"LAKEWOOD, 38.2 m. (80 alt., 5,000 pop.), once a small settlement built around an iron works, is today dependent on a winter resort business promoted by the dry, temperate climate of the pine district. John D. Rockefeller Sr. had an estate here and there were other costly houses along the shores of Lake Carasaljo. US 9, running through the center of the town, is lined almost solidly with frame and stucco hotels, some of them reflecting in unkempt lawns the business lost in recent years when many wealthy patrons began to take their winter vacations in the South."
--- New Jersey: A Guide to its Present and Past, 1939
It began at the end of Indian trails, where three brothers, John, George and Henry Skidmore built "Three Partners Mill." In 1814, Jesse Richards settled here and opened "Washingtons Furnace." In 1832, "Washingtons Furnace" was purchased by Joseph W. Brick, who reorganized the business as "Bergen Iron Works." This ran succesfully until his death when the area was named "Bricksburg" in his honor. The largest lake in the village was named "Carasaljo" after Brick's three daughters, Carolina(Carrie), Sarah (Sally) and Josephine (Jo).
In 1850, Ocean County was created from the southermost towns in Monmouth County, including Bricksburg. In 1863, advances in the railroad connections between New York and Philadelphia connected Bricksburg via the New Jersey Southern Railroad. 1866 saw the discovery of anthracite coal in Pennsylvania ended the bog-iron industry in this area, so several prominent bankers came to Bricksburg to invest in the real estate. One of the investors was Charles H. Kimball, for whom the present hospital in Lakewood is named.
In 1865, Riley A. Brick, the son of Joseph W. Brick, built the Bricksburg House, also known as the "Romantic Laurel House" on Main Street. This resort was known to host the Vanderbilts, Goulds, Rockefellers, Astors, Tilfords, Rhinelanders, Kipps, Arbuckles and other families of social prominence.
March 20, 1880, the Post Office officially recognized the name of the village as "Lakewood." The name was chosen by a door-to-door survey of the residents. On March 23, 1893, the Township of Lakewood was created and incorporated by the State Legislature.
In 1891, the famed Laurel-in-the-Pines Hotel opened, as did the Lakewood Hotel, where President Cleveland chose to pass his dying days as peacefully as possible. In the early 1900's, Lakewood was known as the region's winter resort, attracting the wealthy tourist from New York and Pennsylvania. Many important and wealthy people now called Lakewood home or 2nd home. The train arrived from New York every 20 minutes!
John D. Rockefeller made his estate here, and created a fabulous arborterium of evergreen trees on the grounds. In the 1930's the estate was passed to the county, forming Ocean County Park. The mansion no longer stands (funds were not available for that much upkeep), but provides everyone with a beautiful day at the park. The Goulds also placed thier estate on the north side of Lake Carasaljo, and has since become the campus of Georgian Court University.
During World War II, the New York baseball Giants trained in Lakewood, and today the Lakewood Blue Claws minor league team plays here.
Things sure have changed. This guide was written as the decline of the big hotels had begun. When trains were the way to travel, Lakewood was the "southern" destination. Once air travel took over, the wealthy flew right over Lakewood to get to Florida...