My View of Life on the Dock
Congratulations Seaside Graphics! https://www.seasidegraphics.com/
After 5pm, I had only got about this far changing the tire when Bill circled back to offer to help–even though he was on his way home and gearing up for a milestone weekend celebration. Thank you ! Congratulations to you and the staff over so many, many years. That’s a long successful run for a local business that is clutch for so many.
Gorgeous firework display in Gloucester last night. Looking forward to tonight’s!
photos: The Inn at Good Harbor Beach (formerly dba Good Harbor Beach Inn) in March and April 2025. The stepped silhouette on Salt Island Road was retained. The Main building was raised on pylons due to flood mitigation.
renderings look great! https://innatgoodharborbeach.com/
Valentine’s Week Hours
photos: Winter construction. Good Harbor Beach Inn progress, January 19, 23, 31, 2025. Now called Inn at Good Harbor Beach.
renderings look great! https://innatgoodharborbeach.com/
3.9 earthquake on Jan 27, 2025. 10:22 AM. Off York Harbor, ME., felt in Gloucester.
I was driving and did not feel it, but multiple neighbors said their house shook. For updates see: https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes
Author’s note:
Years recorded with earthquake in Gloucester, Mass. (as of 1989): 1717, 1722, 1727-1730, 1737, 1755, 1757, 1761, 1763, 1805, 1874, 1925, 1889 (expected), and 1998. See index. Gloucester, Massachusetts: Historical Timeline, 1000-1999. Mary Ray. Editors, Sarah R. Dunlap, Gloucester Archives Committee (Gloucester, Mass.), 2002.
On April 30, 1722: “There was an earthquake in the town continued about a minute.”
What an impressive family affair! Congratulations Dr. Powers and Dr. Powers 🙂 !
Powers Family Dental has moved from 26 Dale Avenue to 18 Dale Avenue. Dr. Conor Powers, Dr. Michael Power’s eldest child, has joined the practice and is as congenial, warm and fastidious as his father. What hasn’t changed? The wonderful staff and dental hygienists! Michael’s sister Gina Muniz and niece Candace Balboa also work at the office. The expanded practice features six gleaming exam rooms outfitted in comfort and style with the latest and innovative equipment, efficient dental chair tech, custom sound system, and imaging–the x-ray being the sole carry over from the prior digs.
The new headquarters is closer to Central Grammar, directly across from the post office, with plenty of windows and views. Parking is available on Dale Avenue plus there are a few spaces on the building lot. From Dale Avenue, the accessibility entrance integrates a classic New England architectural detail into its design: a sweet and safe bridge crossing walkway to the front door. More Power To You 🙂
“Walter Powers Sr. started the business in 1926 on Middle St. In 1957 Walter Powers Jr. joined and they moved to 26 Dale Ave. In 1999, Michael Powers joined at 26 Dale Avenue. On September 16, 2024 Conor Powers joined and the practice moved to 18 Dale Avenue.” – Candace Balbo
Michael Powers maternal grandfather, Reginald Courant, was also a dentist- on Middle Street!
Courtesy images. September, 2024
photos: Spring in Gloucester, Ma. Different mood sunrises April 18 and May 10, 2024
photos Jan. 13, 2024, about 4pm–four hours after high tide–when the ocean receded: some views and condition of the Long Beach seawall, front row cottages, and behind the cottages.
Note: The packed and tamped soft surface atop the seawall walkway was stripped away and a narrow gully was carved along its length. The path is entirely clear and walkable (albeit one front cottage deck which was lifted and traveled some) although a bit uneven and raw. The concrete hard stretch fared better. There was 1 debris chunk and two damaged spots on the concrete section. On the beach, the rip rap is entirely exposed (which happens every winter). The popple berm between Long Beach and Cape Hedge is shorter, but still standing. Four hours after high tide the road out back was more dry than not. Every storm is different.
The marshes work wonders during extreme storms
photos January 13, 2024, two hours after high tide: At the back of Good Harbor Beach over to Cape Hedge (roughly Thatcher Road between Stop & Shop, Good Harbor Beach, Long Beach, and Cape Hedge). Streets were impassable for about two hours–flooded by feet of water not inches. Barriers, DPW crews, utility and emergency crews are repairing, clearing, and pushing cars. The last time the floods breached the berm at Cape Hedge was the March 2012 storms. I was away for the prior flooding this week, and have not seen other neighborhoods today.
Courtesy photos shared with GMG: Good Harbor Beach; Greasy Pole
Earlier this month, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) announced the release of a new interactive map, MAPC’s Homes for Profit: Speculation and Investment, showcasing some of their multi year research specific to housing and investment in Greater Boston.
(You can zoom in to Gloucester and greater Cape Ann or all of the North Shore.)
Today, to mark the public release, MAPC hosted a panel featuring Angie Liou, Executive Dir. Asian Community Development Corp; Brian An, Dir. Public Policy Georgia Tech; Katie MCann, Rent Control Campaign Coordinator, City Life/Vida Urbana; and Tim Reardon, Chief of Data & Research, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, a newly established cabinet level area in Gov. Healy administration. Prior to taking that position, Reardon had led the data and research for MAPC.
Moderators announced at the outset that there were 168 participants on the Zoom meeting including elected city officials– Sue Moran, Falmouth; Steve Owens, Watertown; Rita Mendes, Brockton; and Liz Breadon Alston-Brighton, Boston City Council–, city staff from multiple towns too many to name, and partner/organizations.
Before introducing the panelists and moderator, MAPC’s Jessie Partridge Guerrero gave a quick overview about the report findings and how MAPC wanted to focus solely on the speculation challenge in this particular report. The panelists spoke briefly about their own areas of expertise and to a one confirmed “not surprised” regarding the report findings. As they engaged in a guided discussion centered on the report, the panelists’ approaches and experiences were not all the same, nor were the comments by attendees.
Closer to home, the city of Gloucester has worked with MAPC on several projects. Some dating back to 2011 involved research that is relevant to the housing discussions since 2017–a series I wrote about and shared on GMG. You may have participated in some of the meetings 10+ years ago held at City Hall. I’ll add in some of those links below and one to the MAPC zoom meeting today. I still have notes from all the feedback received when I served on some panels.
It’s great to see some of that MAPC data and mapping available to the public in a format similar to MEMA- MA power outage map.
Who Owns America? A Methodology for Identifying Landlords’ Ownership Scale and the Implications for Targeted Code Enforcement
Abstract
Brian An touched on AI tools to help with research. One GT paper he cited ,https://repository.gatech.edu/entities/publication/472788f9-a5e6-4d9b-8238-422d20333bcb
Scholars and practitioners are increasingly interested in understanding who owns real estate in communities and resultant implications for targeted planning approaches. Yet, practitioners lack an efficient and comprehensive methodology to assess landlords’ ownership scale, namely how many properties they own in a given geographic area.
MAPC moderators mentioned the Boston Globe spotlight series and the Boston Globe articles on Somerville, https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/09/25/metro/somerville-tenants-rally-over-soaring-rents-gentrification-green-line-extension-corridor
PDF from the new MAPC research site
Nov. 26, 2023 – in this 400+ anniversary year the Kent Circle tree lighting is lit
Added to Holiday Lights and Cocoa Drives 2023 🙂 which is just getting going with a few early elves. 350+ homes were featured in 2022. Compare Kent Circle lighting through the years. Link to archive maps here.
Holiday Lights and Cocoa Drives is just getting going. This gem was spotted November 15th, the first of the season. Will Barbie pink be among the 2023 trends? Maybe. More homes and neighborhoods will be added, so be sure to check back. Photos will be posted on Good Morning Gloucester in separate batches.
photo caption (pinch and zoom to enlarge): For the 7th year in a row—and the 4th accompanied by a map with photos—enjoy snapshots of Gloucester’s decorated homes. Scroll down to see the first batch of twinkling houses that have been added to the Holiday Lights and Cocoa Drives 2023 map edition as of November 25. Also, scroll down to a list of area ‘Mark Your Calendar’, not-to-miss, seasonal events.
In addition to the area’s rewarding drives past cheery homes, beautiful seasonal tree lightings and festive sparkling downtowns are bustling with activities.
2023. Annual events (days and times differ year to year)
photos: Fall vistas and Thanksgiving decorations in Gloucester, Mass., November 2023.
Helpful tip! Did you know if you have a question or concern about a property in Gloucester (construction, zoning, demo, abutter, safety, compliance, etc.) and you call the building department, there is no record until you fill out a form? Any concern is noted when this form is filled out, dropped off, and emailed.
What to wear? Bananas Gloucester has options. Barbie is a regular there.
Bananas. 78 Main St. Gloucester, MA (978) 283-8806
One month away- mark your calendars! Countdown to Cape Ann Symphony’s very own Pops concert–a preeminent 400+ celebration– at Stage Fort Park is July 28, 2023. Classical and popular music for all in a spectacular setting!
For Gloucester’s Tablet Rock dedication in 1907, momentous Gloucester Day celebrations, and the city’s 300th, the natural open air ampitheatre of Stage Fort Park and its sweeping vistas beckoned and accomodated thousands for sheer casual delight, open and accessible to all. The Cape Ann Symphony Pops in the Park event echoes this history! On a smaller scale, the city hosts the popular free Antonio Gentile Bandstand Summer Concert Series at Stage Fort Park.
Heidi Dallin shares the details from Cape Ann Symphony:
Celebrate Gloucester’s 400+ at
POPS IN THE PARK
FREE ORCHESTRA CONCERT SET FOR JULY 28 at 8 PM
Cape Ann Symphony has partnered with the Gloucester 400+ to bring Cape Ann’s 70-member professional orchestra to Stage Fort Park for Pops in The Park, a special concert to celebrate Gloucester’s 400+, on Friday, July 28 at 8 PM.
“Over the last 6 months we’ve been raising the funds needed to put the symphony on stage and I am delighted to share that we just reached our goal. We are so appreciative of our corporate sponsors and all the individual donors who contributed to make this marquee event of the 400th celebration a reality! So, save the date of July 28th on your calendar and come join us at Pops in the Park, a glorious evening of symphonic music free to the public.”
Jodi Nedrow-Counihan, CAS board member and coordinator of the Pops event
Set against the majestic backdrop of Gloucester Harbor, this FREE outdoor all ages event will be a special evening of music. The program includes Rossini’s Barber of Seville Overture; Anderson’s Selections from Irish Suite; Copland’s Hoedown; William’s Adventures on Earth; A Tribute to Henry Mancini; Tchaikovsky’s Finale of The 1812 Overture and the world premiere of Celebration Overture by acclaimed Gloucester composer Robert J Bradshaw.
“The Pops in the Park Concert on July 28th is a celebration not only of the 400+ years of Gloucester history but of the 70+ years of the Cape Ann Symphony” adds Nedrow-Counihan. The Cape Ann Symphony began in 1952 as a volunteer group of thirty or so individuals calling themselves the “Gloucester Civic Symphony Orchestra”. On July 10th, 1952 the symphony performed their inaugural concert in the Gloucester High School auditorium and wowed the audience of over 800 concertgoers with their performance of Beethoven’s First Symphony.
Today, the Cape Ann Symphony has evolved into an all-professional orchestra of more than 70 members from throughout the New England area with a performance level to rival any regional Symphony in the country. For more than 20 years Maestro Yoichi Udagawa has been the CAS Music Director and Conductor and his artistry and passion have made him an audience favorite. Maestro Udagawa is at home in popular and contemporary music as well as the standard symphonic repertoire. He is known for his relaxed manner and ability to speak from the podium which has helped new audiences as well as enthusiasts gain a greater appreciation for symphonic music.
The Cape Ann Symphony’s Pops in the Park Concert, a preeminent event to celebrate Gloucester’s 400+, is Friday, July 28, 2023 at 8:00 pm in Stage Fort Park, 24 Hough Avenue, Gloucester, MA. Admission to this outdoor concert on the harbor is FREE. For information, call 978-281-0543 or visit pops.capeannsymphony.org
*“In 1623, 14 English fishermen set up the first European colony on Cape Ann here in what was then Fisherman’s Field and is now Stage Fort Park. These ramparts overlook the harbor, first built during the Revolutionary War, renewed for the War of 1812, the Civil War and the Spanish American War.”
Alas, those first settlers, sent across the ocean by the Dorchester Company, were unable to live off the sea and these rock-bound fields. They moved a few miles south to what is now Salem in 1626. Then, within a decade, there were enough permanent settlers on Cape Ann to incorporate the town of Gloucester. The first meetinghouse was built on the Town Green in 1642 near what is now the Grant Circle rotary of Route 128. The City set this land aside as a public park in 1898 and its Tablet Rock was dedicated by Henry Cabot Lodge in 1907.“
– David Rhinelander see Gloucester HarborWalk Stage Fort Park marker #42, 2011 photo on marker ©Sharon Lowe.
Reposting history I wrote about Stage Fort Plaque / Tablet Rock:
See also Stage Fort Park then/now photos in prior GMG post
James R. Pringle was designated to write the inscription for the bronze plaque. The execution of the design was by Eric Pape. “The nautical scheme of decorative framework and embellishment was the composite suggestion” of various committees dating as far back as the 1880s. Bronze tribute plaques embedded in Tablet Rock at Stage Fort Park detail the site’s history and were commissioned and unveiled at different times. The monumental and stunning Founders plaque from 1907 on Tablet Rock itself is in fantastic condition. Two DAR plaques were inlaid on the glacial outcroppings past half moon beach on the way to the cannons. The Fisherman’s Field (1934) which I attributed to Harriet Hyatt is so worn it’s nearly indecipherable, though that’s part of its charm**. The plaque compels close inspection, lingering and discovery. It’s a fun family activity for anyone who likes a challenge. For those who want help reading the content, I transcribed it back in 2010. Harriet Hyatt designed the Meeting House Plain plaque across from Cape Ann near Washington and Poplar. – 2015, 2027 **Update 2020: Cape Ann Museum acquired the original drawing for the plaque design in 2020!
Click here to enlarge: transcription of Fisherman’s Field tribute plaque Tablet Rock Stage Fort Park Gloucester MA
Do you know a cluster of homes perched like the subjects in this classic Edward Hopper watercolor painted here in Gloucester 100 years ago? Hallmark motifs and themes pair up throughout this bright and sunny scene: outhouse on the left and brush edged to the right (“nature calls”), passage between buildings and boulders, light and sharp shadow, double windows and curtains, roofline and sky, line up of chimneys, and the mystery of cropped views over the hill and off to the sides.
A house like the home on the right with dark trim and the pair of double stacked windows may appear to be a double story home from one side and as a single story from another. (A home at the corner of Webster and Sadler Sts. shows the vernacular charm and multi vantage points.)
The drawing is available for purchase. The Whitney Museum of American Art is deaccessioning four Edward Hopper watercolors inspired by the artist’s travel to four locations: Gloucester, Truro, Vermont/NH, and South Carolina. Sotheby’s Auction House has listed them in their major upcoming New York spring sales: one painting for the Modern Evening auction May 16 and 3 paintings on paper for the Modern Day auction on May 17. A fifth Edward Hopper work on paper is included in the day sale.
Images: Edward Hopper works from the Whitney collection at Sotheby’s auction May 2023, images left to right: Lot 434 Red Barn in Autumn Landscape, 1927; Lot 430 Gloucester Group of Houses 1923 est 500,000 – 700,000; Lot 432 The Battery, Charleston, SC 1929 est 500-700,000; Lot 145 Cobb’s Barn, South Truro, circa 1930-33, presale estimate 8-12 million. This painting was selected for display in the Oval Office* by President Obama. A later Edward Hopper Cape Cod watercolor from 1943, Four Dead Trees, with a presale estimate of 700,000-1,000,000, sold at Christie’s on April 23, 2023 for 1.5 million (price realized includes added fees). Lot 531 an Edward Hopper Sailboat study from 1899 from the Sanborn batch, presale est. $100,000 (w/ art and papers in the Nyack home following Hoppers’ deaths.)
Auction follow up and results posted here.
On right, Hopper’s NY Rooftops 1927 reminds me of the Gloucester forms ( installation view Whitney NY, Jan 2023), like vessels on the Hudson. Photo c ryan
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*I wrote about art at the White House in 2014 which was published here on GMG in 2015:
“What’s the best art inside the White House? No matter what is your artistic preference, Gloucester and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts could top the charts as the City and state with the best and most art ties featured at the White House. Let’s break down a selection of that Massachusetts list currently on display at the White House room-by-room, shall we?
“Not one, but two Edward Hopper paintings, lent by the Whitney Museum of American Art, were installed one over the other, Cobb’s Barns, South Truro and Burly Cobb’s House, South Truro. The Childe Hassam’s painting, Avenue in the Rain, and Norman Rockwell’s painting, Statue of Liberty, were displayed nearby.
…How does the White House collection work? It is unusual for the White House to accept art by living artists. There are more than 450 works of art in the permanent collection. New art enters the collection after its vetted and is restricted to works created at least 25 years prior to the date of acquisition. For the public rooms, the Office of the Curator works with the White House advisory committee, the First Lady serves as the Honorary Chair, and the White House Historical Association. The private rooms are the domain of the First Family. Works of art from collectors, museums, and galleries can be requested for temporary loans and are returned at the end of the President’s final term. The Obamas have selected contemporary art, including abstract art, from the permanent collection, and borrowed work for their private quarters. Besides the Hopper paintings and John Alston’s Martin Luther King sculpture, they’ve selected art by *Anni Albers, *Josef Albers, Edgar Degas, Jasper Johns, Louise Nevelson, *Robert Rauschenberg, Edward Ruscha, and *Alma Thomas.” * indicates works that have been donated to the permanent collection.
Catherine Ryan, 2014
There are more than 120 Edward Hopper works inspired by Gloucester, MA. See Edward Hopper all around Gloucester. The Whitney Museum has sold Hoppers before. I’ll write more about that for another post.
Hundreds of the library’s Gloucester Newspaper Microfilm Collection of monthly reels spanning 40+ years have been optimized for accessibility and are now fully searchable on line! The microfilm rolls and readers on site are up and running as well.
“The Sawyer Free Library digitized the Gloucester Daily Times from January 1923 through March 1965. You can access the collection through our website (homepage), or directly from the online collection.”
Sawyer Free Library
It’s as easy as click on the home page! Here’s Julie Travers, SFL’s Local History Librarian, walking me through the happy news. If you’d like to contribute to the library’s ongoing efforts, each roll costs roughly $175-$200 a piece.
Archives for All!
“HISTORY MAKING PLEA – ARCHIVES FOR ALL
Catherine Ryan, Jan. 3, 2017 here
The prohibitive costs of best practice historic preservation (ADA compliant, temperature and humidity controls, security, sustainability, in house scanning/OCR/audio transcription, etc.) is impossible for all the worthy collections in town, and pits them as foes when vying for funds. Let’s flip that impediment on its head and make Gloucester a model for the state. Its treasures would be available worldwide if they were truly accessible –digitized…”
How exciting that Gloucester’s repositories have been busy digitizing treasures from their archives. The GDT newspaper microfilm rolls are a welcome addition.
Easter morning Rockport, Gloucester 4/9/2023
Good Morning Gloucester 