adjacent inlet and bay, which were originally named in 1614 "Barendegat," or "Inlet of the Breakers," by Dutch settlers, referring to the waterway's turbulent channel.

Communities

Communities on the peninsula include Point Pleasant Beach, Bay Head, Mantoloking, Lavallette, Ortley Beach, Normandy Beach, Seaside Heights, and Seaside Park. Additionally, Brick Township Beaches I, II, and III, Dover Beaches North, and Dover Beaches South are located on the peninsula.

Point Pleasant beach is a popular family resort known for its boardwalk, aquarium, and fishing industry. The town is also adjacent to the Manasquan River and Manasquan Inlet.

Bay Head, is noted for its quiet beaches, the Bay Head Yacht Club and its fine Shingle-style seashore houses. Bay Head was founded in 1886 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Mantoloking, the second wealthiest community in the State of New Jersey, is known for its Shingle-style houses overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and Barnegat Bay. The Mantoloking Yacht Club has produced Olympic-champions.

Normandy Beach, New Jersey, Lavallette, Dover Beaches North, New Jersey (Ocean Beach and Chadwick Beach); Ortley Beach; and Seaside Park are predominantly summer-only coastal towns with extremely small winter populations. They are popular for their fairly affordable housing stock, their ocean beaches and access to water activities on Barnegat Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

Seaside Heights is the principal community in the southern half of the peninsula, world-famous for its boardwalk and amusement piers lined with food stands, shops, games-of-chance, and amusement park rides. Seaside Heights has a summer population of close to 40,000 and a winter population of just 5,000. The town is popular with vacationers from New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey itself and beyond. In the summers of 1998 and 2002, MTV hosted their summer-broadcast in Seaside Heights.

The main thoroughfare connecting these shore towns is Route 35. Connections to the mainland include the Mathis and Tunney Bridges in Toms River connecting Seaside Heights, Route 35 running north from Point Pleasant Beach to Manasquan over the Manasquan River, Bridge Avenue between Point Pleasant and Bay Head, and the Mantoloking Bridge linking Mantoloking with Brick Township.

Since the Point Pleasant Canal was built in 1925 connecting the Manasquan Inlet with the Barnegat Bay, the peninsula is technically an island. It is sometimes referred to as Barnegat Beach Island, or more commonly, "the barrier island."

External links

• Island Beach State Park