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Queering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalk
“Create a More Positive Rehoboth” was a decades-long goal for progress and inclusiveness in a charming beach town in southern Delaware. Rehoboth, which was established in the 19th century as a Methodist Church meeting camp, has, over time, become a thriving mecca for the LGBTQ+ community. In Queering Rehoboth Beach, historian and educator James Sears charts this significant evolution.Sears draws upon extensive oral history accounts, archival material, and personal narratives to chronicle “the Battle for Rehoboth,” which unfolded in the late 20th century, as conservative town leaders and homeowners opposed progressive entrepreneurs and gay activists. He recounts not just the emergence of the gay and lesbian bars, dance clubs, and organizations that drew the queer community to the region, but also the efforts of local politicians and homeowners, among other groups who fought to develop and protect the traditional identity of this beach town. Moreover, issues of race, class, and gender and sexuality informed opinions as residents and visitors struggled with the AIDS crisis and the legacy of Jim Crow.Queering Rehoboth Beach is more than just an inspiring story about a community’s resilience and determination to establish a safe space for itself in the wake of the era of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. It is also a terrific beach read.
- GenresHistory
342 pages, Paperback
First published May 24, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 14, 2026
Does a book still count for “Nonfiction November” if I technically put it on my TBR for that month, but didn’t actually get to it until December? *awkward whistling* OK, FINE. But I’m ticking it off now! And I enjoyed it!
Rehoboth Beach may be more on general American radar than most small beach towns. I say this because of President Biden, who maintains a home there. My immediate family took weeklong vacations to Rehoboth most summers of my pre-teen and teen years. I even wrote a short story that took place amongst its touristy attractions, which was published here! https://www.sadgirldiaries.com/post/j...
I picked up this book from Browseabout Books for my birthday a couple of years ago. As noted, I’ve been a longtime (sporadic summer) tourist to Rehoboth and I even have family friends who live in town. But I admit my knowledge of the place is completely superficial. I’m grateful for this book in filling in some gaps.
Sears broadly covers the time when Rehoboth was founded as a Methodist Church Meeting Camp in the 19th century, until migration patterns led to debates and political changes about the beach town’s structure. Cue similar developments with the gay/queer community.
A lot of the drama came from conservative homeowners vs progressive business owners. Sears chronicled a lot of people who came in to start successful and not so successful restaurants, retail establishments and clubs. A lot of the pushback came from homeowner ordinances, curbing their businesses.
It was the era, some 30-50 years ago, when calling a place “a family town” stood in cultural opposition to including gay life. And surely there were some ornate, out-there forms of expression, including Drag Volleyball on Poodle Beach. :P It’s only by continuing to stay out there that they become more mainstream.
The AIDS crisis plays in significantly, and homophobic violence. So too do issues of race. Inherent to any U.S. residential area is how racial politics inculcate a caste system. The Black community of “West Rehoboth Beach” remains unincorporated with Rehoboth Beach proper. Ergo the Black community was in large part shut out of the economic and cultural progression of the popular beach town, including in the queer community.
This is a jam-packed book full of names and places. It’s the type of nonfiction that doesn’t fully grab me, because it’s easy to get overwhelmed. (Lots of kudos to the amount of research and interviews!) Still, a couple of characters stood out, like assertive trailblazer Joyce Felton, who was instrumental in bringing the concept of fine dining to the beach town. The Blue Moon became a major queer spot.
The 21st century is an era where queer publications have come and gone. Sears starts his book by levying some criticism against CAMP Rehoboth, which was a major mainstay into the new millennium. Butin 2019, after experiencing some homophobic and racist prejudice with his partner, the publication refused an article about it.
“This is precisely how the wily brave new world of Trumpian bigotry manifests itself,” Sears opines. “There is no smoking gun—only ambiguity, misdirection and gaslighting.”
This responsive historical nonfiction book perhaps ends on a more hopeful note. Even in the age of Trump, queer people are running for office now. More conflicts may arise from the surrounding more conservative Delaware environs. Rehoboth itself is growing more high-end, but that means only a certain class of queer (and other) people can live and vacation there. Transgenderism is in the public conversation, but probably the least widely accepted.
“The idea of Rehoboth emerged from a vision of Rev. Robert Todd’s evangelical experience, possible only within a community of believers,” Sears writes. “Although the camp meeting experience was short-lived, the belief in Rehoboth as a community of common values was not. Throughout its history, many of the town’s struggles were between those believing that community is based on free association of individuals versus those seeing the community as what shapes the individual.”
It seems that the continued challenge for Rehoboth, and indeed most places where people congregate, is finding a balance between the gatekeeping what the old guard believe a community should be vs making room for a broader reality on the ground.
Rehoboth Beach may be more on general American radar than most small beach towns. I say this because of President Biden, who maintains a home there. My immediate family took weeklong vacations to Rehoboth most summers of my pre-teen and teen years. I even wrote a short story that took place amongst its touristy attractions, which was published here! https://www.sadgirldiaries.com/post/j...
I picked up this book from Browseabout Books for my birthday a couple of years ago. As noted, I’ve been a longtime (sporadic summer) tourist to Rehoboth and I even have family friends who live in town. But I admit my knowledge of the place is completely superficial. I’m grateful for this book in filling in some gaps.
Sears broadly covers the time when Rehoboth was founded as a Methodist Church Meeting Camp in the 19th century, until migration patterns led to debates and political changes about the beach town’s structure. Cue similar developments with the gay/queer community.
A lot of the drama came from conservative homeowners vs progressive business owners. Sears chronicled a lot of people who came in to start successful and not so successful restaurants, retail establishments and clubs. A lot of the pushback came from homeowner ordinances, curbing their businesses.
It was the era, some 30-50 years ago, when calling a place “a family town” stood in cultural opposition to including gay life. And surely there were some ornate, out-there forms of expression, including Drag Volleyball on Poodle Beach. :P It’s only by continuing to stay out there that they become more mainstream.
The AIDS crisis plays in significantly, and homophobic violence. So too do issues of race. Inherent to any U.S. residential area is how racial politics inculcate a caste system. The Black community of “West Rehoboth Beach” remains unincorporated with Rehoboth Beach proper. Ergo the Black community was in large part shut out of the economic and cultural progression of the popular beach town, including in the queer community.
This is a jam-packed book full of names and places. It’s the type of nonfiction that doesn’t fully grab me, because it’s easy to get overwhelmed. (Lots of kudos to the amount of research and interviews!) Still, a couple of characters stood out, like assertive trailblazer Joyce Felton, who was instrumental in bringing the concept of fine dining to the beach town. The Blue Moon became a major queer spot.
The 21st century is an era where queer publications have come and gone. Sears starts his book by levying some criticism against CAMP Rehoboth, which was a major mainstay into the new millennium. Butin 2019, after experiencing some homophobic and racist prejudice with his partner, the publication refused an article about it.
“This is precisely how the wily brave new world of Trumpian bigotry manifests itself,” Sears opines. “There is no smoking gun—only ambiguity, misdirection and gaslighting.”
This responsive historical nonfiction book perhaps ends on a more hopeful note. Even in the age of Trump, queer people are running for office now. More conflicts may arise from the surrounding more conservative Delaware environs. Rehoboth itself is growing more high-end, but that means only a certain class of queer (and other) people can live and vacation there. Transgenderism is in the public conversation, but probably the least widely accepted.
“The idea of Rehoboth emerged from a vision of Rev. Robert Todd’s evangelical experience, possible only within a community of believers,” Sears writes. “Although the camp meeting experience was short-lived, the belief in Rehoboth as a community of common values was not. Throughout its history, many of the town’s struggles were between those believing that community is based on free association of individuals versus those seeing the community as what shapes the individual.”
It seems that the continued challenge for Rehoboth, and indeed most places where people congregate, is finding a balance between the gatekeeping what the old guard believe a community should be vs making room for a broader reality on the ground.
July 27, 2024
Exhaustive in detail, but excellent documentation of the people, groups, and the political, economic, and emotional climate in Rehoboth Beach as the community developed over the years to become a "place for all".
June 25, 2024
The story of how Rehoboth Beach became Delaware's big gay vacation destination, based primarily on oral history interviews with some very interesting people. Heavy focus on the Boomer generation, but the 1970s-1990s were also the peak decades of change. Academic yet accessible to the average reader.
Also recommended: Salty Aftertaste by Jason Lloyd, a very funny account of a wild time in Rehoboth Beach.
Also recommended: Salty Aftertaste by Jason Lloyd, a very funny account of a wild time in Rehoboth Beach.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews