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2017-03-14- Winter Speaker Event - "A History of Submarine Warfare Along the Jersey Shore"





The ingenious people of the Garden State were instrumental in the early development of the submarine. The first American submarine sank off Fort Lee in 1776, and the first successful one adopted by the U.S. Navy was invented by Paterson’s John Holland at the end of the nineteenth century. Those early vessels were tested in the Passaic River and on the Jersey City waterfront. Today, the only surviving Union Civil War submarine, built in Newark, sits in the National Guard Militia Museum in Sea Girt. In 1918, the technology pioneered there was turned against the Jersey Shore when U-151 went on a one-day ship-sinking rampage. A World War II U-boat offensive torpedoed numerous ships off the coast, leaving oil-soaked beaches strewn with wreckage. of 19th century baseball as it was played here in Monmouth County.

Author Joseph G. Bilby reveals the remarkable history of submarines off the New Jersey coastline.

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The Township of Ocean Historical Museum, founded in 1984, is a member-supported, 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey. Its headquarters, the Eden Woolley House, is one of the few 18th-century structures still in existence in the Township. The museum serves as the ancestral home to every citizen of the Township of Ocean. PLEASE NOTE: At the present time, due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the Museum will only be open on all  Sunday afternoons, from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm, or request a tour anytime by Calling 732-531-2136 or e-mailing at OceanMuseum@yahoo.com. We will be adding days in the future and will continue to keep you advised. The Township of Ocean Historical Museum offers exhibits on the history of coastal Monmouth County and a full calendar of events. The Museum is also 100% volunteer supported, with no paid staff. The Museum maintains a library and archive, which houses manuscripts, books and photographs of historical and genealogical interest. For more information, please call 732-531-2136 or visit our website at

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