TheYearRounder's Guide to Provincetown

An expert, reliable and comprehensive source for information, reviews and opinions that will help visitors (and even Townies) find and share the very best of Provincetown. TheYearRounder is an outstanding source for trusted recommendations for restaurants, lodging, award winners, bargains, recreation, entertainment, shopping, sightseeing, photo opportunities, upcoming events, and stories from our colorful history... Join me on my PTown quest for the best, as we explore all things Provincetown!

Friday, February 1, 2019

Frigid Cold in PTown Recalls Coldest Winter in Memory, 101 Years Ago

About once every winter season we get a brutally frigid day or two, and people ask me about Provincetown's most notorious winter, along with the ice floes that were more than 10 feet high, clogging the harbor for a month.

Robert Lewis illustrates the 10-foot-two-inch "icebergs" settled on the harbor flats
at low tide. Photo by Robert's father, Captain William Lewis.

Read my original article, which included this photo of ice floes more than 10 feet high, which took over the harbor in Februaury of 1918. Fishermen were unable to go to work, and the coal barges were unable to navigate the harbor to replenish Provincetown's exhausted heating fuel supply for weeks on end. Click on Provincetown's Most Miserable Winter to learn more about that dreadful winter.

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Untitled gouache on paper by Provincetown painter LaForce Bailey, 1893 - 1962

Award-winning modernist painter LaForce Bailey studied in Provincetown with Charles W. Hawthorne in the early 1920s. Later, his career as an art professor at the University of Illinois allowed him to spend his summers painting in Provincetown, often depicting fishermen and waterfront scenes, creating unusually large watercolors along the working harbor. He considered some of his own work to be too modern for the tastes of much of the public and held back a number of paintings from his one-man show of 1941. His work can be found at the Julie Heller Gallery, on the beach at 2 Gosnold Street. Click the painting above to see more of his work.

West End reed sculpture, a thing of beauty.

Famous foodie Anthony Bourdain held fond memories of youthful days in PTown, where his career began

Get Out and See the Fabulous Sand Dunes of Provincetown With Art's Dune Tours

Since 1946 people have been taking Art's Dune Tours along the "back shore" at Race Point Beach, and out through the big dunes, with all their unbelievable scenery, history, wildlife, and good fun. You'll be surprised at all the things you'll see and learn along the way. Call 1-800-894-1951 or reserve your trip online at artsdunetours.org, or just click the photo above to go right to their website. Then click your browser's "back" button to return to this page. Be sure to take your camera with you.

72 Commercial Street, Provincetown's oldest house, has stories to tell...

Provincetown's Worst Winter in Memory May be 1918

Oil on paper "Elizabeth" by beloved Provincetown and New York artist Arthur Cohen, 1928 - 2012

This is a painting of Cohen's wife, the pianist Elizabeth Rodgers, one of his favorite subjects. He also loved to paint landscapes, the Brooklyn Bridge, MacMillan Pier, and any spot along the roads and beaches of Provincetown. He even turned his old Jeep into a mobile studio so he could paint where and whenever the scene struck him. A long-time summer fixture in PTown, he exhibited in half-a-dozen galleries here. Click on the painting above to read a fascinating piece on this highly respected, deeply loved PTown artist. All three pages of the article are well worth reading. Then click your browser's "back" button until you return to this page.

Provincetown artist Albert Edel's work is in the permanent collection at PAAM

Jenny Humphreys' painting "Poe On Mars" drops the author of the macabre into a fictional dreamscape

Oil on canvas "The Blue Shutters" by Provincetown artist Maude Kaufman Eggemeyer, 1877-1959

"Boat" circa 1935 woodblock print by PTown artist Charles Kaeselau

Untitled 1980s painting by Richard DeQuattro, an artist nearly as colorful as his work

A Florida art dealer calls DeQuattro's work a mix of abstract, urban and art deco styles, and sees a seashore theme in this painting, complete with beach chairs and beach ball. DeQuattro has lived, worked and exhibited in Provincetwn, Florida and other locations, receiving many awards and grants for his fine art and wearable collections. A number of PTown residents own DeQuattro hats, scarves, jackets or other "wearable art" made in his exuberant style. Click this image to see more of his work, then click your browser's "back" button to return to this page.

"Provincetown Draggers" by Ciro Cozzi, 1921 - 2013

Last Chance at Handcrafted Cedar Kayak Raffle is Tuesday, Sept 16th, at Town Hall, 11 am to 3 pm

Since 2003 Harwich residents Bill Witmer and Pat Taylor have been building these stunning cedar kayaks and raffling them off to raise money to build affordable housing around the Cape. Click the photo above to read this story, and get your raffle tickets on Tuesday, $2 each, 6 for $10. This is a $5,500 kayak of extraordinary quality, with proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity, which has rehabbed housing right here in Provincetown and continues to create affordable housing solutions on Cape Cod. Tuesday is your last chance in Provincetown this summer to get your raffle tickets for this gorgeous kayak. Don't miss it.

Buy a few raffle tickets and support the West End Racing Club, teaching kids to swim and sail.

The annual fundraising raffle for the West End Racing Club rolls around in late summer every year, when you can buy a few raffle tickets from these kids when you meet them on the street, or at the firehouse near Town Hall. Prizes in the past have included dinners in Provincetown restaurants, artwork and many others. The kids will tell you about this year's prizes. Racing, by the way, means sailboat races. Click on the photo above to read my post about this wonderful PTown organization that gives kids confidence and self-esteem, along with skills on the water.