A Storm Story and a Striking Mansion in Gloucester, Massachusetts

We docked at Gloucester in Cape Ann, Massachusetts, America's oldest seaport. This gorgeous coastal community boasts of a rich maritime history and hometown spirit, and like the other harbourside places we had visited, its waterfront was very much alive and vibrant.

I must admit that prior to this cruise, I used to equate “New England” with Cape Cod, the hook-shaped peninsula in Massachusetts state that is famous for its quaint villages, lighthouses, seafood shacks, bays, and beaches. We often hear about Cape Cod because it is where ferries depart to the famous resort islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Cape Ann, on the other hand, is more under the radar, and I am glad we had the opportunity to see it. It is smaller, quieter, more rugged, and less touristy, thus, more authentic, in my opinion. It’s got that rocky-coastal-fishing-village charm as opposed to Cape Cod’s pristine-sand-beach-resort charm. Edgy versus dreamy.

Cape Ann is composed of the small communities of Gloucester, Rockport, Essex, and Manchester-by-the-Sea. On this trip, we visited Gloucester in the morning and Rockport in the afternoon.

Gloucester's fishing heritage is clearly reflected in the iconic fishermen’s memorial with a statue of the Man at the Wheel and copper plaques bearing the names of those lost at sea. This seaport was immortalized in the 2000 film, The Perfect Storm, a movie that tells the story of the FV Andrea Gail, a commercial fishing vessel that was lost at sea with all of its crew after being caught in a “perfect storm” in 1991. The movie was based on the 1997 book written by Sebastian Junger.

I asked our local guide why it was called a “perfect storm.” It seems strange that such a horrible calamity could be dubbed “perfect.” He said that this storm has many names and is also known as “The No-Name Storm” and “Halloween/Gale Storm.” Maybe people did not really know what to call it. All they know is that it was severely damaging and deadly, and that it lasted from October 28 to November 2, 1991.

Apparently, it started as an extratropical cyclone, then absorbed Hurricane Grace to its south, and evolved into a small, unnamed Category 1 hurricane. It was characterized by 10 to 30-meter-high waves that struck the coastline from Nova Scotia to Florida and southeastward to Puerto Rico. It caused severe flooding, destroyed homes, cut power supply, crashed helicopters, sank boats, and swept people to their deaths.

The mysterious disappearance and unsuccessful search for the wreck of FV Andrea Gail somewhere along the continental shelf near Sable Island was also the subject of an episode of The Sea Hunters with Clive Cussler. The search was eventually called off due to the low probability of survival. The vessel was never recovered and the crew were deemed lost at sea. So sad! And this sadness was reflected on the facial expression of the statue.

We drove around town and saw its other popular attractions - the Church of Our Lady of Good Voyage, with its twin steeples overlooking the bustling waterfront; the Hammond Castle, a medieval-like structure with a drawbridge, which was constructed by an eccentric inventor; and the iconic Eastern Point Lighthouse, which was originally built in 1832 and reconstructed a couple of times.

I could see why this small, charming city draws city dwellers from nearby Boston. This is a perfect weekend escape place for those looking for a quiet break. Aside from its historical sites, it is brimming with nice seafood restaurants, quaint shops, beautiful beaches, and even an artists' colony.

For our next destination, we were given three options: visit the Beauport Mansion and proceed to Rockport, go directly to Rockport and tour on your own, or go to Salem and learn about its witch trial history.

Since my husband is not interested in any witchy stuff, we chose the first option.

The Beauport Mansion is a striking home built on the rocks overlooking Gloucester Harbor. It is crowned by towers, dormers, and spires, and noted for the labyrinth of rooms with historical themes. We were captivated by the folk art, coloured glass, and various curiosities salvaged from grand old homes in America that fill every nook and cranny of this place.

We were not surprised when we found out that this was built in 1907 as a summer home by one of America’s first professional interior designers. His name was Henry Davis Sleeper, and aside from designing, he was also an avid antiquarian collector. He used this house as his personal retreat and as a backdrop for entertaining guests and showcasing his work and collections.

The mansion has a total of forty rooms and each one is distinguished by a historical or literary figure, theme, color, shape, or object. No two rooms are the same, and each is more visually dazzling than the last. It’s like living in a museum cum art gallery!

When he passed away without heirs, the property with all its contents was purchased by Helena Woolworth McCann, from one of America’s powerful business families. It was a good thing she decided to keep everything intact and donated the estate to Historic New England, the oldest historic preservation organization in the United States, and thus ensuring that Sleeper’s unique legacy would reach future generations.

We could not get over how large and how grand this mansion was and we couldn’t imagine living in such luxury.

I much prefer living a simple life in the fishing village, I told my husband at lunch, as we munched on the lobster rolls we purchased at the shack by the sea.