Day: August 4, 2021

Magnolia, William Morris Hunt- in 1904 Boston Globe North Shore Famous for its Summer Homes #GloucesterMA

Posted on by Catherine
  • photo: Clarence Manning Falt

According to the Boston Globe article from 1904, Delia Tudor was the first summer resident of the North Shore, who went to Nahant in 1820. It took until 1840 for arrivals in Beverly.

Mostly the article covers Swampscott, Nahant, Manchester and Gloucester tony neighborhood of Magnolia.

Longfellow (his home in Nahant burned by the time of the article) and Hawthorne (Swampscott) were here visiting the North Shore. “To the North Shore also came Lowell and Daniel Webster–despite his fondness for the South shore–Charles Sumner and Rufus Choate. The list, in fact, of masters of the mind who have worked, played and rested along the North Shore is a very long one.”

Excerpt about Magnolia | Gloucester

“Kettle Cove, Magnolia, which took its early name from the formation of the coast, joins Manchester. It is one of the most beautiful spots of the beautiful North shore, and , like many other localities thereabouts, has a witch legend connected with its history. Kettle Cove was settled in 1645, and was under the jurisdiction of Salem. in 1838 there were 14 houses in the cove, and a small schoolhouse, which was used for religious purposes whenever a minister chanced to come that way. it was here that the artist Hunt established his studio, and old barn, calling it the Hulks. In this vine covered studio some of his most famous pictures were painted including, The Headsman, Tom in a Felt Hat, and Gloucester Harbor. Near here is Rafe’s Chasm, where one may find an iron cross marking the place where Martha Marlon a young girl was drowned many years ago…

“The fashionable world has found these shores, and handsome summer homes now rise at every vantage point.”

Boston Globe 1904
PDF 1904 Boston globe summer articleDownload

scenic photos illustrating the article include:

  • “A Part of Manchester Shore, Near Magnolia” also known as Rafe’s Chasm
  • The Oldest House at Kettle Cove, Manchester, built in 1700
  • The Dana House, Magnolia

photos: Coolidge Point, Kettle Cove vista; Rafe’s Chasm by Falt; William Morris Hunt (1824-1879)- paintings mentioned in article and Willow Cottage. A Boston painter who studied with Millet, Hunt held plein air art classes –in Magnolia –in 1876. (old Kettle Cove village became ‘Magnolia’.) He transformed the barn into his studio in 1877.

“The barn was two stories in height, the lower portion being occupied by the van, a phaeton and a dog-cart, as well as by stalls for two or three horses. The upper room was known as the ” barracks,” and half a dozen cot-beds were ranged around the sides, as seats by day and beds by night.”

“The scenery combined much sketching material in a little space. In addition to a small beach there was a rocky shore of much boldness, and the cliffs were surmounted by well-wooded groves. One of its charms was a willow-road of rare picturesqueness, and there was a graceful variety of hill and dale. The fishermen at their work, the simple cottage folk, and a few artists were the only people to be seen. In less than ten years the place became a fashionable resort, and its artistic interest was gone.”

Helen Mary Knowlton, Hunt biography,1899

Willow Road, Magnolia, circa 1910 (Library of Congress)
Brothers (2 of 4): Richard Morris Hunt portrait (artist, renowned architect), and probably portrait of his famous older brother, William Morris Hunt (Library of Congress). Richard helped with the Hulk design.
Pine Woods, Magnolia (MFA, Boston)

IMPORTANT: Time To Get Solar Credits Is Waning

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

The pandemic has caused many things to be delayed. Getting the needed permission from the utility companies to hook your system to the grid for a new solar install is among them.

What used to be 60-90 days to install after signing the paperwork, is now 90 to 120 days, sometimes even longer! This means the time is getting late to install in 2021 to receive your valuable year-end tax credits.

It is critical you get moving now!

So, if you wish to take full advantage of the State and Federal Tax Credits for this 2021 fiscal year- Now Is The Time To Have Tim Sanborn from Cazeault Solar and Home Contact You for a free estimate

Fill out this form and Tim will contact you to set up a consultation-

Check out the reviews-

New paintings by Adin Murray opens August 5th @ Jane Deering Gallery, 19 Pleasant Street.

Posted on by James Eves

There’s a certain slant of light

new paintings by Adin Murray

Into the Void, Tuckerman’s Ravine, Mt. Washington 2021 . Oil on canvas . 21×21 inches

“For this recent body of work I have deviated, to some extent, from the Horizon series that has represented the majority of my work for the past several years, not because that imagery has played out for me, but simply to broaden the scope of my subject matter.  Yet my intent remains the same— to showcase the beauty and inspiration that nature provides. Central to this is the play of light across the landscape (and moonscape) — sometimes dramatically illuminating objects, sometimes mingling with the atmosphere, and sometimes there is magic in the shadows. In any instance however, like life, light is always transitional and represents constant change.”

— Adin Murray

August 2021

Adin Murray (b.1974) received a BA in Art/Biology from Tulane University and an MFA in painting from the Savannah College of Art and Design. In 2008, he had a first solo exhibition at the Savannah Hilton Head International Airport, and in 2009, his work was shown at the Woodruff Art Center in Atlanta, the Rymer Gallery in Nashville, and the Pei-Ling Chan Gallery in Savannah. His work has been featured in Faultline, the University of California, Irvine’s literary and art publication; Southern Living and North Shore Magazines;, and the Boston Globe.  Twenty-five of his graphite drawings are currently on view at the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester MA in a two-person show titled Homeport.  His work is in numerous private collections in the US and abroad. Murray maintains a studio on Cape Ann in Massachusetts. This is his third solo show with Jane Deering Gallery.  

The exhibition continues through August 29th.

Gallery hours:  Thursday 4-8pm . Friday & Saturday 1-5pm . Sunday 1-4pm

and by appointment at 917-902-4359 . info@janedeeringgallery.com 

Boundless 2020 . Oil on canvas . 32×48 inches

GLOUCESTER STAGE COMPANY TO PRESENT THE BOSTON AREA PREMIER OF SEARED

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

A fit for foodies comedy by award winning playwright Theresa Rebeck

 Performances August 6-22 at Windhover Performing Arts Center in Rockport

Gloucester Stage Company is pleased to announce the Boston area premiere of SEARED by Pulitzer Prize finalist and two-time Emmy Award® nominee Theresa Rebeck, Directed by Victoria Gruenberg, performances are at Windhover Center for Performing Arts, SEARED from Friday, August 6-22.

A comedy by critically-acclaimed playwright Theresa Rebeck SEARED explores the delicate balance between a creative spirit navigating success, recognition, and responsibility to a financial bottom line. Brilliant, hot-headed chef Harry scores a mention in a food magazine with his signature scallops, and his business partner Mike finally sees profits within reach. The only problem is Harry refuses to recreate his masterpiece for the masses. Mix in a shrewd restaurant consultant and a waiter with dreams of his own, and it all goes to hell in this hilarious and insightful new play that asks us to consider where art ends and commerce begins. 

Brooklyn-based stage director Victoria Gruenberg will be making her directorial debut at Gloucester Stage with credits, including the 2018 Williamstown Theatre Festival directing corps where she assisted directed the critically acclaimed SEARED and then in New York City at the MCC Theater Space. The cast stars four more newcomers to Gloucester Stage Emily Bosco (Emily), Matt Monaco (Mike), Jordan Pearson (Rodney), and James Louis Wagner (Harry).  

  Performances are outdoors Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 3:30 pm at Windhover Center for the Performing Arts, 257R Granite St, Rockport, MA. Tickets are now on sale and available at GloucesterStage.com.

Open Space & Recreation Survey: CLOSING AUGUST 6!

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hey Joey and all you cool cats!The Gloucester Open Space & Recreation Committee is hosting a survey to help us plan and prioritize HOW and WHAT we spend our resources on for the next 10 years!Please take 10 minutes to share your opinions and ideas on beaches, parks, fields, woods, quarries, ball courts, and dog friendly spaces!NOTE: the survey is open to all, including non-residents. Link below!
Thank you so much for posting and sharing!Heidi Wakeman (still here!)
Chairperson, Open Space & Recreation Committee
http://gloucester-ma.gov/131/Open-Space-Recreation-Committee

Open Space & Recreation Committee

open space and rec.jpg
         Open Space & Recreation Plan Survey 

         The Survey will close on August 6, 2021

Information about the Open Space and Recreation Plan Update for 2021

Open Space and Recreation Plan Community Forum Recording

Presented by MAPC on April 26, 2021

OSRP Revised Project timeline

Mission

The Open Space and Recreation Committee was formulated to create and implement an Open Space and Recreation Plan for the City which will: 

  1. Ensure the existence, smart use, and access to open space in perpetuity
  2. Ensure that contiguous areas, functions, and values that depend on them are maintained
  3. Propose a process for agreements with abutters with shared use/conservation interests for enhancing open space
  4. Recommend planned city growth and business development in a way that fully contemplates and strives to maintain the functions, values, uses, and vision for open space in Gloucester 
  5. Establish a criteria and process for ceding open space to development or dedicated use
  6. Promote awareness and use of open spaces through a descriptive inventory of open spaces

The Committee consists of 7 members, each serving a 3-year term. In 2011, the Committee completed an update of the City’s 2011-2017 Open Space and Recreation Plan. The Plan includes a list of beaches, parks, playgrounds, and other open space in the City. The Committee is currently working with City staff and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to complete an update of The Plan for 2021 – 2028.