Ernie Troiano, Sr. . . .and the Island he Loved!

“I lived my life just as good as I can, lived every day as an honest man. I worked and worked and worked some more, don’t be upset, to me this was no chore.”

This is the beginning of a poem written by Ryan Troiano, about his grandfather Ernie Troiano Sr. who passed away in March 2010. The rest of the poem goes on to describe the people and parts of Wildwood he loved.

Almost everyone, no matter how old or young knows the loss of someone they loved. And Ernie Troiano Sr. was loved indeed, but also deeply loved others and the island he grew up on.

“He had a compassion for people, and was all about the community. He didn’t show his emotions a lot, but you could look into his eyes and know how he felt. And his actions spoke [for him],” Ernie Troiano Jr. said. “I was fortunate to have a father like him.”

Ernie Sr. was very much a deeply rooted part of Wildwood. His father Dominico Troiano, came to Wildwood accidentallyoriginally on route to Atlantic City from Philadelphia to look for a job after he immigrated here from Italy. He fell asleep on the train ride and ended up in Wildwood, found a job here and never left. Ernie Sr. was “born on Leaming Avenue, lived on Leaming Avenue his whole life, raised his kids on Leaming Avenue and died on Leaming Avenue,” Ernie Jr. said. Today, his children still live on Leaming Avenue, as well as his grandchildren and great grandchildren; essentially there is over 100 years of Troiano generations still staying loyal to Wildwood, the place where their family began.

When Ernie Sr. was growing up in Wildwood- it was a different world then it is today. 1930’s Wildwood was separated into neighborhoods, but everyone got along. “Magnolia, Maple, Pine Avenues they were your Irish neighborhoods. Andrews and Montgomery Avenues, they were the Swedes because of the harbor and fishing. Roberts and Youngs Avenues were the Polish and Leaming, Hand, Bennet, Hildreth and Cresse Avenues had a lot of Italians. The railroad tracks ran through the middle of the Island, and everyone on the west side were summer people,” Ernie Jr. explained of the island during his father’s life and his own childhood as well.

Back then everyone was first generation Americans who while all being very diverse and from a variety of countries, were nevertheless like family to each other. “If I know ten people on the island today, they knew thousands back then. Everyone was like family,” Ernie Jr. said. “Back then in Wildwood, everyone was pretty much poor, but no one knew it because everyone had such a wealth of community, a wealth of neighbors,” Ernie Jr. said. Ernie Sr. would work three extra jobs in the summer, to make ends meet. He would bartend, sort mail in the evenings at the post office, and valet park cars at the Diamond Beach Club. Ernie actually met Joey Bishop of the Rat pack there one summer evening. All of the valets were waiting to park cars in their uniforms that included a distinct red vest. Suddenly Joey Bishop comes out and says, “give me your vest!” He joined all the other valets and parked cars for people, so he could laugh when the car owners said to him, “Anyone ever tell you that you look like Joey Bishop!?”

“There was a passion about the town, you would go down Pacific Avenue on a Friday night and the place was packed. Everyone came to Wildwood to shop,” Ernie Jr. said.

Ernie Sr. was part of many organizations on the island, like the Rotary Club and the Sons of Italy. He was the second Italian in the Fire Company, and started out at the bottom but eventually worked his way up to Chief. He designed the current Fire House in Wildwood- and it was built to his specifications. The tree shaded, landscaped walkway in front of Fox Park on Atlantic Ave was designed by Ernie Sr. as well- as a tribute to Columbus Park, the original park that was there before the two blocks were connected to make one park. His design work is also in the new Vietnam Memorial on the boardwalk side of the park.

Ernie Sr.’s work can be found in so many places of the island, it is like he is firmly integrated into the island itself, which his son Ernie Jr is the Mayor and caretaker of today. The Troiano’s love of family and Wildwood is solid and tangible, a tradition.

Traditions are something we seem to have in Wildwood- whether we are locals or summer folk. We are all drawn here and something holds us here, to enjoy our own personalized rituals and customs on it’s shores year after year!