Sam Novello asks GMG, “Joe, what happened to the cannons at Stage Fort Park—— two are gone?”
The cannon(s) are undergoing restoration (cleaning, chemical treatment and re-painting). In 2018, the CPA Committee awarded $22,705 of an estimated $46,000 to the Stage Fort Park Advisory Committee to refurbish the Parrot Rifle Cannon for work scheduled to commence spring 2020. The project is led by the Stage Fort Park Advisory Committee. The grant application project summary indicates the scope of work as follows:
The fabrication of an aluminum “historic-rendering of a carriage for the Parrot Rifle Cannon as part of a multi-year project to restore the Fort area of Stage Fort Park.
Cleaning, treatment and repainting of the Parrot Rifle Cannon.
Machining or “sleeving” of the Parrot Rifle Cannon to create a narrow lined bore capable of firing a small charge report.
“Our final goal is to restore the Fort area as a historic feature of the Park and its importance to our local military history.* Repairs and restoration of this site are long overdue. The ramparts are overgrown with vegetation**. The cannon barrels are suffering due to neglect. The barrels are subject to trash, dirt and debris. We hope to preserve this site for future generations. The cleaning, capping and painting of the cannon will protect the barrel against future damage. We have proposed an annual stipend in the city budget of $2000 for maintenance of the Fort as well as a security plan for the Fort which would include lighting and security cameras. *Our ultimate goals include a visitor education center with historic references to the Fort and its history. It is expected that the entire Stage Fort Park will be used as a centerpiece of the city’s 400th anniversary celebrations.”
– Stage Fort Park Advisory Committee CPA application excerpt, photo from packet and phasing goals
*There is no finalized plan for this area overall. (See photographs then/now below.)There IS a history of Fort use and restoration for historic battles –as well as city celebrations– honoring this legacy and the kind souls who volunteered to do so.
For example: I’m not sure if the 187th Infantry Brigade was paid for the work they did in 1973, which I’m assuming was the last big overhaul. The CPA grant is just about the work on the cannons. The Historical Commission wrote a letter of support stressing replica accuracy using period materials (wood and metal)
**The area is overgrown at the moment because of various DPW work on the boulevard and future plans. (When I photographed the area annually it’s cleared.)
Stage Fort is the oldest fort in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
2019
October 2019 cannons removed for restoration from site design 1973 by 187th Infantry Brigade
ca.1870
“Fort Conant”, post Civil War – pre 1900 site of ramparts before land set aside as Stage Fort Park. Four cannons were mounted during the Civil War
1973
As part of the city’s 350th celebration prep, the cannon site area (earthworks, entrance area, powder magazine, and gun embrasures) was restored by an engineer brigade from Wollaston. The design intent turned the clock back to how the fort would have been built out in the 1700s. Julian Hatch, the chairman of the 350th, had been director of public works for the city. The project was decades in the wishing and sensitively designed at long last.
1930
In 1930, the Fort was spruced up from its formal design post Civil and Spanish war. Fisherman’s Field Stage Fort information plaques were commissioned and unveiled.
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 (ca.1930) 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. ”
Read more about historic battles and Gloucester Stage Fort Park in this trivia quiz designed by Shaun Goulart, GHS history teacher, in this prior GMG post.
1921
copy of Frank L. Cox fine art photograph (pre dates 1921) he used to illustrate his pocket Gloucester guide “The Gloucester Book”, and sell prints
ca.1870
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Keep What Works at the Library – “Keep What Works at the Library”, Martha Bowen letter to the editor, Gloucester Daily Times, March 23, 2019
UPCOMING MEETINGS THIS WEEK
ON Tuesday March 26, 2019 Library Trustees meeting from 5:30-7:30PM
ON Wednesday March 27, 2019 there is a Library (new) Building Committee meeting from 4pm – 6pm.The monthly meetings sometimes follow the traditional schedule of meeting on the last Wednesday of each month at 4:00 pm, and sometimes they have been/will be combined with Trustee meetings, etc. Do confirm ahead: 01/30/2019, 02/27/2019 02/26/2019, 03/27/2019, 04/24/2019 LOCATION: confirm SFL location if Friend Room or one of two rooms upstairs/downstairs in Saunders. There may be other informal ad hoc meetings.
Note schedule change – architect presentation with new building committee and library trustees is Tuesday February 26.
ON Monday February 25, 2019 Saunders House Stewardship Committee, 10:30AM-noon
ON Tuesday February 26, 2019 there is a Library (new) Building Committee meeting 5:30 PM sharp – 7:30 PM. Please note schedule change, again. The monthly meetings announced were said to follow the traditional schedule of meeting on the last Wednesday of each month at 4:00 pm, but that has not happened as meetings have been combined with Trustee meetings, etc. Do confirm ahead: 01/30/2019, 02/27/2019 02/26/2019, 03/27/2019, 04/24/2019 LOCATION: confirm SFL location if Friend Room or one of two rooms upstairs/downstairs in Saunders. There may be other informal ad hoc meetings.
ON Wednesday February 27, 2019 the fundraising committee for the new building may be meeting but I’m fairly certain it’s not at 4-5am– just a little typo on the events calendar. Maybe it’s 4-5pm
ON Monday Jan 28 there is Saunders House Committee meeting 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM LOCATION: Byers/Davidson Room according to the library’s calendar. Additionally, The Saunders House Stewardship Committee, meets at 10:30 am on the third Monday of every month; confirm locations on the day. January 2019 was moved to January 14th because it would have fallen on Martin Luther King day.
ON Wed Jan 30 there is Library (new) Building Committee meeting 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM Then monthly: 01/30/2019, 02/27/2019, 03/27/2019, 04/24/2019 LOCATION: confirm if Friend Room or one of two rooms upstairs/downstairs in Saunders. There may be other informal ad hoc meetings–there was one scheduled at Dore & Whittier in December.
For your review – summary and scenes from the November 15, 2018 public meeting and recent headlines:
photo caption: Central Grammar apartments (left), City Hall (back), Sawyer Free library (right)
photo caption: at the start of the 11/15/18 Library new building meeting – eight to ten tables set up, and mood boards on stands
photo caption: Brad Dore introduces the design team November 2018 (eight including him) Matt Oudens raising hand in this photo presented his designs at the 2017 meeting
Approximately fifty attendees –including the library board and staff plus eight consultants from the firm, Dore & Whittier Project Management and Architecture— convened on the main floor of Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library on November 15, 2018. Individuals from the Historical commission, Action Inc, Saunders House, Gloucester Green, a local middle school teacher, a Varian employee, library members and 3 teenagers were present.
I believe the light attendance was due to a feeling of repetition. The public meeting was billed as an opportunity to provide feedback to the library yet again. It turns out that the gathering was a required step in the next phase of the library building plans and as such was presented to be starting from square one. No matter how one tries to paint it, it’s not square one. “This is just a necessary step,” the consultants explained. “”It doesn’t matter.”
Since 2013, the library has facilitated and hired consultants to help with public forums related to the building and future plans. (Public and committee meetings, agendas, minutes, and strategic planning are requirements for grants and funding, not to mention big pursuits like new buildings or restoration). It is disconcerting that years of prior and extensive staff and public feedback are not aggregated and readied by the library board nor contracted consultants–especially as several in attendance were present at the January 11, 2017 meeting attended by 150+ that sent the building plans back to the drawing board.
photo caption: Jan 11 2017 crowd (paintings on view like the Lanes since moved)
That contentious January 2017 meeting was preceded by the corporators* meeting two weeks prior where feedback recommended recording and sharing public comments for transparency and efficiency and many of the same concerns were expressed.
*I am a library corporator and can attest that project updates have not been shared (albeit annual meetings) Corporators are a devoted library audience and might help.
photo caption: The official recorder for committee and municipal meetings in City Hall is a great model.
In between the timing of that big 2017 meeting and this small 2018 one, the library pursued forums via ThinkGloucester facilitated by Gloucester Conversations for its strategic planning. At those forums, the library indicated that results would be shared in the fall of 2018. I was not the only one expecting those results linked on the homepage and printed out for the November 15th meeting. They weren’t. Following the meeting, a board member kindly shared the findings: Sawyer Free Library thinkGloucester Project Report_final 2018
State funding support for library buildings is guided by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners ( MBLC). In part because of the state’s toolkit funding process, the November 2018 meeting became a fresh start and first step, Phase 1. I was told that the architects and designers needed to hear feedback “first hand” which is reasonable until you establish that yes in fact most of them had been at that most well attended public meeting to date mentioned above (2017), and have been engaged by the library and worked with the library committees for years. Although that money is disassociated as part of the MBLC toolkit next phase, each purchase order (PO) for marketing/public relations (PR) and phases towards new building plans can affect the library’s bottom line, and take years. When I find them, I will link to the library’s letter of intent, a list of costs for consulting to date (phases or not), building related work, marketing completed since 2013, and for the fine art removed.
In 2013 top concerns included new bathrooms, more staff, the Saunders building, art & archives, and the HVAC systems. Here we are six years later: I can say there has been no change in the bathrooms. The library needs more staff. Voices to preserve the John and Dorothy Rando memorial garden have arisen. The teenagers at the November meeting hoped for new lighting. Perhaps that’s an easy renovation. After six years, the library may have saved some money and developed outreach by conducting a local design competition, fixing the bathroom, and hiring staff. We may have move forward together to MBLC instead of what feels like a never ending “stage one”.
MBLC supports new builds that adhere to a best practice formula and adjusts as no two libraries or communities are exactly the same. For instance, specific additional square footage from a current footprint, varied “programmable” spaces, adequate parking and public input are guidelines. I would suggest that money be spent on clerks/recorders for the public meetings and the library should insist on that from their consultants (whether Dore &Whittier or not). I would hope that new input at every stage continues to be updated and evaluated. Why is the focus on “green” LEED not parsing the MBLC parking spaces requirements? The Boston Public Library did away with them–we should expect no less. Some rural or smaller communities may need larger library builds and new visions to create a statement cultural public gathering spot where there hasn’t been one. (Although I think that’s unlikely in MA.) Our extant library has a variety of gathering spaces. And Gloucester is blessed with an abundance of large, special public spaces that work in concert with the library. City Hall, Cape Ann Museum, Temple Ahavat Achim, the YMCA, and the Gloucester Meetinghouse UU Church are essentially library abutters and can pack hundreds. The Legion, Rose Baker Senior Center and Maritime Gloucester are short blocks away. The library can move events to off-site locations when and if it’s mutually rewarding. Mostly it does OK in house. Gloucester’s population hovers 30,000 which is the same as it was at the time of the last expansion. Does our population require more space? According to sources in the paper and the meeting, the building plans remain many years out. The Massachusetts funding model has decreased and according to the MBLC press release issued Nov 2018, “The longer a community goes without being able to start its project, the higher the construction costs will be.” At what point do the costs outweigh options like renting if building lifespans are warrantied to a few decades expectancy? If the process requires construction this costly, perhaps the state can reimburse communities more money, quicker, and/or develop other models?
You can read a range of reactions to the library’s November 15, 2018 meeting in an article by Ray Lamont in the Gloucester Daily Times: Sawyer Free Library plans still unclear, November 19, 2018
Dore & Whittier was awarded the 197 million Newton North high school design and build, and multiple MBLC and MSBA contracts for the City of Gloucester. Here is a link to the complete project list published on their website (and photos below). You’ll need to go back and forth among the awarded category projects to separate work by town. (For instance, West Parish is listed but does not indicate “Gloucester” and the library work does not appear). The state sites don’t aggregate all phases either. The Massachusetts school PO status from March 2018 lists 3 awards: the East Gloucester Elementary School study, the GHS roof repair and the West Parish build.
The current website does not have a “button” or menu selection for new building plans. You can select from the calendar to see some of the meetings announced. You can select About to explore more about the board committees and some minutes and agendas. Some meetings are linked into the City of Gloucester calendar, too.
The Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library is holding a public meeting November 15, 6-8pm, seeking ideas about the library’s next steps.
In May and June 2018, the library’s volunteer group, thinkGloucester, held a series of community meetings facilitated by Gloucester Conversations. People were invited “to join these open conversations to share ideas and input for the library’s five-year strategic plan.” I went to one of the meetings which was lightly attended with 12 participants beyond staff, board and facilitators. Further outreach included meetings off site in different wards as well as through social media and on line. Postcards were sent to every residence encouraging participation in an online survey. I’ll look for a link to a summary page of results from that feedback. In the meantime, here’s a link to a message from the Board – Creating our Future an update on the building project, June 2018
More staff, books, better bathrooms, celebrate Saunders, children’s library, local art, archives!
The Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library is holding a public meeting November 15, 6-8pm, seeking ideas about the library’s next steps.
In May and June 2018, the library’s volunteer group, thinkGloucester, held a series of community meetings facilitated by Gloucester Conversations. People were invited “to join these open conversations to share ideas and input for the library’s five-year strategic plan.” I went to one of the meetings which was lightly attended with 12 participants beyond staff, board and facilitators. Further outreach included meetings off site in different wards as well as through social media and on line. Postcards were sent to every residence encouraging participation in an online survey. I’ll look for a link to a summary page of results from that feedback. In the meantime, here’s a link to a message from the Board Creating our Future an update on the building project, June 2018
More staff, books, better bathrooms, celebrate Saunders, children’s library, local art, archives!
Information labels were applied to City Hall walls with an epoxy that is ill advised near art. In early spring a label for this Ken Gore painting migrated to its surface and pulled away a small patch of paint. Elizabeth Mehlin, an expert painting restorer in Ipswich, Massachusetts, repaired the accidental damage. She was able to tease out pulverized pieces of the paint stuck to remnant epoxy and match the loss so beautifully the fix is indiscernible. The painting is large and heavy. I suspect that its original custom frame was likely carved by multi media artist and Montserrat teacher, Alfred Czerepak (1928 – 1986). Gloucester’s Department of Public Works are such great stewards of the city’s art and history!
Before repair – and remnant epoxy
To the rescue as usual. Fantastic Deparment of Public Works – Mike Hale, Bobby Gross, Phil Curcuru, Mike Tarantino – the return of the repaired Gore painting
KENNETH (KEN) GORE (American, b.Oct 2 1911 Elvira, Illinois -1990 d. Gloucester) Ken Gore visited Gloucester for the first time in 1948 and settled into a home and studio within a year. Eventually he purchased 186 East Main Street where he resided and maintained a studio and gallery. (Today it’s Lynzariums, aka the Plant Shack, across from Beacon Marine Basin in East Gloucester.) Gore was a student and art professor at the Detroit Meisinger Art School. He served as president of both Rockport and North Shore Art Associations and for the Cape Ann Festival of the Arts. He performed regularly with the Cape Ann Symphony. He taught regularly. Apparently his personality was as joyous and musical as his painting: his art students and friends considered him “one of the nicest mans they’d ever met.” I’ve heard that his plein air road trips and truck “studio” were quite a sight. I would love to see a picture of him on location by his truck. I do love seeing Jeff Weaver and his signature truck around town.
186 East Main Street, Gloucester, was former home, studio and gallery of artist Ken Gore
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What do you do when your home repair goes very wrong? Upon evaluation, sometimes you just have to hire a new contractor to remedy mistakes. In the fall of 2014 memorial honor roll plaques in City Hall received some cleaning. The monuments were due some attention. Over time the names were no longer legible and the surfaces were grimy defeating their noble purpose. Gloucester’s outstanding City Archives and the Cape Ann Office of Veterans Services were and are able to help with research for those who can’t come in person or see them clearly.
photo caption: BEFORE photograph of one of four WW1 honor rolls in the rotunda City Hall, ca.2014
The 2014 project was not handled by the city nor administered through its committee for the arts, of which I am a member. Funds were raised privately to work on the plaques. Though well intentioned, those restoration efforts were botched (and costly at the time, so I’m told.) The names were made more visible, but the plaques were damaged and results are scratched, streaked and blotchy.
A small annual budget (FY2018 $4000) that’s set aside for care of City arts and culture and monuments as part of its mission must now be redirected to fix the fix.Yes, “Sometimes you have to hire a new contractor to remedy mistakes,” frustrating, but necessary.
Throughout 2018, you may see specialists from Skylight Studios repairing plaques within City Hall through the Committee for the Arts on behalf of the City. (Gloucester residents may recall that Skylight Studios was hired by the Commonwealth to restore the bronze doors of the Abram Piat Andrew Bridge; the doors were temporarily displayed at Cape Ann Museum before being reinstalled.)
The detailed work on the City Hall plaques will be completed in brief, focused intervals. One plaque in the rotunda will be restored last, because it’s a great opportunity to show before and after examples of contemporary restoration projects- the good, the bad and the quality. As the plaques are repaired, the detail of the raised carving and borders and most importantly the names of so many veterans will become easier and easier to read and remember.
Gloucester Ma Veterans Honor Rolls and Monuments
*author note- this post is listing interior Honor Rolls within City Hall; it’s not a complete list for all tributes in Gloucester
GROUND FLOOR, CITY HALL
Spanish American War- “Men of Gloucester who served in the War with Spain volunteers all 1898-1902. Gloucester ‘s men, serving on land and sea won for their city the honor of giving to her country the largest per capita of men in this war. Erected by the City of Gloucester 1930.”
2014 wonky cleaning needs repair (Honor Roll to be repaired sometime 2018)
World War I Honor Rolls (rotunda and upstairs)
World Ward II Honor Roll (outside clerk’s office)
Korean Honor Roll (outside clerk’s office)
Vietnam Honor Roll (outside clerk’s office; Brian Hamilton 1980 painting of fisherman)
Vietnam War Honor Roll
Korean War Honor Roll
World War II Honor Roll center panel
Veterans Honor Rollsbefore poor cleaning work of 2014 Winter mural between
just outside Kyrouz Auditorium, FIRST FLOOR, CITY HALL
“Civil War (1861 1865)This tablet records the service of Company G 8th Regiment MVM in the Civil War; and War with Spain (1898 1899) occupation of Cuba; and World War 1917 1919″ Corrective repairs are underway on this trio Honor Roll. Waxy build up added in 2014 is being removed all over, and names in a small lower right corner have been attended.
lower right corner in process
2018 repair work underway
Poor cleaning ca.2014 requires remediation (which is underway as of 2018–all damage may not be able to be repaired)
The multi story memorial to Gloucester fishermen lost at sea was a major public art project led, designed and hand painted by Norma Cuneo, with Irma Wheeler and Ellen Ferrin in 1978, a beautiful shrine lighted by day by two tall windows. Mark Newton, then city clerk-historian, and Jerry Cook were lead researchers; the team eventually compiled a card index that could be accessed by the public along with checking this massive lost at sea mural. Research incorporated historic materials like The Fishermen’s Memorial and Record Book, by George H. Procter, published by Procter Bros. in 1873, printed matter, family archives, and newspapers. Volunteers and historians amend the sources and statistics over time. The sense of the power of a name and life is inspiring. The response and need to a tangible, accessible record was tremendous. Their work was the basis for the cenotaph installed in 2000 by the Fisherman at the Wheel memorial on Stacy Boulevard, a sacred place and pilgrimage site accessible day and night.
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Nice letter from Patti Amaral in today’s Gloucester Daily Times writing on behalf of the city’s Clean City Initiative. She thanked the city, donors and supporters while providing some background about the Carry In Carry Out art. In case you missed it: Nov 9 2017 Letter to the Editor
The murals were refurbished by Jason Burroughs in October 2017. They were designed and painted by Bob Viau from StudioVo 15 years ago. Here are a few photos documenting the refurbishing. The Wingaersheek wall needed more attention.
Carry In Carry Out mural at Good Harbor Beach BEFORE
Carry In Carry Out mural at Good Harbor Beach AFTER
Carry In Carry Out mural at Wingaersheek BEFORE
Carry In Carry Out mural at Wingaersheek AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
Anyone interested in sponsoring a possible update to these beach displays, please let her know!
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The Niles Pond-Brace Cove causeway restoration is progressing admirably. You may recall our story about the extensive damage the causeway had suffered from several fierce back to back storms. In 2014, the Association of Eastern Point Residents restored the structural rocks supporting the causeway. This past week, preparations for restoring the plantings has begun.
Below are photos taken in 2013 of storm damage, prior to restoration.
Phase one of restoration work, 2014
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The restoration of the Phyllis A continues in earnest at Gloucester Marine Railway. This week the iconic red pilot house, spars, and engine were removed. She is being lightened up before coming off the rails and then picked up on the big blue travel lift. There is a spot waiting for the Phyllis A in the parking lot, so she can have more extensive work done without tying up the railway. We are actively seeking volunteers to help with her restoration and to help with mailing and other office type work too. Please come by the Steel Drive behind Fosters on Saturday 8-4 to help support the Phyllis A’s restoration, while getting rid of your unwanted steel.
From the Maine Boat Builders Show Elderly Lawley tender beautifully restored by Redd’s Pond Boatworks in Marblehead.
George Lawley & Son was established in Scituate in 1866, moving later to South Boston and then to Neponset in 1911. By the time it closed in 1945 the company had built more than 1,100 yachts and 1,850 tenders along with military vessels .
This weekend the Millbrook Meadow Committee has planned a fun ceremony to recognize and celebrate the restoration of Rockport’s landmark Mill Dam. This has been a long process and the Committee has done and continues to do a fantastic job of bringing one of Rockport’s most historically and culturally significant places back to life. Plan on coming this Saturday if you can, and if you can’t, please spread the word about the opening ceremony:
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The 1925 ‘Phyllis A.’ is now high and dry at the start of it’s restoration process at the Gloucester Marine Railways.
–Len Burgess
The Phyllis A. Marine Association is in the process of the restoration of this gill-netting fishing ship and has received some funding from the citizens of Gloucester through the Community Preservation Act.
A brief history of the Phyllis A. from "The Wheel House", How it all started!
Albert Arnold, the man who had the vessel built, owned a boat before the Phyllis A. called the Anna T. Captains Albert, Cy Tysver, and Mike Shoares, all “Michigan Bears”, had her built in Essex in 1913. She was about the same size as the future Phyllis A. and also a gill-netter. In 1923, Albert loaned the Anna T. to a family friend. Unfortunately, she was lost on the bar off Wingersheek Beach in the Annisquam River. The pilot house of the Anna T. floated to shore and was dragged up next to “the frog rock” (rocks painted to look like frogs) and made a shed out of it. The Anna T.’s pilot house/shed is there still today, sitting just south of frog rocks.
The insurance company paid Albert $4500 for the wreck, which he used to commission the building of the Phyllis A. at the Warner Shipyard, in Kennebunkport, Maine. Phil Boudain joined the venture with his nets, and when the Phyllis A. came down the ways in 1925, they set off gillnetting together.
Fishing the Phyllis A. has always been a family affair. Son Alvin Arnold took over from Captain Albert and sons Kenneth and Robert crewed. Later on, the youngest son, Richard, took on the captain’s position. From the beginning, Mrs. Arnold kept the books and kept everyone moving. Young Phyllis Arnold, though not a crew member, was present with the family when the vessel was christened and named for her. Then 3, she cried when she broke the bottle of champagne on the bow and splashed on the beautiful new deck!
Phyllis A. Marine Association
Our mission is not only the promotion of the industry and preservation of the vessel, but to provide the historical education of the fishing industry for our children.
Last Spring, the Phyllis A. Marine Association offered an educational program to East Gloucester Elementary School. Capt. Richard Arnold has done programs for the students of Veteran’s Memorial School and was interested in offering that program to the students of East Gloucester School. The program consists of a short movie about the Phyllis A., a short lecture, Q&A, and display of artifacts. The program lasts about one hour and can be designed to fit the needs of the students and teachers. This pilot program is offered free of charge. We hope to expand to more schools this Spring.
Phyllis A. Marine Association c/o 39 Mount Pleasant Avenue Gloucester, Massachusetts 01930 info@phyllis-a.org
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The scaffolding doesn’t exactly add to the aesthetic value, but it doesn’t totally hide the imposing elegance of the building either. I really look forward to seeing the results of this important restoration!
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As promised in the newspapers a few weeks ago, it looks like the scaffolding is just about complete and restoration work about to begin on our beautiful and historic City Hall in Gloucester. Here are some photos I took on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.
It takes a special kind of person to be able to work on top of scaffolding like that. My knees would be turning to jelly. May the people up there stay safe, and may their work go smoothly!
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Hi Joey, The Sargent House Museum would like to invite people to a lecture followed by refreshments and a tour of the museum tour this coming Saturday at 2pm at the Sawyer Library. We’re delighted to have the wonderful author, Tim Orwig, talk about Joseph Chandler’s work in preserving the musuem in the early part of the 20th century. Joseph Everett Chandler, preservationist and antiquarian, was a champion of Colonial Restoration, most often referred to as the Colonial Revival style. He believed architectural forms demonstrated values of their builders, and that a culture could not survive without preserving reminders of its origins and character. After the lecture, we’ will walki over to the museum for refreshments and a tour. You may have noticed that the Sargent House Museum is in the midst of an exterior restoration project. Come see what it’s all about! Get tickets online at sargenthouse.org. Thanks for your support and helping us get the word out! Judith Nast
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Work is underway on the restoration of the Museum’s exterior. In this photo, general contractor Joseph Napolitano, of NAPCO, Inc., is replacing a sill on the building’s north side. In the coming weeks, other carpentry repairs and structural work will be completed. The building is prepped and primed and ready for a new coat of paint. Partial funding for this project is provided by the Massachusetts Cultural Council through its Cultural Facilities Fund and the Tower Family Funds. Donations welcome. This is a big project!!
Sargent House Museum
49 Middle Street Gloucester, Massachusetts 01930
978-281-2432
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Good Morning Gloucester 