Ocean City Maryland History: The Women Who Built a Beach Town
Ocean City Maryland history is full of surprises. Most people know this beach town for its Boardwalk, its fries, and its saltwater taffy. But not many know that by 1926, women owned and ran 30 of the town's 32 hotels, years before most of them could even vote. Locals called it the "Petticoat Regime."
From a quiet fishing village to one of the East Coast's favorite resorts, Ocean City's story is about storms, fires, shipwrecks, and some very determined people. Here's how it all happened.
TAKE A SELF-GUIDED TOUR OF OCEAN CITY:
Ocean City's Petticoat Power Walking Tour is a self-guided GPS audio tour through Old Towne, from the Life-Saving Station Museum to Thrasher's French Fries.
Along the way you'll learn:
Who Zippy Lewis was, and why she left her land to her daughters
How Henry's Hotel welcomed Black travelers during segregation
What happened in the great fire of 1925
Which Boardwalk hotel is the last link to the Petticoat Regime
The walk takes about an hour.
BEFORE THE RESORT:
Long before the Boardwalk, the Assateague people fished and hunted along this coast. By 1722, colonial leaders had pushed them onto small reservations, and many later left Maryland. The barrier island became a quiet place where a few families made a living catching fish and oysters. One of them was Zipporah "Zippy" Lewis, who, as the story goes, built her house from shipwreck wood and left her land to her daughters.
THE ATLANTIC HOTEL AND THE BIRTH OF A RESORT:
On July 4, 1875, the grand Atlantic Hotel opened with more than 400 rooms, and Ocean City was born as a resort. Trains brought visitors from Baltimore and beyond, and new hotels and boarding houses popped up along the beach.
THE PETTICOAT REGIME:
Many of those hotels were run by women. Widows and wives like Rosalie Shreve, who built the Plimhimmon Hotel in 1894, and Ella Phillips Dennis turned boarding houses into thriving businesses. By 1926, women ran 30 of the town's 32 hotels. It was one of America's most successful women-led business communities.
HARD TIMES AND NEW BEGINNINGS:
In December 1925, a fire tore through three blocks of downtown, and firefighters had to cut holes in the frozen bay to pump water. In 1933, a powerful storm cut through the island and created the Ocean City Inlet, which turned the town into a major fishing port. During segregation, Charles and Emma Henry opened Henry's Hotel in 1926 as a welcoming place for Black travelers and musicians like Duke Ellington.
OCEAN CITY TODAY:
Today, Ocean City is a busy summer resort, but you can still find its history all around you. The Life-Saving Station Museum, the Plim Plaza Hotel, and Thrasher's French Fries, serving since 1929, all keep the past alive.
WHERE TO SEE OCEAN CITY'S HISTORY:
Life-Saving Station Museum—Shipwrecks, antique swimsuits, and beach history ($6 adult).
Museum of Ocean City—More local history downtown ($6 adult, or $10 for both museums).
Henry's Hotel—A landmark of Black history on the Eastern Shore.
Plim Plaza Hotel—The last link to the Petticoat Regime.
PLAN YOUR TRIP:
Want the full breakdown—where to eat, where to stay, and the best things to do in Ocean City, MD? Our Ocean City travel guide covers all of it.
Check out our Ocean City travel guide to plan your trip.
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