Gloucester, MA ~ The Perfect Storm

Expat · #1 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 1:41 AM**

Gloucester, MA, population of 28,789. Settled in 1623 by the British. Gloucester has two T commuter rail stations taking passengers to Boston 31 miles away. Local bus service from Cape Ann Transit Authority (CATA). One of the largests employers is Gortons of Gloucester. You may have seen their products in your supermarket. Their logo looks a lot like the Fisherman's Memorial.

Fishermans Memorial, shown below, built in the 1920s for sailers lost at sea. Gloucester has losts thousands of men to the Atlantic Ocean and still do. Including 4 in 1991 made famous by the movie The Perfect Storm.
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At passageway to the harbor:
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Don't be fooled by these pleasure boats, there is a real working harbor in Gloucester.
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Downtown:
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Building with harbor view:
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Dog with harbor view:
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On several papers. Notice the red thumbtack in the yellow grass:
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Wall mural of Judith Murray Sargent:
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This was her house built in 1782. Artist, John Singer Sargent descends from this family.
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This is the house of a sculptor. Or I should say, this is is patio & view:
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More downtown:
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Great place for lunch downtown:
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Assuming this building was built in 1750. Plus, I like these old Mercedes station wagons:
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Peculiar building facing the harbor:
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Hammond Castle, built by an inventor in the 1920s:
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View from Hammond Castle:
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The Padre Pio, fishing boat:
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Close up of Padre Pio himself:
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A sea dog:
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A diner downtown:
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The Dory Shop - A master craftsman builds dories & skiffs here:
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City Hall:
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Our Lady of the Good Voyage. At the top, St. Mary is cradling a boat. This church was built for the substantial Portuguese population and patterned after a church in the Azores.
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Joan of Arc:
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Low tide:
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Love this siding:
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Eastern Point Day School:
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Thanks for taking a look!

Shawn · #2 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 2:20 AM**

Gloucester is gorgeous, and your photography keeps getting better with every thread, Expat. Like you said, Gloucester is especially cool because it's managed to retain a thriving, working port while also transforming itself into a classic Cape Anne / North Shore pristine seaside village, ala Newburyport.

Keep 'em coming!

ColDayMan · #3 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 2:26 AM**

Thanks for that!

the Genral · #4 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 3:03 AM**

Nice encore to your last thread Expat. 5 out of 5 stars!! Big fan since your Austin thread. Btw, you wouldn't believe how low Lake Travis is now from your last visit here, we're having an epic drought. I'm no stranger to the Northeast. I used to go fishing with my uncle out of New London, Conn. and also have family near Mystic, soooo...if you are ever in that area, with your camera, I'd love to be reminded of what I'm missing there too. If it wasn't for the winters, I probably wouldn't have left the area. Ahh, summers in Cape Cod,
tall ships, and cold water lobster and crab, digging for clams in the sandy mud when the tide was out, then boiling them all together with potatoes and corn on the cob, and downing ice cold Sam Adams, sniff, good times...

sterlippo1 · #5 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 11:22 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Genral

Nice encore to your last thread Expat. 5 out of 5 stars!! Big fan since your Austin thread. Btw, you wouldn't believe how low Lake Travis is now from your last visit here, we're having an epic drought. I'm no stranger to the Northeast. I used to go fishing with my uncle out of New London, Conn. and also have family near Mystic, soooo...if you are ever in that area, with your camera, I'd love to be reminded of what I'm missing there too. If it wasn't for the winters, I probably wouldn't have left the area. Ahh, summers in Cape Cod,
tall ships, and cold water lobster and crab, digging for clams in the sandy mud when the tide was out, then boiling them all together with potatoes and corn on the cob, and downing ice cold Sam Adams, sniff, good times...

agree, Expat's work continues to amaze

..........Mystic and Stonington in particular, i just love it down there

RobertWalpole · #6 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 11:54 AM**

STUNNING!!

Danny · #7 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 2:30 PM**

Wonderful thread and pictures, Expat!

I agree, your pics are getting better every thread.

I´ve liked very much Gloucester. I had heard about it. It´s an authentic fishing village, with all the taste of New England. I´ve liked its lighthouse, its wooden houses, its beaches and boats.

It must be wonderful to live there, a town full of tranquility, besides at the seaside.

Waiting for your next thread...

Congratulations and greetings from Madrid, Spain!

brickell · #8 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 2:36 PM**

That's really cool. It's the kind of place I could see myself retiring to (or at least snowbird to).

How do these smaller towns on the coast function though?

Are they strictly suburb of Boston or do they exist more independently? Or are they museum-like town centers for the hoards of suburbs beyond? Seems like there's quite a few young people on the beach, so there must be families.

sterlippo1 · #9 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 2:55 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by brickell

That's really cool. It's the kind of place I could see myself retiring to (or at least snowbird to).

How do these smaller towns on the coast function though?

Are they strictly suburb of Boston or do they exist more independently? Or are they museum-like town centers for the hoards of suburbs beyond? Seems like there's quite a few young people on the beach, so there must be families.

i'm not sure what you are asking. It is a decidedly blue collar working class independent town and, yes,with many families of course. I would loosely call it a suburb of Boston and i would imagine that some of the population that lives there work in Boston but it also lies at the end of Rte 128 which is our High Tech highway and there are tons of companies all along the 128 loop. It does not need Boston to survive if that's what your asking

Expat · #10 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 4:06 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by brickell

That's really cool. It's the kind of place I could see myself retiring to (or at least snowbird to).

How do these smaller towns on the coast function though?

Are they strictly suburb of Boston or do they exist more independently? Or are they museum-like town centers for the hoards of suburbs beyond? Seems like there's quite a few young people on the beach, so there must be families.

Brickell, I think I know what you mean. I think Sterlippo pretty much answered your question. There is commuter rail from Gloucester to Boston, so I assume there is a certain amount of commuting into the city. And as Sterlippo pointed out, there are plenty of jobs in Boston suburbs along Route 128. Gloucester isn't the best location for a commuter, but it is possible. It is kind of stuck out to one side, so not ideal for a commute to much of Boston. There are better commuter locations. Gloucester has it's own industry. And is a summer destination to a degree. In this thread, I purposely showed some shabby buildings & poorly remodeled buildings to show that Gloucester is not a precious, seaside village of Ye Olde Shoppes on perfectly restored & recreated Ye Olde Colonial Streets. There really is a working harbor & a working class population. I love seeing working class & middle class people living in historic homes/neighborhoods that would have a glass dome over them and charging admission in some other cities.

I wouldn't say that Gloucester is surrounded by hoards of suburbs where the typical person never actually sees the town of Gloucester unless they are on a special visit to a restaurant or something. You need to come see it for yourself. I like your idea of snowbirding up here. Summers in Gloucester and winters down your way. Ideal!

sterlippo1 · #11 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 4:10 PM**

^^^ perfect explanation Expat and perfect thread too

sterlippo1 · #12 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 4:14 PM**

and Expat, i am a huge fan of Wingaersheek Beach and never really go to any other beaches around though i have been to most. Is the last picture Good Harbor Beach? i have been to it but not for quite some time and do remember it looking like that..........

JBoston · #13 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 4:57 PM**

The epitome of a North Shore town! I love this thread Expat. Amazing job.

Gloucester is certainly a Boston suburb just like Lynn and Lawrence are. Yes they are all independent towns, but they were swallowed up by the sphere of Boston long ago. Ask anyone from Gloucester where they are from if you're outside of New England and they're almost always say "Boston."

OhioGuy · #14 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 5:21 PM**

Looks like a worthwhile place to visit someday. New England certainly has plenty of great gems!

MolsonExport · #15 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 5:40 PM**

Love it. Looks much crisper than I remember in my trips in the 1970s (we used to vacation in Cape Ann)

sterlippo1 · #16 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 6:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by JBoston

The epitome of a North Shore town! I love this thread Expat. Amazing job.

Gloucester is certainly a Boston suburb just like Lynn and Lawrence are. Yes they are all independent towns, but they were swallowed up by the sphere of Boston long ago. Ask anyone from Gloucester where they are from if you're outside of New England and they're almost always say "Boston."

yeah, i guess it depends how you define "suburb" in terms of it's proximity to a major city, hence my using the term "loosely"

JBoston · #17 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 6:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by sterlippo1

yeah, i guess it depends how you define "suburb" in terms of it's proximity to a major, hence my using the term "loosely"

I agree. Its hard to talk about suburbs in the typical sense with regards to New England metros because most of the "suburbs" here are well established towns and cities. Being from Somerville I get into the same discussion over and over again about how its not a suburb and its also not Boston, etc. I coined a term some years back for these places: Urburbs.

Cirrus · #18 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 8:11 PM**

You'd need a heart of stone not to be charmed out of your pants by New England's little cities.

Expat · #19 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 10:42 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by JBoston

I agree. Its hard to talk about suburbs in the typical sense with regards to New England metros because most of the "suburbs" here are well established towns and cities. Being from Somerville I get into the same discussion over and over again about how its not a suburb and its also not Boston, etc. I coined a term some years back for these places: Urburbs.

On SSP, the word 'suburb' is loaded with meaning. And that meaning doesn't apply well to most Boston suburbs. Perhaps that is because Boston sprawled in the 1800s and even earlier. Post-war sprawl that chokes most US cities appears here in much smaller patches. Mostly as filler. Perhaps there isn't room for typical post-war sprawl here. If you leave Gloucester in one direction, you will be in Rockport. Rockport is even more quaint than Gloucester. The other direction is Manchester-By-The-Sea. Once again, super quaint & lovely. Keep going and you are in Beverly, Salem, Swampscott, Lynn. None are typical post-war suburbs. Peabody & Danvers have sections of typical post-war sprawl around North Shore Mall. But, even Peabody has a huge traditional town center. Route One coming out of Boston has the appearance of endless sprawl, but it is really a veneer. Very often, just off Route One, you will find traditional, established neighborhoods that have been around since the 1800s.

What is a typical Boston suburb? That question would make a good thread.

glowrock · #20 Posted **Jun 23, 2011, 10:57 PM**

Love Gloucester! Loved it the several times I visited it when I lived in southern New Hampshire back in the mid 90's. I don't recall the downtown looking as good then as it does now, though!

Great photos, expat!

"Trust the Gorton's fishermen!"

Aaron (Glowrock)