O.C.B.P. History

Posted June 2021; Written by Vince Hink

Joseph P. Krauss was an Ocean City lifeguard before the City paid lifeguards. Working for donations, he began patrolling the beaches between 8th and 11th Streets in the Summer of 1893. “Lifeguard Krauss to the rescue!” was the shout as a floundering bather struggled with the waves in the surf during this time period. The newspaper headlines read, “A bather in peril” or “Saved from a watery grave” as the articles read like an old-time novel. The hero in all of these stories was lifeguard Krauss.

After a couple of drownings, on August 3, 1898 Ocean City Council appointed three city paid lifeguards; Joseph P. Krauss, George Lee and William Scull, to “patrol the surf and render assistance when it may be required”. Krauss was named Captain of the force, a position he held until 1910. Thus Ocean City became the first municipality in Cape May County, and one of the few in the county, to pay for bather protection. During this time period the lifeguards were paid $40 per month and worked every day from 9am to 3pm.

Alfred R. Smith became an Ocean City lifeguard in 1899, and Captain of the lifeguards in 1910, a position he held until 1920.

In the spring of 1920, Ocean City officials made a couple of decisions that still influence the resort: The slogan “America’s Greatest Family Resort” was adopted and Jack G Jernee was appointed Captain of the lifeguards. Jernee used his experience gained in the U.S. Lifesaving Service and the U.S. Coast Guard to build the newly named Ocean City Beach Patrol into one of the finest lifesaving squads in the county. Up until Jernee’s appointment as Captain the men who protected the bathers were called Ocean City Lifeguards. The old lifeguard photos show the men wearing uniforms lettered O.C.L.G. Captain Jernee changed the name to the Ocean City Beach Patrol (O.C.B.P.). Jernee’s regimen of daily physical training became the standard for the lifeguards who tested their lifesaving skills against one another in rowing and swimming competitions at the end of each season.

During Jernee’s tenure the O.C.B.P. received national attention for their lifesaving skills, their athletic prowess (National Lifeguard Champions in 1933, 1934 & 1935), the giant water shows in the Flanders salt water pool, and the flag raising and lowering ceremonies each day at the Music Pier.

Captain Jernee joined the Navy during the Summer of 1942 and Thomas A. Williams, a lifeguard since 1922 became the fourth Captain of the lifeguards. It was during Captain Williams watch that the South Jersey Lifeguard Championship became the prestigious event that it is today. In 1944, O.C.B.P. benefactor John B. Kelly was the driving force behind the first South Jersey Championship race. The 1 mile surfboat race was won by his son, Jack Kelly and his rowing partner Joe Regan. The following year a 1/2 mile ocean swim was added to the event and the O.C.B.P. again won the Team title. During Captain Williams 20 year tenure O.C.B.P. won the team title 9 times. 

Captain Williams retired in the Spring of 1962 and George T Lafferty took over command of the O.C.B.P. During the Lafferty years (1962 to 1983), the O.C.B.P. was the dominant athletic power in South Jersey winning 15 South Jersey Lifeguard Championships including a string of 11 straight; 17 South Jersey Pool Team Championships with 13 straight victories; 8 Margate Memorial Championships; and 7 Dutch Hoffman Memorial titles. Captain Lafferty also oversaw the growth of the O.C.B.P. from  80 lifeguards to a crew of over 120 lifeguard personnel by the end of his tenure while also maintaining the O.C.B.P.’s record of no bather drowning on a lifeguard protected beach.

The Captain Lafferty era also saw the first hiring of female lifeguards to the O.C.B.P. In 1976 Judy Lichtner became the 1st female lifeguard to work for the O.C.B.P. Two years later, she was followed by Anne Copeland who worked into the Captain Ollie Muzslay era. The O.C.B.P. had female Medics and Nurses dating back to the 1920’s.

The late 1970’s also saw the formation of the Ocean City Lifeguard Association (O.C.L.A.) which became the official bargaining unit with the City of Ocean City. There were previous attempts to negotiate pay raises but with no official negotiating entity pay raises were few and far between. In 1976 a group of lifeguards formed this Association (O.C.L.A.) and petitioned the City for changes in the pay-scale and working hours to bring Ocean City more in line with other South Jersey Beach Patrols. Their efforts were rewarded with a retroactive pay raise paid out in the fall and a new pay-scale and change of work hours slated for the following Summer season. The Association was recognized by the State of New Jersey as the official bargaining unit under the Public Employee Relations Commission (P.E.R.C.) and continues to this day with some changes in membership.

The mid-1970’s also saw the creation of the Ocean City Lifeguard Hall of Fame (H.o.F.) with the induction of T. John Carey, Tom Oves and Dick Thieler as Charter members. Captains Jernee and Williams were inducted as Honorary members at the Annual Lifeguard Ball on the Music Pier, which was an annual tradition started in 1920. In the late 1970’s the Lifeguard Ball was discontinued and the yearly H.o.F. inductions have taken place at the annual O.C.B.P. Lifeguard Reunion which continues to this day. The Hall of Fame now includes over 100 O.C.B.P. members.

Captain Lafferty retired after the 1983 season and was succeeded by long time Lieutenant Oliver “Ollie” Muzslay. Captain Muzslay served until the year 2000 and the winning tradition of the O.C.B.P. in South Jersey racing competitions continued under his tenure. Thru the 1980’s O.C.B.P. began regular participation in the annual Gowdy races in Ventnor and the newly created Cape May County Lifeguard Championships in Wildwood Crest. The O.C.B.P. enjoyed great success in each of these new competitions while maintaining its dominance in the major South Jersey tournaments in the Pool and in the Surf. Along with its fine record of athletic achievement the O.C.B.P. continued its outstanding tradition of beach safety and innovation.

It was during this period that the O.C.B.P. saw an increase in female lifeguards. In the late 1980’s women’s team competitions began to take place in Long Island, NY and other United States Lifesaving Association (U.S.L.A.) Championship venues. The O.C.B.P. built up a strong Women’s competition team and had great success in the newly created South Jersey tournaments in Longport, Cape May and Ventnor. Also during this period the O.C.B.P. began extensive use of large Rescue Boards both on the beach and in competitions. By the end of the 1990’s the O.C.B.P. began participation in another major competition, the Atlantic City Classic. The “Classic” was the 1st major competition to invite North Jersey Beach Patrols to participate along with adding a Paddleboard (Rescue Board) event and a 2nd swimmer to each team.

In 1998, the O.C.B.P. celebrated its 100th Anniversary year as a City paid organization with the creation of the O.C.B.P. Invitational tournament which later became the O.C.B.P. Women’s Invitational. A large celebration party followed at the Flanders Hotel with over 300 current and former lifeguards in attendance.

In 2001, the O.C.B.P. was re-organized and came under the supervision of the Ocean City Department of Public Safety as a unit of the Ocean City Fire Department.  Assistant Captain Alfred “Bud” McKinley was appointed as the newly created Chief of the Beach Patrol. McKinley and Assistant Fire Chief Charles Bowman Jr worked on the transition throughout the Winter of 2001. In May 2001, McKinley died suddenly and the search for his replacement resulted in the appointment of Senior Lieutenant Thomas Mullineaux who became Chief at the beginning of the 2001 Summer season. During this transition the O.C.B.P. continued its outstanding record for safety and professionalism introducing many new procedures, including the Fire Department in the City’s beach safety program such as cross-training and extended beach coverage after hours and off-season. The equipment continued to be updated to include the newest available lifesaving tools and the highest level of training given. The O.C.B.P. continued to grow and numbered 146 members at the time of Chief Mullineaux’s retirement in 2016. During his 16 year tenure the Men and Women of the O.C.B.P. continued the winning tradition in competitions. Combined the Men’s and Women’s Teams won 67 Inter-City and South Jersey Championships. This is a fine tribute not only to him but also to the many individuals who trained these lifeguard athletes and helped to maintain a high competitive spirit on the O.C.B.P. Upon Chief Mullineaux’s retirement the O.C.B.P. moved into the future on solid footing and well prepared for the challenges ahead.