Cape May

City in Cape May County, at the southern tip of New Jersey, USA, on Cape May Peninsula, the Atlantic Ocean, and Cape May Harbor, 64 km/40 mi southwest of Atlantic City; population (2000) 4,000. The city is a popular resort, noted for its beach, boardwalk, and boating and fishing.

Settled c.1664 and originally known as Cape Island, it was a major whaling port in the early 18th century. One of the nation's oldest seaside resorts, situated as far south as Washington, DC, Cape May rivalled Newport as a fashionable summer retreat during the early 19th century. Known as the ‘President's Playground’ later in the century, it was a vacation spot for Buchanan, Lincoln, Grant, Hayes, Arthur, and Harrison. Many buildings from this era are preserved.

Cape May Point State Park (to the southwest) contains Cape May Point Lighthouse (1859). Located on the Atlantic Flyway, the area's dunes are a birdwatching centre, site of the World Series of Birding. West Cape May borough (population (1990) 1,000) and Cape May Point borough (population (1990) 241) are separate municipalities.