Author Kathleen Donnelly has always been fond of telling stories of mystery and intrigue. When the retired school librarian first moved to Long Beach Island more than 40 years ago, she discovered a mystery of her own – Tucker’s Island.

Beginning in the 18th century, it was a small but thriving summer community located off the south end of Long Beach Island. It had a lifesaving station, a lighthouse, two hotels, seven houses and a schoolhouse.

But all that’s left of it today is a shoal, as it gradually washed away in the 1920s and 1930s.