Gods, Ghosts, and Wooden Walls

Mike shine’s asbury park pilgrimage

- Mike Shine

THERE ARE GODS OF LOVE, WAR, BIRTH, DEATH, EARTH, wind, fire, thunder, and sea—to name a few. But I think our traditional mythologies are missing the most powerful gods of all: The Gods of Progress.

Asbury Park, a once flourishing boardwalk mecca on the Jersey Shore, withstood decades of sun, salt, fire, winds, and hurricanes for the first part of the twentieth century, only to be reduced to ruins by the onslaught of the automobile, freeways and suburbs in the second half. To write the Legend of Asbury, one must include these new deities. For of all the gods that have shaped this seaside haven, it’s the wrath of the Gods of Progress that brought it down.

The American Dream outgrew Asbury’s 1.6 square miles and never really looked back. Crime rose and the population fell, as did many of the aging buildings. Asbury’s postwar economy was so decimated that it couldn’t save the historic landmarks, and by the new millennium, most of its once glorious structures were reduced to vacant lots.

What remained, however, has seen a near mythic rebirth in the last 15 years. Somehow, the town has reined in these new Gods, and The Legend of Asbury is entering Act Three with an uplifting plot twist.

Much of this rebirth is thanks to the efforts of developers and gutsy entrepreneurs, but also of cultural visionaries like Jenn Hampton of the Parlor Gallery and Wooden Walls Project. She has led the mission of keeping the local art scene vibrant, yet non-conformist. Abandoned buildings mean boarded windows and doorways, but Jenn and Wooden Walls have turned lemons into lemonade, by sponsoring a diverse group of artists to create murals. NJ locals like Pork Chop and Danny Clinch have made the magic with help from out-of-towners like Shepard Fairey and Logan Hicks.