Monthly Archives: September 2013

U.S. Lifesaving Service at Race Point, Provincetown

Firing the Lifeline

Firing the Life-line

The United States Lifesaving Service was founded in 1871 after an alarming number of fatalities occurred along the Atlantic coast during the winters of 1870 and 1871.

The stations were manned by expert surf men and boat handlers who patrolled the coast at night and during foggy and stormy days.  The buildings where equipment was stored were painted red so they could be seen from the sea and a sixty foot flagstaff signaled  passing ships by International code.

Nine lifesaving stations were built on Cape Cod in 1872. Captain Samuel O. Fisher was one of the Race Point station’s keepers and he had a horse that would help the crew by dragging the heavy boats and equipment across the sand.  Postcards that show the work of the early Cape Cod Lifesaving Service are highly desirable. It was a these types of antique postcards that Sonny Carreiro was looking at before he drives back to Provincetown and is inexplicably murdered. Want to know more about the mystery? Read the new novel, Remaining in Provincetown by S.N. Cook available at bookstores, including signed copies at the Provincetown Bookshop and online in trade paperback and as an ebook.Like us on Facebook and keep the conversation going.

Remaining in Provincetown By S.N.Cook. Truro Works. 306 pages $12.95 Trade Paperback

Remaining in Provincetown
By S.N.Cook.
Truro Works. 306 pages
$12.95 Trade Paperback

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Provincetown 19th Century Fishing Dock

The docks

Walk down the Provincetown wharf and docked at the very end are a few fishing boats with steel hulls and large dragging nets, called draggers.. Fishing has always been a hard way to make a living, but with quotas on how many fish of a certain specie can be caught, it”s even more challenging. The beautiful color lithograph postcard above shows what it was like on the docks in Provincetown in the 19th century when fishing was in its heyday, Times and circumstances change and while fishing is no longer lucrative there are opportunities for whale watching and fishing excursions for visitors. On a September weekend, the town is busy. Want to learn more about what it is like to live in Provincetown. Return to the 1990s in Remaining in Provincetown by S.N. Cook now once again available at the Provincetown Bookshop and online at Amazon.com in Trade paperback or as an ebook. Like us on Facebook and keep the conversation going,

Finback Whale on Provincetown Beach

FinbackThe above postcard sent from Provincetown, Massachusetts to Woodbridge, Connecticut in August 1968, when it cost five cents to mail a postcard, doesn’t say when the  Finback whale was stranded. Looking at the buildings, the location is the East End of town, not too far from Dyer and Washington Streets. It’s when you see all the people gathered around that you start to comprehend the immense size of the whale.  It’s very sad.  One of the largest baleen whales,
adult Finback whales can reach an average size of 60 feet and weigh close to 50 tons. Scientists estimate the Finback whale and other large baleen whales have life spans of about 60 to 70 years.  Walking along the beach, one never knows what you will find. A clue to a mystery, perhaps or some insight into why whales beach themselves. If the newspaper in Remaining in Provincetown,  The Provincetown Observer were real, it would have been a front page story. The publisher and editor Roze Silva, however, finds other things that will make headlines.  What’s everyone talking about? Check it out by reading the book, available at local bookshops and online in trade paperback and as an ebook. Like us on Facebook and join the conversation.

Like our facebook fan page and you may be selected to receive a FREE advance cppy!

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Remaining in Provincetown By S.N.Cook. Truro Works. 306 pages $12.95 Trade Paperback

Remaining in Provincetown
By S.N.Cook.
Truro Works. 306 pages
$12.95 Trade Paperback

Provincetown novel Cape Cod antique postcard

Cape Cod Fisherman

Cape Cod Fisherman

This beautiful color lithographed antique postcard published by H.A. Dickerman & Sons, Taunton Massachusetts, shows a Provincetown fisherman with his nets and tackle. During the 19th century, fishnets were mended by hand. Recognize the lighthouse in the background? Cape Cod and Provincetown is the setting and focal point of  Remaining in Provincetown by S.N. Cook, the mystery novel that has people talking. Buy your copy now at local bookstores and online as a trade paperback or ebook. Like us on Facebook and keep the conversation going.

Provincetown Sand Dunes in Black and White

Provincetown Sand Dune postcard published by The Advocate cira 1900

Provincetown Sand Dune postcard published by The Advocate cira 1900

I’ve posted quite a few photographs of Cape Cod sand dunes from vintage postcards. This is the first in black and white. The postcard was printed during the era when it only cost a penny to mail a postcard and have it delivered anywhere in the United States. Notice all the beach grass and vegetation growing on these sand dunes at the end of the 19th century.  When the National Seashore took possession of acres of seashore on Cape Cod, which included sand dunes, during the last three decades of the 20th century they grappled with erosion. Much of the natural vegetation had been destroyed by tourists eagerly dragging coolers, umbrellas, and beach towels to set up their spot for relaxing by the water’s edge. And then there were all the children exuberantly running and sliding down sand dunes.  Temporary fences were erected and new dune grass was planted. While once there was a parking area by Pilgrim Lake on the way into Provincetown for tourists to stop and walk the dunes, that parking area was closed and blocked off. Why? Just too many people causing the vegetation to become damaged and rampant erosion taking place.  The wind blows hard and the sands shift and change. So it is with stories and tales of Cape Cod and Provincetown. Read any Provincetown books lately which capture the flavor of what it’s like to live in the town? Remaining in Provincetown by S.N. Cook is awaiting your reading pleasure. Available in bookstores and online as a trade paperback or ebook. Like us on Facebook. Keep the conversation going.

Like our facebook fan page and you may be selected to receive a FREE advance cppy!

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Remaining in Provincetown By S.N.Cook. Truro Works. 306 pages $12.95 Trade Paperback

Remaining in Provincetown
By S.N.Cook.
Truro Works. 306 pages
$12.95 Trade Paperback