Author: Pat D

Beautiful day even if you have to work!

We ventured “off island” again.  Took the train from West Gloucester to North Station; walked over to South Station and found our way over to UMass/JFK Library.  My destination was the Massachusetts State Archives, which is next door to the beautiful JFK Library.

Construction at UMass has blocked much of the pedestrian access to that area, so shuttle busses are provided.  Sort of reminded me of the railway repairs interrupting commuter travel right here on Cape Ann.  Unfortunately, we did not get the “shuttle bus” option figured out until long after we hiked our way over there.  I was grumbling that now I knew why people (Donna Ardizzoni most recently) say they never want to leave the island.

BUT, once I got there, I was handsomely rewarded.  The staff was very helpful, a bright light among some state level departments (at least in New York).  I got my own researcher card, laminated and everything!  I was seeking some vital record information on family members.  Lucky for me, the records I was seeking were not yet microfilmed so I got to use the actual record books!  Anytime a researcher can use the actual records is a huge bonus.

One of the volumes I used was entirely made up of Gloucester death records from 1923.  I paged my way through the entire book, taking note of how the stories hinted at on these pages reflects the history of the city in a very special way.  There were Irish, Portuguese, Finn and Canadians.  Deaths resulted often from influenza, pneumonia or premature birth.  Some were accidental, as was the case with my ancestor. It was a valuable lesson for this researcher in learning the history and culture of Gloucester.

As Confucius said “Study the past, if you would divine the future.”

Sunday evening we returned to the Seaport Grille for dinner and it was a great experience!  Trainee Dawn and Trainer Chris served us with just the right amount of attention and were well informed about the menu.

Jim had the cioppino, a kind of seafood stew which came complete with a lobster bib!  He needed it—the cioppino was full of a variety of seafood.  I splurged on the lobster pie.  There was plenty of lobster to bring home for a future meal.

The highlight of the meal (for me) might have been the Seaport Coffee!!!  Yummmmm. Highly recommended. As we were having dinner, fireworks went off just across the water which added to the atmosphere but gave me a bit of a fright at first.  When you hear that noise these days, fireworks isn’t first on the list of possibilities unless it is July 4th.  Regardless, it was a nice little bonus on a lovely evening at the Seaport Grille.

**I am currently having trouble uploading pictures for this post.  Your loss!  The food even looks fabulous in the pictures **

Ryan & Wood Distillery produces fine gin, vodka, and whiskey.  I don’t pretend to totally understand the process, but I am enthusiastic about the product!  Today, Bob Ryan spent a generous amount of time explaining a little bit about what happens post production with some of the by-product and it was very intriguing.

These are the fermentation tanks.  You’ll note they’ve been named after some well known local vessels.  Ryan & Wood is careful to select “ancient” or “heritage” grains for their products.  Some of what is leftover after distillation is sent to the Sea View Farms for use.  A smaller amount is mixed with potting soil and used for growing vegetables like potatoes, beets and peppers.

Bob Ryan demonstrating some of the techniques used with the spent grain to produce these potatoes.

The potatoes hearken back to Bob’s Irish roots.  Bob told me he began distilling partially in order to be part of the change in Gloucester as the city adjusted to the reduction in the fishing industry.  We have heard a great deal recently about the changes in the fishing industry and potential ways for the area to maintain its heritage and also thrive.  Ryan & Wood is one way to contribute to the Spirit of Cape Ann.

As  much as we are all moving forward, using leftover ancient grains to grow and fertilize staple vegetables seems a perfect example of “the cycle of life” that was part of the lives of those early Cape Ann settlers.  Returning to the soil in the most basic way!  Thanks for sharing this with us, Bob, Kathy  and Doug!

Probably not how he expected to start his morning today……….

The O’Maley school facilities were getting a workout on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Flag football outside:

Even the dogs were getting into the spirit of the game.  I think he’s got your flag, buddy!

Inside, at the rink, the little ‘uns had time on the ice.  These guys are around 6-7 years old, so we’ll be seeing them in on the high school teams in about 10 years.  More future of ice hockey for the Gloucestermen! Quite an inspiration for me, who cannot skate on blades or wheels!

It’s very nice to see the available fields and facilities put to such good use.  Kudos to all those accompanying parents that make the dream come true for their children.

The beach was dotted with bright yellow bags and dogs this morning for the clean up sponsored by Clean Gloucester/ Gloucester Clean City Commission.  Coffee provided by Happy Belly (thanks so much!) brightened up the damp morning.  Ainsley told me that almost 40 people helped out by picking up garbage and recyclables at Good Harbor Beach this morning.  It seems the weather did not hold anyone back!  Great turnout.  GMG was well represented by Donna Ardizzoni and FOB Melissa Cox was helping out as well.

These people take the “carry out” rules very seriously!

The Clean Gloucester people were very efficient and friendly.  They even re-use the yellow collection bags!!  Now, that’s in the spirit of Clean Gloucester!  Well done, everyone.

Hennessy’s Boston. Cheers!

Stage Fort Park is being prepped for the 19th annual Gran Prix cyclocross race this weekend.  However, despite the markings on the ground and the stakes placed to guide the riders, the Park still has many beautiful settings.

However, anyone considering a crystal ball purchase should be VERY AWARE that it is very very easy to start a fire, as you can see here.  The leaf got too close for comfort, so it was reminded to keep its distance by setting it ablaze.  Yikes.  This is a very serious warning that these can be very dangerous, especially at this time of year.

Beautiful morning on Wonsons Cove.

GMG Jimmy was loose on the town today while I did some research at the library.  He needed his glasses adjusted and the nice folks at Vision Depot helped him out (thanks Joe W!).  Once he could see straight, he noticed the work on the tracks at the Gloucester station.  What a job this is!  Thanks guys for your hard work!

As you may have heard, a whale was entangled not far outside Gloucester Harbor yesterday and Cape Ann Whale Watch Hurricane II stopped its tour to oversee/whale-sit) the whale until help arrived.  It was a privilege to be on board and feel as though we were even a small part in helping.  Clearly the whale was stressed which was difficult to witness.  Soon after, the F/V Lily arrived with Captain Billy Muniz aboard to also assist.

The Gloucester Harbormaster arrived and the Hurricane II left to continue its planned tour.  We’d been informed the whale was loosely tied up and had been freed.  It was a great relief.  We checked around on the way back to harbor, but did not see the whale around.

Shortly after return to harbor, we witnessed (but no pictures…so sorry) a whale off Atlantic Road gently making its way around.  I feel certain in my heart it was the very same whale finding a way to thank those who helped give him his freedom.

Update: whale released! Loosely entangled and harbor master crew were able to free the trapped whale

This is the story of a cousin lost at sea.  Ho Hum you might think.  Gloucester has suffered thousands of such losses but  in every person’s life there is a story  and this is one of the many heroic tales of the sea.

John Handran was lost at sea aboard the Schooner Cleopatra Dec 26, 1885.  He left a wife and 3 very young children just a day after Christmas that year.  I don’t know how long the fishing trip had been at the time of the accident, but it is certain he and the rest of the crew were not home for Christmas that year.

This is a picture from Fred Bodin  of that time period and I like to imagine it reflects what it must have looked like seaside in the 1880s in Gloucester

The Cleopatra story inspired an epic poem “The Ballad of the Cleopatra” available on Google Books from Cornhill Magazine .  I encourage you to read it when you have a chance as it gives an interesting viewpoint from a fisherman’s perspective.  A storm came up and swept 3 men into the ocean, John Handran was one of them.  Another crewman died on the deck.  A distress flag was raised and seen by a British vessel, the Lord Gough.  As they prepared to send a rescue boat, the distress flag was taken down.  The potential rescuers were confused by this but continued their mission.  Apparently the captain and crew of the Cleopatra took down the distress flag so as not to put other sailors in danger by attempting to rescue them.  This seems a very brave decision to me and speaks to the nature of Gloucester fishermen.  The remaining crewmen were rescued and delivered to the Philadelphia port.

This information is from the Out of Gloucester archives.

I believe this to be the same John Handran of Gloucester who, a few years earlier, was  recipient of a peacetime Medal of Honor awarded by President Ulysses S. Grant for heroism in rescuing a shipmate who was swept off the US Steamer Franklin near Lisbon Portugal in 1876.  From the New York Herald:  “”poor Henry O’Neil seemed about to pay with his life the penalty for having gone to sea without learning to swim” when two sailors “were soon in the water making for the spot.  One of them, Edward Madden, held a rope’s end.  The rope proved too short, the icy waters chilled him, to let go the rope was to lose his own life, and he returned.  The other, John Handran, seaman, kept on with vigorous strokes.  This was not the first time he had risked his life to save a shipmate.  As he approached the drowning man with admirable coolness he kept clear of his struggling efforts to clutch, swimming round until he could grasp him with his right hand just so as to keep his mouth above water”.

Such bravery boggles the mind.  Such acts have repeated themselves over and over again throughout fishing’s long history in this area.  This story is representative of the proud heritage of Gloucestermen throughout time.  I am proud to have descended from such men.

My sister and her husband have been visiting from New York State and we have been having a grand time showing them some of our favorite Gloucester spots.  Despite the iffy weather, we rode out to Halibut Point State Park and Reservation.  We wanted to show off some of the nifty stuff we learned on our recent quarry tour.

It was like we were in a different climate zone when we got there.  The sky was a bit gray, but the winds were warm and welcoming.  There were a fair number of visitors already there.  I guess great minds really do think alike.  It was a great day to bring CB out to share the beauty with us.

Here’s a view from across the quarry of the World War II fire tower.  OK, you have to squint to find it, but it’s there!

Shout out to Cape Pond Ice from Halibut Point!

And here’s a backstage tour of how we make the CB magic happen:

It may appear that I have fallen and cannot get up but, in reality, we were working to place CB just so.  The magic doesn’t just happen, you know.

Sunday Sea Shower