Brigantine Castle Pier, Brigantine, New Jersey by John Margolies, 1978.
Brigantine Castle, Brigantine, New Jersey by John Margolies, 1978.
Brigantine Castle, situated on the oceanfront at 14th Street and Brigantine Avenue in Brigantine, New Jersey, was once a popular funhouse and haunted house attraction that drew thousands of visitors each year.
In the early 1970s, the site at the North End of the Island was known as the Seahorse Fishing Pier, which was primarily used by locals and offered a few children’s amusements, a beer bar, and pier fishing.
That began to change in 1975 when businessman Carmen Ricci approached the City of Brigantine with an ambitious plan to renovate the old Seahorse Pier, which had deteriorated over the years due to storms and neglect. Ricci obtained city approval, and work started to build a massive pier. On January 2, 1976, work began on a medieval-style castle complex on the pier, completed and ready to open for Memorial Day that year. With its turrets soaring to over 100 feet high, the castle was a haunted-themed attraction that immediately drew visitors.
Brigantine Castle Pier, Brigantine, New Jersey by John Margolies, 1978.
In addition to the haunted house, more amusements were added, including restaurants, miniature golf, arcade games, shops, and a fishing pier. Brigantine Haunted Castle and Amusement Pier boosted the economy of the secluded little fishing town and “put it on the map” as swarms of visitors made their way to the island every summer to experience the thrills and chills of the Haunted Castle and the excitement of the amusement pier.
Its initial success was primarily due to Ricci’s extensive advertising campaign, which included print, radio, and television commercials in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, drawing busloads of visitors to the castle and thousands of new visitors to Brigantine Island. Another reason for its success was the great group of performers that the castle employed each summer, many of whom were young drama majors. After countless hours preparing sets, costumes, and new acts, they kept the haunted castle interesting by changing the performances each summer. These actors portrayed characters such as those from The Addams Family, Butcher and the Vampire, Frankenstein, The Headless Woman, The Bell Tower Creature, The Bride of Dracula, and more. Visitors loved the live spooks that haunted the twisting walkways in the five levels of the castle — so much so that the people waited for hours to get in the first year, with lines going down the block.
Brigantine Castle Poster
Although early business was great for Brigantine Castle, it created numerous problems for the Brigantine community, as the pier was inadequate to handle the busloads of visitors that arrived. As kids waited, they were knocking on people’s doors, asking to use their bathrooms, and urinating on lawns. Traffic and parking were also significant problems. This led to a lawsuit in the late 1970s, and although Carmen Ricci won, the city created ordinances that limited charter bus traffic and castle advertising. Afterward, business dropped at the castle.
However, the business survived and continued to draw large crowds until a storm in August 1982 severely damaged the pier and the castle, incurring $500,000 in damages. Although Ricci held a government flood insurance policy, the federal government refused to pay for the damages caused by the storm. However, the venue continued to operate.
Another major blow came in May 1984, when eight teenagers were trapped and killed by a fire inside the haunted house at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey. This changed how public safety officials handled such attractions, and soon, Brigantine Beach officials required Ricci to conduct an engineering study. Though the haunted castle had the mandatory sprinkler systems and external fire escapes, the rest of the pier did not. Upon completion of the study, it was also revealed that the pier structure was unsafe and required significant repairs.
Ricci still planned to open for the 1985 season but decided to close permanently when tensions escalated with Brigantine officials. He sold the property to a developer in April 1987 for $1 million, and the new owner planned to build a condo complex on the parking lot of the amusement facility. Demolition began in late summer 1987. A fire broke out soon after, on the morning of September 25, and what remained of the Brigantine Castle and pier were destroyed. All that remained were some pilings. A new pier was never built.
The Brigantine Castle and Amusement Pier was the most famous single attraction in the history of Brigantine Beach. On average, it employed over 35 people, attracting more than a million visitors annually, and its yearly revenues exceeded $2 million.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2025.
Also See:
Brigantine Castle Pier, Brigantine, New Jersey by John Margolies, 1978.
Ghost Towns & Mining Camps Across America
Lost Landmarks & Vanished Sites
Palace Amusements, Asbury Park, NJ
Sources: