PROVINCETOWN — In January 1868, during the heyday of Provincetown’s whaling era, the Barnstable Patriot noted in a small item, halfway down column two on page two, that four whaling […]
Graveyard Shift
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
A Gathering of Riches
The Rich Family Association, with Truro origins, numbers in the tens of thousands
TRURO — In June 1872, John Fairfield Rich, a journalist living in Ware, in central Mass., realized the fulfillment of a dream he had had a decade earlier, when he […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
Remembering Rosilla: The Pilgrim Monument’s Sole Victim
The freak accident that killed the Widow Bangs on Bradford Street
PROVINCETOWN — On Aug. 5, 1910, after three years of construction, Provincetown’s Pilgrim Monument, commemorating the first landing place of the Mayflower Pilgrims, was dedicated by President William Howard Taft […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
The Lost Crew: A Truro Mystery
Secluded Pine Grove Cemetery and its haunting secrets
Residents of and longtime visitors to Truro are surely familiar with a grisly, dark chapter of the town’s recent past involving Pine Grove Cemetery. Even now, decades later, just reading […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
Dissent, Disorder, and a Whiff of Witchcraft in Wellfleet
A secluded cemetery holds relics of an ancient drama
WELLFLEET — In a pretty little corner of town, there is a small, ancient burial ground, its scattering of headstones nestled amid the scrub oak leaves and pine needles. In […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
The Mysterious Cape Cod Epidemic of 1816
Eastham, the epicenter, lost 10 percent of its people
If town records offer little detail about the “fearful and fatal sickness” on Cape Cod during the late winter and early spring of 1816, the cemeteries are a melancholy testament […]
HISTORY
Remembering the Young Family’s Service to Town and Country
A young sailor’s sacrifice was honored by Provincetown V.F.W.
PROVINCETOWN — In the 60 years since the Lewis A. Young V.F.W. Post 3152 was constructed on Jerome Smith Road, how many visitors to Provincetown have turned off Route 6 […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
Take a Walk on the Other Side of Town
Provincetown’s cemeteries are an en plein air art gallery
Until summer returns, the art galleries in Provincetown are mostly quiet, though surely planning for next season’s traditional Friday evening strolls. That’s when everyone takes to the streets, zigging and […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
Three Pastors on a Hill of Storms
From 1711 to 1828, Truro was served by three notable ministers
TRURO — Everyone who drives to Provincetown along Route 6 in North Truro travels across one of the town’s highest elevations, called in the old custom the “Hill of Storms.” […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
In a Truro Grove, Dead Artists Are Gathered
Snow Cemetery’s unconventional occupants and markers
In life, they (the men, at least) enjoyed a raucous, bawdy bonhomie every Saturday night at the Beachcombers Club in Provincetown. In death, many are still together, resting peacefully with […]
graveyard shift
Three ‘Strangers’ Rest in the Cove Burying Ground
Eastham cemetery is the only known Cape Cod gravesite of Mayflower passengers
EASTHAM — We can probably thank Hollywood (and maybe Dickens) for the creepy reputation of burial grounds. What would a horror film be without a desolate graveyard overgrown with weeds, […]
