Nelson’s Candy contributed not only this 1947 photo of their business and staff, but shared with us the story of the founder, Allen Nelson and his two sons, Allen, Jr. and Donald. The rare kiss-wrapper machine remains in the hands of the third generation, presently operating at five locations, including at North Beach in Hampton.

The McKeons began their business ventures by renting the Mahoney’s space and using their trade name, as shown here in the 1952 parade. Soon they took over much of A block with locations known as the Surf, expanding into the Surf Sweet Shop, the Surf Theatre, the Surf Hotel and Gift Shops. Unfortunately, all their properties were lost in the fire of 2010.

Al Randall began at the beach in the 1930’s with Randall’s Cut-Rite Store. The S.S. Spellbound Marine Museum shown here ca 1954 traveled the east coast for years, visiting expositions and fairs. His marketing talents were his strength, as shown by this rare photo of him standing before the sixty-foot-long scaled-down reproduction of a steamer that was custom built to display rare seashells from the “World Beneath the Sea!”

Annual Events at Hampton Beach feature not only local talent. Maybe your grandmother is in one of these rare photos.

Hampton Beach advertisements in magazines and newspapers enticed tourists from even New York to enjoy our white beaches. This clip possibly appeared in the 1951 Boston Daily Record that was “hawked” on the boulevard with the memorable words, “Get your Boston Daily Record!”