Before Ocean House there was only sandy scrub land with a few small cottages and boarding houses on the Union Bluff and Concordville ends of Short Sands Beach. The arrival of the Ellis Family marked the beginning of York Beach as a premier summer resort. Starting in 1883 they purchased, developed, donated, or sold what became the heart of downtown York Beach. After 1932 the Camp family operated the Ocean House hotel during the summer seasons, along with a sister hotel in Gulfport, Florida (until 1970) during the winter seasons. In 1977 family health concerns necessitated the sale of the Ocean...