John Bailey Lloyd

John Bailey Lloyd — author, librarian, newspaper columnist, speaker, and historian on Long Beach Island— was frequently referred to as ''Long Beach Island's historian.” A reference librarian in the Bishop Historical Library of the Ocean County Library system, his passion was for local history. An engaging speaker, he gave weekly talks on shore history at standing-room-only programs in his home town of Beach Haven for nearly two decades. He wrote a widely-read column and historical features for the Island's newspapers, which were equally popular with residents and summer visitors on the resort island. Mr. Lloyd authored three best-selling books, including ''Six Miles At Sea'' and ‘’Two Centuries of History.'' The books focused on Long Beach Island, but captured much of the history of the entire Jersey Shore. He also wrote two biographical introductions to other books, including ''The Tides of Barnegat,'' by F. Hopkinson Smith, and a short story included in ''Shore Stories,'' a literary anthology. He provided material and the basis for three historical videos, including programs about the Barnegat Lighthouse and the Lost Resort of Sea Haven: Tucker's Island. Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 1932, he had been on Long Beach Island since he was ten years old -- in time to see old landmarks like the Beach Haven boardwalk, the Engleside Hotel and the vast emptiness of the Island as it once was. With time out for service in the Coast Guard, graduate school and some travel, he spent nearly every summer on the Island. A graduate of Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland, Mr. Lloyd had a master's degree in English from the University of Michigan and a master's in library science from Rutgers University. In 1977 his family became permanent residents and moved into their Beach Haven summer home -- a roomy, three-story Victorian built in 1879. The home, as much a museum and gallery as any historical museum, received John's constant attention and he delighted in showing visitors photographs and artifacts. An inveterate reader all his life, the walls and rafters of every room were lined with his collection of books. He died in 2003 at age 71.