Congress Hall (Cape May hotel)
Encyclopedia
Congress Hall is a historic hotel in Cape May, New Jersey
occupying a city block bordered on the south by Beach Avenue and on the east by Washington Street
Mall.
Congress Hall was constructed in 1816 as a boarding house for guests at the new seaside resort of Cape May; and the proprietor, Thomas H. Hughes
, called it "The Big House." Locals, thinking it too big to be successful, called it "Tommy's Folly." In 1828, when Hughes was elected to the House of Representatives, he changed the name of his hotel to Congress Hall. Congress Hall burned to the ground in Cape May's Great Fire of 1878, but within a year, its owners had rebuilt the hotel in brick.
While serving as President of the United States, Franklin Pierce
, James Buchanan
, Ulysses S. Grant
and Benjamin Harrison
vacationed at Congress Hall, and Harrison made Congress Hall his official Summer White House. It thus became the center of state business for several months each year. John Phillip Sousa regularly visited Congress Hall with the U.S. Marine Band and composed the "Congress Hall March," which he conducted on the lawn in the summer of 1882.
During the 20th century the Cape May seafront deteriorated. In 1968 Congress Hall was purchased by the Rev. Carl McIntire
and became part of his Cape May Bible Conference. McIntire's possession of the property preserved Congress Hall when many Victorian-era beachfront hotels were demolished for the value of their land.
With the decline of the Bible Conference, Congress Hall fell into a state of disrepair. Restoration was begun in 1995, and today, Congress Hall is again a fully functioning resort hotel.
Cape May, New Jersey
Cape May is a city at the southern tip of Cape May Peninsula in Cape May County, New Jersey, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean and is one of the country's oldest vacation resort destinations. It is part of the Ocean City Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 United States...
occupying a city block bordered on the south by Beach Avenue and on the east by Washington Street
Washington Street (Cape May)
Washington Street is the name of a major east-west street in downtown Cape May, New Jersey. It begins at Lafayette Street and ends at Ocean Street. Unofficially, there is a famous walkway, named the Washington Street Mall, between Ocean Street and Perry Street...
Mall.
Congress Hall was constructed in 1816 as a boarding house for guests at the new seaside resort of Cape May; and the proprietor, Thomas H. Hughes
Thomas H. Hughes
Thomas Hurst Hughes was a Representative from New Jersey; born in Cold Spring, Cape May County, New Jersey, January 10, 1769; attended the public schools; moved to Cape May City in 1800 and engaged in the mercantile business; in 1816 he built Congress Hall, a hotel which he conducted for many...
, called it "The Big House." Locals, thinking it too big to be successful, called it "Tommy's Folly." In 1828, when Hughes was elected to the House of Representatives, he changed the name of his hotel to Congress Hall. Congress Hall burned to the ground in Cape May's Great Fire of 1878, but within a year, its owners had rebuilt the hotel in brick.
While serving as President of the United States, Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...
, James Buchanan
James Buchanan
James Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States . He is the only president from Pennsylvania, the only president who remained a lifelong bachelor and the last to be born in the 18th century....
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
and Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...
vacationed at Congress Hall, and Harrison made Congress Hall his official Summer White House. It thus became the center of state business for several months each year. John Phillip Sousa regularly visited Congress Hall with the U.S. Marine Band and composed the "Congress Hall March," which he conducted on the lawn in the summer of 1882.
During the 20th century the Cape May seafront deteriorated. In 1968 Congress Hall was purchased by the Rev. Carl McIntire
Carl McIntire
Carl McIntire was a founder of, and minister in, the Bible Presbyterian Church, founder and long president of the and the American Council of Christian Churches, and a popular religious radio broadcaster, who proudly identified himself as a fundamentalist.-Youth and education:Born in Ypsilanti,...
and became part of his Cape May Bible Conference. McIntire's possession of the property preserved Congress Hall when many Victorian-era beachfront hotels were demolished for the value of their land.
With the decline of the Bible Conference, Congress Hall fell into a state of disrepair. Restoration was begun in 1995, and today, Congress Hall is again a fully functioning resort hotel.