I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916 is based on real events that occurred on the Jersey Shore in 1916. A heat wave and a polio outbreak that summer meant that more people than usual came from cities to seaside resorts such as those on the Jersey Shore, and many people swam in the area every day. Four people were killed by sharks and one injured. In the afterword of I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916, Tarshis explains that the people mentioned in the newspaper articles—Charles Vansant, Charles Bruder, Lester Stillwell, and Stanley Fisher—were all real victims of the 1916 attacks. A 12-year-old boy, Joseph Dunn, was the inspiration for Tarshis’s fictional character Chet Roscow, as Dunn did suffer a bite to his leg from the shark, much like Chet does. Three of the deaths occurred in the Matawan Creek where Chet plays and is bitten. While there are many theories, the causes of the 1916 shark attacks are unknown.

Before these events, sharks were generally considered harmless and timid in the US. In the novel, when the shark attacks begin, Uncle Jerry tells Chet and his friends, “a shark simply will not attack a human.