Hall's Store

Hall's Store. Circa 1820. , Welcome to the Historic Village in Ocean View!, The Town of Ocean View was incorporated on April 13, 1889. Formerly known as Hall's Store, the first Town Council meeting was held on April 20, 1889, with nine elected council members. The history of Ocean View, however, dates back to the colonial era. The present site of Ocean View was originally a tract of 500 acres known as "Middlesex" and granted to Matthew Scarborough in 1688 under the authority of "Charles, Absolute Lord and Proprietary of the Provinces of Maryland and Avalon, Lord Baron of Baltimore.", Following Mr. Scarborough's death, his land passed into the hands of the Hazzard Family and then into the hands of the Hall family. It was the Hall family who founded the Town of Ocean View. In 1820, W.S. Hall opened a store on his farm near White's Creek, which was a portion of the old Middlesex Plantation. Following the establishment of the general store, the area became known as Hall's Store. The village that sprang up around the store was composed of families of farmers, watermen, and seamen. Following the War Between the States, the name of the village was changed to Ocean View as people discovered the nearby beach areas for recreation. It is said that in the late 19th century, one could see the Atlantic Ocean from the second stories of many of the homes in the village., The Hall's Store structure in the Historic Village in Ocean View features a replica general store in the front and meeting room with galley kitchen in the back, suitable for historical society functions, educational programs and other events. The grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony of Hall's Store Visitor and Education Center took place in November 2021., After visiting the buildings in this section of the Historic Village, head over to the Coastal Towns Museum property to check out one of the oldest barns in Sussex County, as well as the Woodhouseum and outhouse. To locate these buildings, walk across the John West Park to the southeast corner. You will see the Coastal Towns Museum sign on the front porch of the Evans-West home, which is under transformation to be the museum itself.