The Parker House

Joel Parker of Freehold was a two-time Governor of New Jersey. He served his first term during the Civil War. He was the New Jersey delegate’s choice in 1876 for US President. He visited the Sea Girt resort frequently and stayed at the Beach House, starting a practice of New Jersey Governors spending part of the summer here.

In 1878 Thomas Devlin purchased land to build a large new boarding house with a deep wraparound porch. He had been running a house on Atlantic Ave. in Spring Lake. The Atlantic Cottage was built from the Portuguese Pavilion at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial, and the Devlin’s made this their full-season home.

Mrs. Devlin, Arenda Curtis White, grew up on her father’s farm along Wreck Pond at the terminus of Beacon Blvd., on the West side of 71 in Wall Township. The Whites opened their homestead as a roadhouse along the Manasquan Pike (Rt. 71), where Arenda learned to cook, and Thomas helped her and her mother serve the guests. Their land would eventually become the Sea Girt Inn and is now the Wreck Pond Recreation Area. Arenda would run the rooming house for Devlin’s new enterprise, which held 100 guests. For its first full season in 1880 he needed a name for the property.

In 1880 the Monmouth Democrat noted:

“Thomas Devlin has erected a three-story and basement boarding house on Ocean Avenue”. (The side porch faced the ocean dunes, with nothing in front of it).

“Good taste is displayed in the architecture and appointments of the house. Its capacity is about 100 guests. Mr. Devlin has long been engaged in the business at Atlantic Cottage which has an excellent reputation and no doubt with the increased and improved facilities and the more eligible site the new house will be a success. To find a name for the new house Mr. Devlin has been at a loss, but on Saturday the matter was finally settled by putting the 15 or 20 names suggested into a hat--a la mode Kentucky State. The first name drawn was Parker, in honor of New Jersey's War Governor, and which had been deposited by Mrs. Devlin. The name is highly satisfactory to all the proposers and we think sounds well.

His honor ought to favor the house with a call when the season opens. The incident suggests that Gov. Parker has lady as well us gentlemen admirers on the shore.”

Thomas Devlin ran the Parker House to great praise until he died in 1893. He conducted some of the first Catholic services in the area in the hotel’s parlor. Perhaps ‘God’s Basement’ is not so far-fetched. Before his death, he had accumulated the Ventnor cottages (Beacon House) across the street, and the “Blue House”(the boarding house on the west side of 1st and Chicago), and his widow carried on the Parker House until 1924.

The Portuguese Pavilion made its way to Spring Lake to be used by the Devlins

Mrs. Devlin sold the Ventnor cottages out of her husband’s estate at auction in 1919, one to Lillian M. Elliot a teacher at Waldleigh High School on W 104 St in New York and principal at the Harlem Evening School for Women. The other went to a former army captain who trained at Sea Girt and led his company for seven months of the Spanish-American War in 1898, Frank De ronde of Bergen County.

The “Blue-House” boarding house on Chicago was at one time called Parker House West

In 1924 Arenda Devlin sold the Parker House to Dora Arnold, ending 46 years under Devlin ownership. Dora paid $18,000 and borrowed twice as much to improve the hotel property. She changed the name to “The Arnold” and used $40,000 to make improvements.

But she didn’t have the local connections, the food, or the luck of the Devlin’s. She would only run it for four years before losing it in a sheriff’s sale. She defaulted on the $40,000 mortgage.

Powell T. Lindgren, the owner for the next 40 years purchased the house and applied for a liquor license in 1934 as Prohibition ended. He also opened a bar in the basement, and his patrons included many young beachgoers. Lindgren restored the Parker House name.

In 1949, five underage boys from Spring Lake were served beer and the bartenders were arrested and ultimately reprimanded by the A.B.C. Lindgren who served three terms on the Sea Girt council accepted his sentence. The Parker House lost the right to serve for 30 days to start the 1950 season.

That did not have a negative impact on demand, as the tradition of young people patronizing the bar grew each year. In 1959 Lindgren advertised that given the excessive volume of patrons on the weekends, after 4PM he would no longer serve men in Bermuda’s, beach wear, or T-shirts. By the late 60’s the bar was advertised with the slogan,

“The singles know the place to go, Fri-Sat-Sun, the Parker House Hotel”.

The hotel had turned into a bar, club, restaurant, with some rooms to rent. After the Lindgren’s retired, they sold to John Woodfuff of Freehold who only kept the place for five years.

Robert Leavitt of Verona bought the house with Gerald Mcloud of Trenton Ave in Sea Girt and Robert Galantucci of West Orange. They redecorated in a “Casablanca theme” and re-named it the “Sea Girt Ale House” and “Casablanca Café” . They reopened the bar in the basement which Woodruff had closed. After a short time, Galantucci and Leavitt sold their interests, and McCloud brought in two other partners. Esposito and Mansfield. In the summer of 1978, the bar served four underage patrons, and their license was suspended for 60 days. Given the seasonal nature of the establishment and the condition of the building, they sold. Again there was a local buyer who would bring back the Parker House.

James Hunter’s original Ventnor Cottages, now the Beacon House across the street would be the connection to the new owners. The Beacon House cottages were reunited by the 1940 and 1944 purchases of Richard Westphal, and his wife Meta, both originally from Germany. Richard was a carpenter who dedicated the rest of his life restoring the houses. When Richard passed away, his wife and then his son and daughter-in-law took over the house. Ernie and Ginny loved the Beacon House; they had grown up there.

1896 ad for the house, after Thomas Devlin’s Passing (Spring Lake Historical Society)

Ginny’s brother, Henry Owen Wright bought the Parker House with hopes of restoring it as he was doing with the Avon Hotel (Columns) in Avon-by-Sea. Henry who was a carpenter and single, lived on a 44-foot boat in the Brielle Marina. His childhood friend Frank Mattews and college roommate Jay Pandolphe both lived in Sea Girt. They promised to put money into restoring the structure to its original condition and to maintain good relationships with their neighbors.

Once again, the citizens organized to impose restrictions on the Parker House as a condition of its license. Since the 50s, every few years, usually at the liquor licensing meeting, the incongruity of a large establishment with no parking in a residential neighborhood would occupy a Borough Council meeting or two. The theme: noise, music, patron behavior at closing, and general disturbing of the neighborhood.

In 1979 the license was approved with 13 additional restrictions. The complaints continued, and the Council passed an ordinance banning bars from playing Rock or Disco in their establishments. The owners of the Parker House took that to superior court and won their right to play any kind of music they wanted. But they also changed their tune with the community, were more conciliatory and moved all the live music to the basement and in an open letter to their neighbors, “We feel we have made a concentrated effort to make The Parker House an asset to the community and a pleasant place for residents and visitors alike to enjoy during the summer weeks”.

Henry Wright passed away in 2009. The fun at the Parker House has continued and so have the neighbor’s complaints, along with the occasional “Save Parker” signs. Cabs, then Wally vans and now Uber and Lyft take away the young adults who have made the Parker House a must-stop on their celebration of summer for as long as anyone can remember. Neighbors prefer the side porch bar and the restaurant for lunch and dinner. Want a coveted VIP pass? Get on the waiting list when it opens up. It’s currently closed with 935 patrons on-line in front of you.