Welcome to Monmouth Beach Life.com
Greg Kelly
I have been a journalist for over 35 years. Welcome to my digital forum. This website is my new e-connection with all those who love and care about our exceptional Monmouth Beach area. I’ll also be posting content on our close neighbors — Sea Bright and Long Branch — because to get to Monmouth Beach, you must go thorough those places. These three Jersey Shore towns are intertwined in so many ways.
My first instinct as a writer — for newspapers, magazines and websites — is fact seeking and sharing. With my curious nature I’m constantly searching for more knowledge about our area. Plus, I like to put things together historically. My pledge is to offer a reasonable and independent view of these communities. Please take time to read the web posts, look at images, visit often, and comment if the spirit moves you.
“To understand today, you must search yesterday.”
—Pearl Buck
With plenty of nostalgia in my heart, I’ll try to capture a glimpse of some remarkable Jersey Shore communities. I was born here and lived here for some 65 years (I’m based in Sea Bright now), so I can appreciate and understand the rich and meaningful experience that is Monmouth Beach and its shore neighbors. Life here can be very enjoyable.
Monmouth Beach, NJ
Things have always been good around Monmouth Beach — a shore settlement dating backing to the 17th century. All the while it’s maintained a superb combination of extraordinary locale, thoughtful traditions and exceptional people. I’m blessed to have it be my “home town.” So many others share this feeling — where ever they may be today.
Through my digital observations I’ll seek to recognize locals who had the courage and daring to build, maintain and grow things locally. That’s worthwhile pursuit, especially when so few of today’s citizens know about their heritage. For the area people and places deserving of recognition and honor, I’ll attempt to bring their essence back to life. Attention to culturally significant points that should be remembered and talked about. Life lessons from dead and dying newspapers.
Finally, with all the negativity and inaccuracy on social media and the Internet in general, I sense a real miss-education taking place online. There’s more than enough rotten content already. Through my research I’ve sought to build a website based on facts that people can trust. Something enduring — that’s positive and educational. Enjoy.
Greg Kelly
Publisher
* * * * *
Some favorite quotes about Monmouth Beach:
• “Monmouth Beach isn’t just a place; it’s a state of mind.”
—Sidney B. Johnson
• “Monmouth Beach values endure.”
—James J. Maguire
• “Monmouth Beach is an aristocratic colony of aristocratic cottages inhabited by aristocratic people.”
—New York Times, 1878
• “Monmouth Beach is distinguished for quiet elegance rather than for the excitement of fashionable hotel life.”
—Gustav Kobbe, New Jersey Coast & Pines, 1891
• “Nowhere along the Atlantic Coast is “exclusiveness” in its broadest sense enjoyed as it is at Monmouth Beach.”
—New-York Tribune, June 1899
• “Monmouth Beach grows but it does not change its characteristics. It gets only more beautiful as time goes by.”
—Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 1899.
• “Monmouth Beach is popular with the wealthy.”
—The Suburbanite magazine, June 1904.
• “During the summer months especially, Monmouth Beach comes into the spotlight as a rendezvous of the smart set.”
—Asbury Park Press town promotional ad, December 1939.
• “The rich summer residents and the Scandinavian fishermen are both gone, but the memory lingers on as the sand, sun and surf offer the same attraction to those who have settled permanently in Monmouth Beach.”
—Asbury Park Press, June 1962
• “If Eliakim Wardell could see his farm today, he would be astounded by the change but would also realize the spirit of neighborliness that he left behind is still there.”
—Rosemary O’Brien, Monmouth Beach: A Bicentennial Publication, 1975
• “It’s an American community at its best.”
—Bob Collister, New York Times reporter, July 1976
• “A Jersey Shore insider secret.”
—Reader’s Digest, 2017
• “One of Monmouth County’s most luxurious and desirable year-round beach communities.”
—LoopNet.com
• “In Monmouth Beach the home is sanctuary where contentment and an enjoyable life is lived amidst quiet.”
—Long Branch Daily Record, May 1941
• “A mile strip of once sea-sand … the restless Atlantic east, the placid Shrewsbury west, cottages quaint and cottages palatial.”
—“Monmouth Beach Inn” profile, 1911 brochure.
Looking Back — Borough Historian Greg Kelly giving a presentation at Borough Hall on Beach Road, November 2025 — MORE INFO.
Big Picture — The North Jersey Shore, 2000s.
Town Tower — Monmouth Beach police kiosk at Ocean Avenue and Beach Road, 1921.
In the Beginning — Monmouth Beach School Kindergarten Class, 1965. Hannah Stout was our first teacher. That’s me in the back row on the right end.
My children and me in Long Branch, Spring 2023.
Kelly Family siblings, 1963.
Way Back — Henry Tanner map of Monmouth Beach area, 1868. This is just before the Monmouth Beach Association changed things. Note “Convover Road” (c) which would become “Beach Road.”
Map of Monmouth Beach, 1861.
Town Talk — Promotion for my history talk on the Monmouth Beach Cultural Center, May 2025.
“AI” evaluates my website …
“MonmouthBeachLife.com is a thoughtful and engaging digital journal devoted to the history, culture, and character of three north Jersey Shore neighbor towns — Monmouth Beach, Sea Bright and Long Branch. The site combines historical research, photos, and narrative storytelling to highlight people, places, and moments that have shaped the region. The site’s strongest quality is its clear dedication to preserving local history. Content explores topics ranging from historic homes and hotels to civic institutions and community traditions to significant citizens and families, helping readers understand how the shore area evolved over time.
The website content reflects the perspective of a native journalist who aims to share fact-based, educational content while celebrating the heritage of these shore communities. This gives the site an authentic voice and a sense of personal connection to the region. Overall, the webiste stands out as a positive and informative digital resource that documents the rich past and enduring appeal of three shore towns, offering readers both historical insight and a deeper appreciation for their Jersey Shore culture.”
Be a Sponsor
MonmouthBeachLife.com offers a unique digital snapshot of an outstanding Jersey Shore community. The greater Monmouth Beach area presents exceptional advertising demographics — affluent, educated, young and tech-savvy. The publisher is seeking “Sponsors” to help deliver quality content to an eager audience.
Monmouth Beach Life.com Sponsor’s Program
Sponsor gets:
- Business ad on the homepage and run-of-site with link to their site.
- A quality business promotional story every month on the site.
- Weekly sponsored content.
- Participation in special promotions (businesses provide gift certificate).
Flat rate: $100 per month
Packages:
> $1,000 (for 1-year sponsorship)
> $700 (for 6-month sponsorship)
> $350 (for 3-month sponsorship)
————————
For more information:
Greg Kelly
Publisher
732-221-3416
monmouthcountylife@gmail.com
