Ocean Grove, Great Auditorium and Auditorium Pavilion

By the 1890's Ocean Grove's popularity continued to grow as people flocked to this seaside town for spiritual rejuvenation. The 3,000 seat open-air auditorium (known as "The Third Auditorium") used for Sunday services was soon overflowing. In 1891 the President of the Camp Meeting Association, Dr. Elwood H. Stokes, put forth the idea for a Great Auditorium to accomodate the town's scores of worshippers. Completed in 1894, the Great Auditorium remains the centerpiece of the community. The Great Auditorium originally could seat up to 10,000 people, but continual improvements have reduced seating capacity to 6,500. Approximately the size of a football field, it plays host to free concerts on Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons during the summer, along with offering Sunday religious services. At night the cross on the facade remains lit as a landmark for ships passing off the coast. Over the past century many renowned people have appeared at the Great Auditorium. They include Billy Sunday, the baseball player turned preacher, famous for his attacks on liquor; Norman Vincent Peale, author of the seminal book "The Power of Positive Thinking"; and Billy Graham, the well-known crusader who has preached live to over 210 million people during his life. Additionally, seven United States Presidents have spoken here including Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt and Richard Nixon