Twin Lights Tonic — Cape Ann’s Timeless Soda Pop made its debut this week.
President Emeritus Paul St. Germain has written a new book on the history of one of the most popular soft drinks around the Cape Ann area Twin Lights Tonic. He combined with another author, Devlin Sherlock, to produce an interesting look at this 115-year-old Twin Lights Bottling Company (originally called Thomas Wilson Bottling Company) and the families that were involved in its creation. Together they have researched the history and development of carbonated soft drinks, explained how Twin Lights Tonic was made, and traced the history of one Rockport family of Portuguese immigrants who began producing the tonic in the back of a small-town grocery store in 1907. The authors tell the fascinating story of one of the last family bottlers still in operation with over 70 photographs.
Check the Thacher website to purchase the book. www.thacherisland.org. Also sold at Katies Gifts, The Art of David Arsenault and Tucks Candy and Gifts in Rockport and The Bookstore of Gloucester, Alexandra’s Bread and Amazon.
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The weather was kind of cold and clammy and we felt like we needed some comfort food and drink so we stopped at the Farm Bar and Grille in Essex on Saturday. It was the first day free of pandemic restrictions so we felt like we wanted to celebrate a bit. We sat at the bar (at the bar!) and ordered food because we wanted food, not because we were required to. It felt fantastic. The bar and restaurant were busy and the patrons and staff were very cheerful. Jim ordered the well named “Good Decision”: waffle fries with cheese and bacon. I ordered buffalo tenders and mac/cheese. Oh, so comforting! Thanks, Farm staff! We did feel welcomed back.
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Good day, Jamily! Happy Memorial Day Monday!! We’ve got some sweet sounds in store for you tonight, with the help of …
Brian King 8:00-8:20 Alexandra Grace 8:25-8:45 Derek Dupuis 8:50-9:10 Steve Burke 9:15-9:35 Joe Cardoza & Dennis Monagle 9:40-10:00 Amanda Cook 10:05-10:25 . I’ll be there at 7:55pm to greet you!
D.
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MEMORIAL DAY GLOUCESTER The Cape Ann Office of Veterans Services, the City of Gloucester, and the United Veterans Council invite you to join us outside MONDAY MAY 31, 2021 at 10AM Gloucester City Hall
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Thank you for your interest in participating in the Harbor Village artist selection process. Please take sometime to review the artist bio, artist statement for mural and the mural proposal. In addition, community members are encouraged to review the artist website and/or Instagram page to get a sense of the artist’s variety of work.
Please vote YES for your preferred artist.
Mural Theme: 400th anniversary of Gloucester; “Our People, Our Stories” Location: North facing Facade on Elm St
Mike Grimaldi- Grimdrops has awesome elements including the iconic Greasy Pole Scene With Matza standing tall at the end of the greasy pole holding the flag, a Schooner, The Fisherman’s Statue St Peter, The Lighthouse, The Sea Serpent, a lobster claw, The Paint Factory, a whale, a seagull and teh Gorton’s Fisherman. Pretty Iconic!!!!
Artist Bio: Mike Grimaldi is known as Grimdrops in the art world. He lives on the north shore of Boston in historic Salem, Ma. After art school, he started designing logos, painting live at events, painting on canvas for private collectors and painting murals on parking lots, tiny houses and even at City Hall. Whether it’s at a restaurant, a creative studio, on canvas, a separation wall in the backyard, a tunnel leading out to a football field or on the facade of a tiny house, Grimdrops wants his work to stop people in their tracks. He wants them to take a closer look – often for a selfie. At live events, he creates custom art that can be tailored to the specific occasion, whether it be the subject matter of the piece, the color palette or even incorporating a logo. One time, he designed and painted a mural in 48 hours and he wants to do that in less than a day. Grimdrops ultimate-goal is to create a mural or live painting in every state and on every continent. Artist Statement, regarding proposal . For each of my murals, I intend to have to have the rich history of Gloucester be front and center. Having grown up in East Gloucester near the back shore, nearly all of my neighbors were at one point either fishermen or involved in the fishing industry in some capacity. I have an enormous amount of respect for the sacrifices, the grueling hours, the time away from family and the backbreaking physical labor they’ve endured. Some of the visuals I’d intend to incorporate would be Rocky Neck (which, as an artist, I’d be remiss not to include), The Fisherman’s memorial, St. Peter, schooners, humpback whales, and our iconic lighthouses, amongst others. I’d love to incorporate the fabled sea serpent as was reportedly seen by more people than any other serpent sighting in history. I had the pleasure of bringing the Gloucester Sea Serpent to life at the Cape Ann Museum recently and would love to tie that into the murals at Harbor Village as well These are my initial thoughts, though my intention is to get feedback from the community about imagery they’d like to see included. I of course won’t be able to incorporate everything but this will give a great starting point and will enable me to put together a thorough and cohesive visual narrative for each piece. I intend to hire other artists with ties to Gloucester to assist me with installing the pieces. Ideally I’d love to work with artists who are up and coming and pass along some of the knowledge I’ve learned doing this type of work over the past few years.
Anna Dugan has some green and grey hands holding postcards of a pink lighthouse, the Man at the wheel, Hammond Castle and a dory scene.
Anna Dugan, also known as Annadidathing is a first generation Filipinx American mural artist, chalk artist, and illustrator based in Lynn, MA. She graduated with a BFA from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, in 2013. Her work celebrates her heritage, navigates the complexities of identity as a mixed race person in the US, and creates space for vulnerable & honest mental health discussion through vibrant colors, storytelling, & folk art inspired work. Anna uses her work to create art that is accessible, to create more Filipinx representation in public art, and to use art to weave emotional bonds within diverse communities. Artist Statement: I want to create a sense of community, nostalgia, and pride for the nautical history of Gloucester. My design has people holding photographs to signify memories of recent and long past memories and landmarks. The mural will be colorful, thoughtful, and full of recognizable Gloucester icons. When people see it there will be no doubt that the imagery ties to this specific community of people.
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“The next time things are going badly — and I am convinced that too many of our young people are headed straight to hell — then I am going to recall Joe Favazza.
Then I will relive that scene on Portagee Hill (that’s what it’s called) the other morning when the brave van pulled up at the GFC building. Lawrence (not his real name) was sitting in the van, and Favazza was standing there waiting in the early morning summer sunshine, and then I will get the feeling again that everything is going to turn out all right after all.
“…The GFC was sponsoring a part for 20 handicapped children, including Lawrence. Favazza is an aide at the not so great salary of $85 a week in the summer recreation and educational program…”
“…Now let me tell you about Joe Favazza. He is 28 and 6 feet 2, wears shorts and tee shirt and a baseball hat. He is low-key and gentle. He served in the Army, works as a part-time Gloucester Times sportswriter and next month will be a Boston State junior and hopes to teach special needs children. He comes from a large Italian family, and that means closeness and the traditional Sunday noon dinners at his parents’ home on Middle street. His father is a Fuller school janitor who always was particularly helpful and gentle with the special-needs children there. Perhaps that virtue runs in the family…”
“Later there was a big luncheon for the kids and then they went to the adjacent Mattos playground…”
“Joanne kelly directs the summer program…led a group of parents and teachers to the school committee and outlined the case.”
“…Gloucester, rowdy and unfashionable and wonderful old Gloucester, became the only North Shore city with a summer program for special needs kids…”
THIS PLAYGROUND IS NAMED IN MEMORY OF JOSEPH S. MATTOS, JR.
BORN OCT. 4TH, 1899
KILLED IN ACTION OCT. 5TH 1918
DEDICATED 1935 IN HONOR OF: Joseph S. Mattos, Jr.,
Born in Gloucester on October 4, 1899, son of Mr. & Mrs. Joseph S. Mattos. Entered military service at the age of 16, with his mother’s blessing. Sent to France on August 13, 1917 as a member of Battery A, 5th United States Field Artillery, regular army. Private Mattos was killed in action on October 5, 1918, the day after his 19th birthday.
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The Boston Globe included Gloucester among its beautiful Memorial Day roundup in 1927. Inspired by Gloucester’s annual Fishermen’s Memorial service, a new addition was incorporated into Gloucester’s Memorial Day observances that year. Perhaps this gesture could return for future programs.
“This maritime place which some time ago adopted the custom of strewing the waves at an annual (Gloucester Fishermen’s) memorial service inaugurated another feature today.
“During the exercises at the Cut Bridge, in honor of the Naval dead, two seaplanes from Coast Guard Base 7 commanded by Commander Carl C. Von Paulson and Ensign Leonard A. Melka, circled over the outer harbor strewing flowers.
“Gloucester lost two airman during the WWI, Ensign Eric Adrian Lingard and 2d Liet. Maxwell Parsons. “Members of the G.A.R. Spanish War Veterans, Legion, and auxiliaries proceeded to Oak Grove Cemetery this morning where exercises were held after which the veterans moved to the Cut Bridge. Details from the servicemen’s posts had previously decorated the graves with flowers and foliage. The main exercises were held this afternoon in City hall auditorium, which was filled to its capacity…”
In 1937, the Gloucester Playground Commission dedicated the Maxwell Parsons Playground in East Gloucester, the neighborhood of his youth:
Named in Honor of
Lieut. Arthur Maxwell Parsons
U.S. Flying Corp
Born Dec. 11, 1895
Died July 3, 1918
Inscription on the tribute plaque
Eric Adrian Lingard
Have you watched Atlantic Crossing on PBS Masterpiece?
Local airman, Eric Adrian Lingard, was part of a daring and brave crew that drove a German U-Boat from the shores of his home state during the July 21, 1918 attack on Orleans, off Nauset Beach.
In 2012, Fred Bodin shared this dynamite photo with Good Morning Gloucester
Lingard Seaplane 1919 Gloucester Harbor – one he had flown
“On October 18th, 1918, Lingard’s plane went down in heavy seas due to engine failure, and he died of pneumonia 11 days later. The Lingard home is diagonally across Washington Street from the Annisquam Church, and was later the home of the renowned Crouse family (Sound of Music lyrics and actress Lindsey Crouse).”
After suffering more than a day in rough seas off Cape Cod, all the while assisting another brother in arms, Lingard and others were rescued from the frigid deep. Later, he succumbed from pneumonia exposure [and/or 1918 flu epidemic, still present that late. For example, the “two brothers who co-founded the Dodge Bros. automobile manufacturing company contracted the flu in New York in 1919: John died at the Ritz hotel in January 1920, and Horace in December 1920 after a wicked year battling its complications.” Search “Notables- Flu Cases and the Arts” Influenza Epidemic 1918 of Gloucester]
NAME: Annisquam Soldiers Memorial Wood LOCATION: Washington Street, along Lobster Cove CAMPAIGN: World War I TYPE: Bronze tablet in granite stone DATE DEDICATED: July 7, 1929 INSCRIPTION: Annisquam Soldiers Memorial Wood In grateful remembrance of John Ernest Gossom Eric C. Lingard Bertram Williams who gave their lives for their country in the World War
-from Gloucester, Ma. Archives Committee
Lingard’s name can be found WWI | Harvard Memorial Church
Where is the hull of Seaplane HS 1695, decommissioned by then Sect. State FDR to Gloucester’s park commission? GMG reader Bill Hubbard commented on Bodin’s photo, surmising:
“Nice old photo, Fred. For years before and during WW-II, the hull of a similar plane was in the lower level of the Twin Light Garage on East Main Street. The garage was owned by the late Ray Bradly who lived on Rocky Neck. As kids, we often played around it and I remember Ray telling us that it had been a WW-I airplane – I believe it was an old Coast Guard bi-winged seaplane. There were no wings or rudder, just the hull which was shaped very much like the one in the picture. Not long after the end of the war, they dragged it out to the flats on Smith Cove and burned it.”
Bill Hubbard, GMG reader comment reply to Fred Bodin, 2012
Fred Buck selected Joan of Arc photographs from the Cape Ann Museum for the HarborWalk Joan of Arc marker. We liked this one. The parade retinue includes a truck carrying wreckage from Lingard’s plane.
Joan of Arc in Legion Square. photog. unknown. date unknown. Lingard’s plane.
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Good Morning Gloucester 