Preserving the Past

An interesting coincidence occurred yesterday. I had an early appointment at the North Shore Arts Association to look at and discuss the renovations to the basement of that grand old building. As I turned my car down Pirates Lane, across the harbor at Gloucester Marine Railways, I saw a huge, brilliantly red ship. The Nantucket Lightship is moored there waiting to be hauled onto the ways to have her keel cleaned and repaired.

I first saw the Nantucket Lightship in a tall ships parade in Boston Harbor in the late eighties. There were so many amazing ships in that parade that it was impossible to appreciate them all but the Nantucket Lightship was so unique it stayed in my mind. There are less than 14 of them left. At one time they were the ideal solution to saving ships by positioning a ship bearing warning lights on shoals and sandbars off the coasts. Between 1800 and 1950 there were some fifty of them in service off the coast, today all have been decommissioned and few remain intact.

The walk-through in the art association’s building was impressive. The work that Richard Bernstein and the House Committee has done over the past six years is just remarkable. No one is really sure when that building was constructed — sometime in the mid-nineteenth century. Originally it was a livery where cargo being unloaded from ships coming into Gloucester harbor was stored until it could be loaded onto wagons and carried off to its next destination.

When I joined the Board of Trustees of the art association, the building was in bad shape — it looked like what it was, a century old barn that had seen a lot of use. Though the art association has owned the building for close to eighty years, there was rarely money enough to do more than the most basic repairs and renovations. However, thanks to the generosity of a couple kind donors, and the vision and hard work of guys like Richard, the building is looking amazing today. All the floors have been sanded and refinished, the interior walls have been carpeted, track lighting illuminates the paintings on the walls, bathrooms and a kitchen have been built. It is gorgeous.

Most recently they have begun work on the basement which was previously a mess and used for little more than storage for accumulated junk. All that has changed over this past winter. The junk has been cleared out, the lolly columns reinforced, and the front room, which features beautiful windows overlooking the harbor, is being refinished to serve as space for workshops, classes, and small exhibits. It is wonderful!

When I got home last night I was doing a little bit of research on the Nantucket Lightship and discovered that a few years ago it was purchased by a Falmouth couple from the State of Massachusetts on eBay for $126,000. They have spent three years pouring millions of dollars into it to convert the interior to luxurious standards including mahogany and cherry finishing, marble counters and more. They are now offering it for sale for a tidy $7.6 million dollars.

It makes me very happy that people chose to preserve and restore old treasures like these. Out old livery stable is gradually transforming into a stunning art gallery and events hall. Every year more and more art workshops fill our schedule and plays, lectures, music, and other performances are increasing year by year.

I hope the Nantucket Lightship fares well, too. It will be “on the ways” for a few more days. I am told that there is a challenge in hauling her out because of the unique keel bilge configuration but it will be done. Richard Bernstein’s commitment to our old livery is a pure labor of love. I suspect the same is true for the people who restored the Lightship. That’s not a bad way to use your time.

Thanks for reading.