| The snow covered custard stand pictured above was located on the NW corner of Rosemary and New Jersey Avenues in Wildwood Crest and was owned and operated by a local teacher by the name of Ray Titleman. This stand was an early favorite of mine and one I frequented all through the summers of my youth. By the early 1980's Titleman's little custard stand had been demolished to accomodiate Wildwood Crest's first Wawa Market. Years later Wawa relocated, and the building became the offices for Dr. Richard Renza, which remains today. |
| Locals and visitors alike recall with fondness the days of the Tom Cat Restaurant, located on the north side of Rio Grande Avenue entering Wildwood. But for me - my favorite was located just across the street from the Tom Cat on the south side, and it was called the Cold Cat (pictured above). I would beg my Mom to take me there whenever we were out and about for the day. Not only did they have great custard and shakes, but the burgers were something special - thin and saltly and oh so good. The Cold Cat was owned and operated by the Bixler family and I'll never forget it. Years later the building became a Payless Liquor Store (pictured above right) before eventually being demolished to clear the way for a new Wawa. Pictured right is the west entrance/exit to the Wawa on Rio Grande Avenue. This is the same spot on which the Cold Cat once stood. |
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| The Sinclair Service Station pictured above was once located on the NW corner of Schellenger and Atlantic Avenues in the 1950's, 60's and into the early 70's. Pictured above right, the newly constructed El Rancho Steakhouse that replaced the Sinclair Station. Shown to the immediate right is a current photo of the popular Schellenger's Restaurant, which replaced the El Rancho in the late 70's. Schellenger's has been owned and operated by Tony Trivelis and family since 1978. |
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| Silens is located on the SW corner of Hand and Pacific Avenue and has been owned and operated by the same family since 1919, offering shoes and resort wear for nearly ninety years in the Wildwoods. The above photo to the left was taken in the 1960's - the photo to the right in 2008. |
Above left shows the Taylor Family Photo Shop in the early 60's located at 4807 Pacific Avenue in Wildwood. The same shop is pictured to the right, now occupied by the MagicBrain CyberCafe. |
| Above left is the Woolworth building at 3210 Pacific Avenue while under construction in the 1950's. Also pictured in this photo is my Grandmother, standing just right of the telephone pole. Above right shows the same location as it appears today. This building has been owned by Randy Senna for quite a few years now. Randy, who owns and operates Flipper's Facination Games between Young and Roberts Avenue on the Wildwood Boardwalk, has hopes to one day open this wonderful old building into Randylands Goodtime Emporium. So many great memories I have of this store... as a young boy straight through my adult years. This was were we shopped regularly, for our 45 and LP records... paperback books... even our goldfish and pet parakeets were purchased at Woolworth's. And on just about any given weekend my friends and I could be found eating at Woolworth's lunch counter. |
Special thanks to the Wildwood Historical Society for providing the Cold Cat, Sinclair and El Rancho photos. And also to Ray Titleman for the photo of his custard stand. |
Copyright Ralph Grassi 2008
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