Tag Archives: Provincetown

Visiting the Sand Dunes in Provincetown, Cape Cod

Dune buggy Tour looking out over Pilgrim Lake

Dune buggy Tour looking out over Pilgrim Lake near Provincetown

Before there was a National Seashore, four wheel drive vehicles could traverse the sand dunes at the tip of Cape Cod, traveling back and forth to visit dune shacks and go fishing. Tourists would pull over to the side of the highway and get out of their cars to run up and down the dunes as they approached Provincetown. This postcard from the 1960s shows a Dune buggy tour on the sand dune above Pilgrim Lake, which you see as you approach Provincetown from Truro.  Initially the National Seashore built a parking lot near Pilgrim Lake to provide a safe spot for visitors to park but quickly realized all the erosion damage taking place and closed the area. Dune grass has been extensively planted to help prevent more loss of the dunes. In 1946 Art Costa started Art’s Dune  Tours and his son Bob Costa has continued the tradition of providing interesting educational tours that explain some of the historic highlights of the sand dunes that span from the back side of the town out to Race Point and the Outer Shore. You can walk the across the dunes by taking the path at Snail Road and hiking across the sand  or you can enjoy the bicycle trails that cross the sand dunes as the Carreiro children do in the soon-to-be released mystery novel Remaining in Provincetown.

The originial Provincetown Inn on the tipe of Cape Cod

Provincetown Inn on Cape Cod

Provincetown Inn on Cape Cod

Looking out across Cape Cod Bay, the Provincetown Inn was built back in 1925 and initially had 28 guest rooms. Shown in this vintage postcard, it is located at the very end of town near the Breakwater and today looks quite different than it did  at the start of the 20th century. Purchased by Chester Peck in 1935, in the 1950s a beach was “created” using sand from the nearby dune and four additional acres (according to the Inn’s website) were created. Hmm that is not something that would be allowed today, with concerns about retaining existing coastline and drainage, but the result was a spacious resort with night club, three dining rooms, gift shop, barber and beauty shops and more. Thirty-two more rooms were also added. In 1972 the inn was sold to investors and in 1977 was sold to the Evans family.  During the mid 1970s  Marvin Hagler started coming to Provinetown to  train at the Provincetown Inn and jogged across the sand dunes to get into shape.  He set up his very own ring by the indoor swimming pool. Hagler was world middleweight boxing champion from 1980-1987.

While the indoor swimming pool is no more as the Inn has continued to be refurbished through the years one thing that does remain are the hand-painted murals that were painted by Don Aikens that were inspired by old photographs, postcards, and paintings showing how the town looked in the late 19th century.  It’s a favorite spot for the Carreiro family children to visit (the Carreiro’s being a fictitious family in the novel Remaining in Provincetown).  They’ve got a lot on their minds with their father being murdered. Will they catch who did it? Stay tuned for more information and more vintage pictures.

Town Crier once a Provincetown tradition

Town Crier in Provincetown late 19th century

Town Crier in Provincetown late 19th century

Town Criers were once a New England tradition. Walking the streets they verbally spread the news and in tourist communities such as Provincetown on Cape Cod, they were often employed by the Chamber of Commerce to promote commerce.
Usually the image of a New England Town Crier is a plump man dressed in Pilgrim style garb. The Town Crier in the black and white postcard printed in Germany, shown above, carried the bell and the broadside, but is certainly not dressed like a pilgrim.  Through Provincetown’s history there  have been many different Town Criers, and they are documented in antique post cards.  The last Town Crier for Provincetown, Gene Poyant, walked the streets in the early 1980’s and died in 1998.  A Town Crier figures into the plot of the novel Remaining in Provincetown in more than one way, just as there are a variety of Town Criers. We’ll be sharing some more pictures of Town Criers from the past in the weeks to come.

Sand dunes entering Provincetown Cape Cod a memory

Junction of Commercial and Bradford Streets entering Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Junction of Commercial and Bradford Streets entering Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Sand dunes greet you as you enter the east end of Provincetown in this antique postcard.  The houses on Commercial Street don’t look much different than they did 100 years ago in this unique town on the tip of Cape Cod. On Bradford Street, the town’s major two-way thoroughfare, however, it looks quite different. With just two main streets and only a one route out of town, by car, how do you commit a murder and make a clean getaway? In 1990, the approximate year  the new novel Remaining in Provincetown takes place, much of the sand dunes and woods had already made way for apartments, condominium complexes, and businesses.

Provincetown walk across the water

Provincetown, Massachusetts Breakwater built in 1911

Provincetown, Massachusetts Breakwater built in 1911

The breakwater that spans across  from the end of Cape Cod’s hook across the Bay to the little spit of land known as Long Point has been in place as long as anyone can remember. But there was a time when it was referred to as “The New Government Breakwater” as it is on this postcard.  Walk across the breakwater and you’ll arrive at Long Point and the Long Point Lighthouse. Built by the Arm Corp of Engineers and completed in 1911, the intent of the breakwater was to secure the safety of the harbor and prevent the erosion of sand.  Take a walk on the breakwater and arrive at the Long Point Lighthouse or practice your skills climbing the rocks. It used to be a great place to gather mussels to steam for dinner, along with  hermit crabs and starfish.  Still the sand  around the breakwater moves and splits as the decades pass. Life changes . People die. Others  leave and new residents arrive and decide to remain in Provincetown.  Thus the name of the novel Remaining in Provincetown, a mystery not only about a murder but about the town itself.

Is it New Beach or Nude Beach in Provincetown on Cape Cod?

Loading Fish at the tip of Cape Cod in Provincetown

Loading Fish at the tip of Cape Cod in Provincetown

Written on the back of this antique postcard it says Hell Town, New Beach.  Yes, long ago there was a  fishing settlement between Woods End and Race Point called “Hell Town”. It’s a pretty ironic name considering that Provincetown, located at the very end of Cape Cod, through the years became known as a wild party town where just about anything goes.  As for the term New Beach, it has not been used for decades to my knowledge. When I google the term “New Beach” what I get is “Nude Beach”.  Well yes, there has always been an unofficial and then official Nude Beach over at Herring Cove Beach.  If there is a secluded place, naturists will remove their clothes, it’s just natural. Just like it’s natural for folks who live in a beautiful place like Provincetown will want to enjoy spending as much time on the beach, listening to the sounds of the waves crashing on the shore and the sounds of the seagulls calling to one another flying  above and looking for some tasty dinner. Partaking in tasty food is something many of the characters in Remaining in Provincetown like to do, particularly Bruno the owner of a popular Bed and Breakfast. Want to learn more? Keep posted to learn more about the soon-to-be released novel everyone’s talking about.

Provincetown an idyllic setting for a murder

Provincetown Street Scenecirca 1880

Provincetown, Massachusetts  Street Scene
circa 1880

In the early days of Provincetown, the streets were narrow and unpaved because most people got around on foot or by boat.  Today walking and bicycling are still the most efficient ways of transportation, particularly during the summer season when everything is so crowded,
So where was this picture taken (a colored lithographic print)? It looks like the west end of town, near the very tip of Cape Cod, but the bay on the left hand corner is so close to the edge… One of the nice things about the town is seeing the sea as you walk down Commercial Street. It’s a small town, with only two main streets running parallel to one another, making it a challenge for someone to commit a crime and make an easy getaway. But someone does commit a murder and manages to initially escape detection. Want to know more? You’ll  just have to read: Remaining in Provincetown. Stay tuned to this blog for more information.

Provincetown Sand Dunes for love and recreation

Provinetown Sand Dunes 100 years ago

Provincetown Sand Dunes 100 years ago

The sand dunes at the tip of Cape Cod, between Bay and Ocean have shifted with the wind, but the dunes have always been a secret place for hikes and love trysts.  You can get across the sand on foot, horseback, or four wheel drive vehicle (with a special license) . Their beauty has inspired scores of artists and photographers.  Are the Provincetown sand dunes a special meeting place for lovers? Where are the secret places two star crossed lovers might rendez-vous? It’s stories you’ll read about in the soon-to-be-released novel Remaining in Provincetown.

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.