A Storied Past
The History of An Iconic Ocean City Hotel
Few hotels in Ocean City can celebrate continually trading for over 90 years. The family owners can trace their local history back over 200 years. There have been many changes in the world of travel at that time, but The Commander’s beachfront boardwalk location remains as special today as it was on the day it all began.
1930 – 1959
A New Ocean City Hotel On The Beach
The Commander Hotel & Suites welcomed its first guests on Memorial Day in 1930, offering 62 rooms, a full American Plan dining room, and a kitchen with wood-burning stoves. The hotel delighted guests with the city’s first elevator and in-room telephone service. The front porch, facing the ocean and boardwalk, was populated by rocking chairs from which guests could watch the world go by. For a mere $95, a couple could stay at the hotel for a week with three meals a day included.
During World War II, the hotel welcomed doctors, lawyers, and executives visiting Maryland on official business. Each room was equipped with blackout curtains for use at night to hide The Commander from enemy submarines lurking offshore.
The post-war era and its boom in prosperity led to the hotel’s first expansion: a new North wing and spacious dining room that seated up to 400 guests. The Commander soon benefitted from the growing trend for convention groups and reunions. During the 1950s, the hotel also hosted the famous Commander Clambakes, which welcomed more than 1,200 guests at a time to feast on lobster, corn on the cob, and steamed clams cooked in a coal pit on the beach.
1962-1999
Dinner Theatre Arrives In Ocean City
The aftermath of a major spring storm in 1962 sadly ended the clambakes, relegating classic seafood dishes to the hotel’s restaurants. However, this was far from the end of crowd-pleasing entertainment at the Commander. From 1979 to 1993, the hotel’s owners, the Lynch family, hosted the Commander Boardwalk Dinner Theater. This performer service theater garnered rave reviews and featured future stars of stage and screen. Following success in Ocean City, performers appeared on Broadway stages, in film and TV, including the 1992 movie Evita. During this period, the Commander enjoyed another expansion with the establishment of our Cabana Building.
2000- Present
A Thriving Beachfront Hotel
In 2002, Ocean City benefited from a multi-million dollar restoration project that protected Ocean City’s beach and oceanfront amenities for future generations. By 2011, the resort area catered to approximately 8 million visitors annually. Today, the Commander Hotel & Suites still welcomes visitors to Maryland’s favorite beach holiday destination. Could you be next?