Tag Archives: antique postcards

Race Point Beach a part of Provincetown history

The Indian trail road to Race Point Light

The Indian Trail Road to Race Point Light

Provincetown’s National Seashore,  managed by the National Park Service, includes historic Race Point beach and Race Point Light. The Race Point Lighthouse served as an important beacon to ships before the days of radar and radio. Many ships were wrecked on the sand bars off the tip of Cape Cod and a rescue station was located not far from the lighthouse. Today, if you visit Provincetown be certain to spend time at all the gorgeous beaches and visit the restored Lifesaving Museum that was moved to the site from Chatham in 1977.  It was called the  Harbor Life-Saving Station and it was built in Chatham in 1897.  The original Provincetown station did not survive the ravages of time. On  Thursday evening you can see  rescue re-enactments .
While the roads are no longer dirt roads, there are still patches of woods and overhanging trees as you follow the route from the center of Provincetown across Route 6 and towards Race Point Beach. There are many trails across the sand dunes., some just meant for walking. Printed in Germany and sold during the era when it cost only a penny to mail a postcard for domestic delivery, this beautiful card appears to be made between 1880 and 1900. Antique postcards are important to one of the characters in the soon-to-be-released novel Remaining in Provincetown.  You might go so far as to say they were almost an obsession.

Provincetown’s Red Inn a favorite Cape Cod tourist destination

The Red Inn in 1915

The Red Inn in 1915

Restaurants in Provincetown come and go, but a few favorites like the Red Inn situated on the waterfront on the far West End of town, have stayed in operation for close to a century. The above vintage postcard shows what the Inn looked like after renovations in 1915 when owner Mary Wilkinson opened her house as “The Red Inn”. Originally the house was built by ship’s captain Freeman Atkins for his wife Emily.  The names “Freeman” and “Atkins” are names you’ll see associated with some of the narrow streets in this unique town on the tip of Cape Cod. One road, that figures into the soon-to-be released novel Remaining in Provincetown is called Atkins Mayo Road.

One of the small private dining rooms inside the Red Inn is named after Ada Raynor,  wife of Henry Hensche.  Hensche was the  founder of the Cape School of Art in 1930 after the death of Charles Webster Hawthorne, who  founded the Cape Cod School of Art..  Art Schools and artist continued to frequent the Outer Cape. in 2010 former students of  Hensche: John Clayton, John Ebersberger, Cedric Egeli, Rob Longley, and Hilda Neily, founded the Cape School of Art in Provincetown, in an effort to pass along Henry Hensche’s teachings.

The Red Inn has always been a gathering place for visiting celebrities and was one of the shot locations in a 1987 Norman Mailer movie, that although a flop at the box office, attracted Isabella Rosselini, Ryan O’Neill and Farrah Fawcett among others.

The ownership has changed through the years, but having dined there recently I can attest to the high quality of what is served. The menu features local seafood, and local produce creatively prepared and well presented. Plus there is that fabulous view to enjoy, looking towards Long Point Lighthouse. It’s the perfect setting for a mystery novel.

Provincetown fishing wharf from bygone era

Consolidated Weir Co's Wharf

Consolidated Weir Co’s Wharf

When fishing was a major  industry on Cape Cod, there were fishing weirs, nets set up in the water used to trap fish. The use of weirs for fishing was a Native American technique that was taught to the early colonists in New England. Could the name Consolidated Weir Company name have something to do with the use of weirs?  While weirs were a frequent sight in the harbor during the early part of the 20th century, they were abandoned or removed  by the late 1960s. This was long before I was born but I do recognize a building in the background that provides a clue to where this long ago wharf in Provincetown was located. The building was on the East End of town, the old ice house which provided the ice for packing the fresh caught fish for storage and transport. Visit Provincetown today and in its place is a stucco and brick building. All that are left of the wharfs on beach side are a few wood pilings.

What still remains in Provincetown from the early fishing era? Or should I ask, who is still Remaining in Provincetown?  I love a good mystery.

Provincetown Bathing Beach a Tourist Attraction

Brown's Bathing Beach in Provincetown, Massachusetts

Brown’s Bathing Beach in Provincetown, Mass.

It was a time of discretion , when men and women covered themselves for the sake of modesty when bathing at a public beach. Brown’s Bathing Beach in Provincetown, was such a place where there were booths for changing into the appropriate bathing suits. Automobiles and trains enabled tourists to travel to scenic  beach side resorts such as  Provincetown, located on the tip of Cape Cod. It was a popular destination. With its narrow streets and houses built along the waterside, many guest houses and hotels established thriving businesses. Shops and restaurants geared to the tourist trade soon followed, creating a seasonal economy. Nowadays Provincetown is still a popular summer destination with a seasonal economy. It’s the winter economy that can be challenging for those who live on the Outer Cape year-round, Curious to know what it’s like in early spring before the tourist season? Read the  soon-to-be-released novel Remaining in Provincetown.

Giant Halibut caught in Provincetown Massachusetts

A 270 lb. Halibut caught in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

A 270 lb. Halibut caught in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

It’s been a long time since Halibut have been commercially fished off Cape Cod. This old postcard photo must have been taken in the last decade of the 19th century! Halibut supported important commercial fisheries from the early 1800s to the 1880’s but was severely over fished in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Thus you are unlikely to catch any Halibut off Cape Cod or Provincetown and if you do,  there is a bycatch  limit of one fish per trip and the fish must be at least 36 inches in length.

Halibut is the largest species of flatfish found in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. Maybe one day, if the population is  allowed to increase enough to create a thriving population, sports fisherman will once again be holding up a large Halibut they’ve caught for a photo opportunity.

Currently if you go out on a fishing charter boat from Provincetown harbor, depending on the season you will be fishing for Striped bass, Blue fish, Fluke, Codfish, or Blue fin tuna.

The love of fishing is pervasive and remains in Provincetown.

Murder in Provincetown?

Provincetown Railroad Wharf

Provincetown
Railroad Wharf

Provincetown, Massachusetts–

Where would you hide a body if you wanted to dispose of it quickly?  On  railway car loaded with fish?  Back in the 19th century, fish was delivered directly from the fishing boats of Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod down to New York City by railroad.  There’s a lot you can learn from old postcards…