Rockport - a town in Massachusetts

During our recent trip to USA, for few days we stayed with Bob & Jerrie (my daughter's in-laws) at their house in Milton in Greater Boston area. While they took all the care to make our stay comfortable and enjoyable, they also took us to one of their favorite place Rockport for a day trip. It is about 2 hours from their place. Drive was very smooth and scenic. Luckily, it was a bright sunny day although little windy. Spring of Boston somehow feels like winter of Delhi. Today Rockport is primarily a suburban residential and tourist town, but it is still home to a number of lobster fishermen and artists. Its rocky beaches and seaside parks are a favorite place for tourists from the Greater Boston Area and Rhode Island among other places. The town has a total area of 17.5 square miles (45.4 km2), of which 7.0 square miles (18.1 km2) is land and 10.5 square miles (27.3 km2), or 60.14%, is water. Rockport is a seaside town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is very thinly populated. Rockport is located approximately 40 miles (64 km) northeast of Boston. Rockport borders Gloucester to its west and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean in all other directions.

A walk along rocky beach was very refreshing & rejuvenating. Air was so fresh. View of Atlantic Ocean was magnanimous and eye soothing. Atlantic Ocean at Rockport beach was very pristine having shades of aqua green to blue. Sun was kissing the skin providing much needed warmth as seagulls glided overhead. Each breath was filling the lungs with fresh cool air rejuvenating them. Cries of seagulls, whispers of the winds and the rhythmic sound of ocean waves were creating a kind of melodious symphony. There were lush green lawns & trees. Everything was neatly maintained. It was not very difficult to imagine why Rockport is Bob & Jerrie’s favorite place. Main town had wide roads with very nice sidewalks. There were art stores, pottery studios, gift stores, restaurants, art galleries and other shops on both sides. Most buildings were old, single or double storied wooden structures in traditional architecture. There were very few people in the shops or streets. Even the names & pictures on the street and boards of shop were taking us to back in time. Everything in the town was kind of moving at a slow pace as if everyone has plenty of time on earth. It was a typical countryside sleepy small town which we very often see in any American web series based on small towns. While enjoying the leisure walk on a sunny day on the streets of Rockport along with our hosts, I was also very curious to know about its history.

Digging deep on the internet I came to know that the first Europeans founded a permanent settlement at Gloucester in 1623. Richard Tarr, a granite cutter and the first settler of the Sandy Bay Colony, lived in the area that is now Rockport in 1680. The area provided timber for shipbuilding, especially pine, and granite was extracted from the Sandy Bay quarries. The Cape Ann area provided one of the richest fishing grounds in New England and in 1743 a dock was built at Rockport harbour on Sandy Bay and was used for both timber export and fishing. By the beginning of the 19th century, the first granite quarries were developed and, by the 1830s, Rockport granite was being shipped to cities and towns throughout the east coast of the United States. Although the demand for granite decreased with the increased use of concrete in construction during the Great Depression, Rockport still thrived as an artist’s colony which began years earlier due to its popularity as a vacation spot known for its rocky, boulder-strewn ocean beaches, its history as a prominent fishing harbor, and its mention in media like Rudyard Kipling's Captains Courageous.

A red fishing shack on Bradley Wharf in Rockport, popularly known as "Motif Number 1", has for years been one of the most famous sites on Cape Ann as the subject of hundreds of paintings and photographs, and is visited by aspiring artists & tourists alike from all over the world. We also took photographs with this iconic building in the background. It’s amazing to know that in 1856, a gang of around 200 women led by Hannah Jumper swept through the town and destroyed anything containing alcohol in what is called "Rockport's revolt against rum" and banned alcohol from the town. Except for a brief period in the 1930s, the town remained one of 15 dry towns in Massachusetts. The town remained dry for many years until 2005, when it was voted that alcohol could be served at restaurants. Sales at stores were not allowed until March 2019.

Some thoughts of penning down of experience about this beautiful town nestled in a very long and rich history were brewing in my mind while I was sipping hot freshly brewed coffee sitting in a small café overlooking Atlantic. Thanks Bob & Jerrie for showing us your favorite place which is now my favorite as well.

[ MANOJ MITTAL 3rd July 2024, NOIDA]

NOTE: All historical facts have been taken from Wikipedia & other internet sources, which may not be absolutely correct.