Podcast Summary

New Books Network

Episode: James Sears, Queering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalk (Temple UP, 2024)
Host: Dr. Miranda Melcher
Guest: Dr. James Sears
Date: December 9, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode explores Dr. James Sears’ new book, Queering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalk, published by Temple University Press in 2024. Sears and host Dr. Miranda Melcher delve into the transformation of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, from a conservative Methodist enclave to a vibrant and contested queer resort town. The conversation explores broader questions of place, identity, and community conflict, offering nuanced stories of transformation, resistance, and belonging.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Author Introduction & Motivation

[01:32–06:36]

• Dr. Sears shares his academic and personal background, focusing on LGBTQ activism and education in the American South.
• After retiring, a visit to Rehoboth Beach inspired him to investigate how this conservative area developed a queer identity.
• The major research question: “How did Rehoboth Beach become queer?”
• Quote: “As soon as I started focusing on this, of course, COVID hit. And so that actually allowed me to do a lot of this work and actually do all the interviews of many, many people, like we’re doing now on Zoom.” (05:22, Dr. Sears)

2. Why Rehoboth? Broader Relevance

[06:36–09:23]

• Sears positions Rehoboth as a microcosm for broader questions:
  • What happens when outsiders move into a tight-knit community?
  • How do place and identities (sexual, religious, racial) interweave in shaping change?
  • How do communities and individuals cope with transformation?
• Quote: “The critical issue is not really how Rehoboth became queer... it is: How do we deal with change that transforms not only a community, but has the potential of transforming ourselves and those around us?” (08:36, Dr. Sears)

3. Historical Origins: Methodist Roots and Early Conflict

[09:23–14:56]

• Founded in 1872 as a Methodist religious camp; strict rules (no dancing, drinking, games on Sundays).
  • The town’s foundation myth is traced back to a Methodist minister’s vision.
• Early disputes (1870s–1880s): A power struggle between religious conservatives and capitalist visionaries who wanted to open Rehoboth to vacationers.
• These foundational conflicts foreshadowed later struggles over gay visibility and property development.

4. Parallels in Community Conflict, Then and Now

[14:56–17:41]

• Just as businessmen and religious leaders clashed in the 19th century, a century later debates recur—this time over queer visibility and business development.
  • The “battles” are reminiscent both in process and intensity.

5. Rise of a Gay Presence: From Discretion to Visibility

[17:41–24:04]

• Gay men and women quietly visited Rehoboth for decades before it became openly queer.
• Major shift: Greater accessibility post-1950s (Chesapeake Bay bridge); influx from D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia.
• 1970s–80s: Opening of explicitly gay bars—first just outside town (“The Boathouse,” “The Renegade”); visibility increased; media (e.g., D.C.’s Gay Blade) began to take notice.
• Backlash rises—first openly homophobic political campaign in 1981.
  • Quote: “[The mayor ran] on, ‘Do we want Rehoboth to be a resort for homosexuals?’... His opponent... said, 'They're fixing up houses, starting businesses. This is good.’ She lost by a three to one margin.” (23:55, Dr. Sears)

6. Queering Space: Physical & Social Landmarks

[24:24–30:12]

• Beaches unofficially “queered” by gay visitors, eventually moving into visible town spaces (“Poodle Beach” at the boardwalk).
• Key venues: The Blue Moon restaurant/bar (explicitly queer, renowned for food and community); The Strand nightclub (modeled after New York clubs), which became a symbolic “battlefield.”
  • Memorable Moment: When summoned before the mayor about serving “gay food” at Blue Moon. (29:30)

7. Internal and External Responses

[30:12–34:43]

• Multiple reactions:
  • Longtime closeted gay/lesbian residents felt uneasy about open visibility.
  • Rehoboth Beach Homeowners’ Association (powerful and conservative) became the primary anti-queer organizing force.
  • Some local, old-guard gays were complicit in maintaining discretion for security and comfort.
  • Rising tension between “newcomers” and the entrenched power structure.
  • Quote: “The homeowners association had a lock in the town and they were the primary instrument for opposing this.” (34:08, Dr. Sears)

8. Camp Rehoboth: Institution-Building and Activism

[34:43–37:47]

• Late 1980s: Formation of Camp Rehoboth (community organization) after a decade of violence, pushback, and a growing queer presence.
  • Rooted in fundraising for AIDS, organizing nightclubs (The Strand), and civic outreach.
  • Major media attention (e.g., Washington Post article “Battle for Rehoboth”).
• Camp sought not confrontation but inclusion: “everyone is welcome.”

9. Escalating Conflict: Legal and Social Battles

[39:11–43:25]

• Incidents of violence (bottle-throwing, muggings); local ordinances specifically crafted to target gay venues.
• Symbolic “Poodle Beach Riot”: Hundreds of queer locals confront summer police after a dispute over supposed indecent exposure.
• These pressures catalyzed Camp Rehoboth’s founding, focused on bridge-building.

10. Shifting Alliances and Community Change

[43:52–48:28]

• Camp Rehoboth navigates between activist/fun/centrist forces; sometimes at odds with queer left and women’s/lesbian groups.
• Increasing influx of progressive heterosexuals—new alliances form against previously dominant conservative homeowners.
• Real estate and political power shift: progressive and queer candidates eventually take over the Homeowners’ Association.
• Quote: “Just like what happened…in the 1880s, same thing happened in ... the 1990s… progressive slate wins. The old timers resign...” (47:56, Dr. Sears)

11. Memory, Reminiscence, and the Present State

[48:28–53:56]

• Older gay men often look back wistfully at the more “clandestine” queer Rehoboth, now gentrified and integrated.
  • The closure of venues like The Renegade reflects changes in needs and demographics (“Why do we need to go to a gay bar when we can go anywhere?”).
• Newer community divisions are now more about economics, development, and ideology than sexual identity.
  • Critique of racial homogeneity and the exclusion experienced by queer people of color.
• The book’s structure: narratives of six major figures allow readers to understand multiple perspectives and the complexity of change.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Change and Identity:
  “How do we deal with the kind of change that transforms not only a community, but has the potential of transforming ourselves and those around us?”
  — Dr. James Sears (08:36)

• On Methodism’s Influence:
  “They attached to all Methodist principles…Things like bowling, card playing, dancing—most assuredly, all those things were verboten.”
  — Dr. James Sears (11:48)

• On Parallel Conflicts:
  “This is exactly, precisely what happened 100 years later…you had this onslaught of people who were homosexuals or people who dressed differently…and how they dealt with it was in many ways quite similar to how the debacle of Rehoboth in the 1870s played out.”
  — Dr. James Sears (15:24)

• On Local Backlash:
  “His opponent’s point…was, ‘What is everybody upset about homosexuals coming to Rehoboth? ... They’re fixing up houses, starting businesses. This is good.’ She lost by a three to one margin.”
  — Dr. James Sears (24:04)

• On the “Queering” of Space:
  “Do you have a gay beach? No. Can a beach be queered? Yes. And that’s precisely what happened.”
  — Dr. James Sears (24:57)

• On Internal Dissent:
  “Many of [the older queers] felt very uncomfortable…They were quite comfortable, as many people are…being closeted.”
  — Dr. James Sears (30:54)

• On Power and Resistance:
  “The homeowners association had a lock in the town and they were the primary, the primary instrument for opposing this.”
  — Dr. James Sears (34:08)

• On Narrative Complexity:
  “History is complicated. And the way…you should read history not only from your point of view, but looking at other people’s perspectives. That is why the whole book is structured by narratives.”
  — Dr. James Sears (53:28)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [01:32] – Introduction to guest and book
• [02:53] – Dr. Sears’ background and motivations
• [06:36] – Broader implications of the study
• [09:42] – Origins of Rehoboth as a Methodist enclave
• [13:15] – Parallels: 19th-century and 20th-century conflicts
• [17:41] – Arrival and evolution of Rehoboth’s queer presence
• [24:24] – Queering spaces: from beach to Blue Moon to The Strand
• [30:12] – Diverse reactions: within and beyond queer community
• [34:43] – Camp Rehoboth and queer institution-building
• [39:19] – “The Battle for Rehoboth” and legal/political fights
• [43:52] – Camp Rehoboth’s centrist path, shifting alliances
• [48:28] – Reflections on memory, identity, and community divisions today

Concluding Thoughts

• Dr. Sears emphasizes the complexity and ongoing tensions in queer communal history, cautioning against oversimplified heroic narratives.
• The book follows a narrative-driven approach, highlighting how individuals’ stories illuminate the broader transformation of place and identity.
• Dr. Sears is working on a queer gothic historical novel next: The Circle’s Edge.

For listeners or readers new to this history, the episode offers a fascinating case study in how small towns become crucibles for much larger social change—nuanced, messy, and deeply human.