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BY MARGARET MORGAN
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
“Down the Shore; things that arenot there anymore” created in fun by Lavallette resident Steve Eccles, 51, on Facebook in late July is acquiring new members by the thousands. The page already has 12,338 members in less than one month. Eccles calls his page “a monster that has taken on a life of its own.” The “arenot” was a typo, but too late to change once the page became official on Facebook.
Eccles, 51, and a few friends started the page as a joke to last maybe a half-hour, at most. Within that half-hour, he had 200 people. By the next day, that number was up to almost 1000. People from all over the country were commenting on their favorite memories at the shore, reconnecting with old friends, classmates, rekindling relationships from days gone by and planning reunions.
Eccles puts up a nightly topic at 7 p.m. for members to comment on. However, comments are not to be posted until 7:30 p.m. He leaves the topic up until 8:15 p.m. – if it’s not read in that 45 minute time period, you’ve missed it. Topics are as varied as the demographics, which range from teens to the 70s and are as far-reaching as California.
Since its inception, the page has had more than 33,000 posts from people sharing their memories and photos of their towns, favorite hangouts, landmarks, activities and places that are not anymore, mainly in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Places like The Bluffs in Bay Head, The Snow Goose in Point Pleasant and the Carousel in Asbury Park are mentioned, as well as memories of teenage dances at St. Rose’s in Belmar from an 83-year-old woman.
Testing the waters, I joined the group to participate in the evening’s topic. Last night’s was, “What was – or still is – your favorite radio station?” Most responses liked WABC with Dan Ingram or WMMR; Tuesday night’s topic was, “What was the first car you ever owned?”
In a radio interview today, Eccles said he followed a friend’s idea on his Facebook page, “Things That Aren’t There Anymore: Central Jersey Edition.” He said people from Florida and the military have jumped on thanking him for creating the page. He added that he just started it – the people that are on the page are the ones that keep it going, reminiscing about everything and every place from Sandy Hook down to Cape May.
Memories and nostalgia about the past will always draw in people from all over and bring lost souls together again.
