Happy Holidays from the Cape Ann Museum

December 22, 2020

Letter from the Director

Today, I am writing to express my gratitude on behalf of us all at the Cape Ann Museum. Your support individually and collectively as a community has enabled us to face the challenges that 2020 has presented with the clear message that "Storms Rage and Gloucester Endures."

Thanks to your contributions as members and supporters of our Dotty Brown Annual Fund, 2020 has seen the Museum pursue a wide range of creative and community focused initiatives. These have included honoring frontline heroes through our In Gratitude Road Rally; feeding homeless residents and engaging them in self-portrait art making activities; launching CAM Connects, our virtual programming series; creating a dynamic redisplay in the Fitz Henry Lane Gallery and delivering on a bold and exciting vision behind the creation of the new Cape Ann Museum Green campus. 

I look forward to facing the challenges of the coming year together in hope and solidarity. Your shared vision and support is at the core of our operations and if you haven’t already, please consider giving to the 2020 Dotty Brown Annual Fund.

Wishing you and yours all a very happy holiday season and looking forward to welcoming the New Year together both virtually and in person at the Museum!

Oliver Barker, Director

Above collage clockwise from left:

  • Annisquam Lighthouse, 1993. Photograph by Len Wickens. Gift of Marge Ross.
  • Sleigh Ride, R.T.C. and Family, Ice Pictures, 1917. Photograph by Eben Parsons.
  • 1088 Washington Street, Gloucester, Marilyn Munroe's Beauty Nook; former site of Lanesville Post Office. Gift of Barbara Erkkila, 2001 [acc. #2001. 50].
  • Main Street, Rockport, December 1960. Photograph by John Fields.
  • Ice Skating in Gloucester Harbor with Margie Smith in background, 1912. Photograph by Eben Parsons. [acc. #2357].
  • Main Street, Gloucester, 1941/42. Photograph by James B. Benham. Gift of the Estate of Carline Benham, 1994 [acc. #1994.8.7].

Collection of the Cape Ann Museum Library & Archives, Gloucester, MA.

CAM Connects lookback and future

2020 has been a year unlike any other for all of us, including for those of us here at the Cape Ann Museum. Beginning in May of this year, the Museum turned "Virtual" via regularly scheduled issues of our new online periodical, CAM Connects. From the outset, we knew what we would miss the most during this period of closure: limited in-person events with our community and the ability to come together at the Museum. To help offset this loss, we’ve brought the Museum to your home through the use of technology and digital programs with new insights and familiar favorites. 

As we look back at the exciting topics covered above, and below to just a few of the issues to come, we would like to take a moment to thank everyone who has helped make CAM Connects a reality: from our Docent team to staff members to enthusiastic and knowledgeable members of the community, none of this would be possible without you. Thank you to everyone for reading along and staying Connected to the Museum. ■

Helen Stein (1896-1964), Untitled [Dogtown], early-mid 20th century. Oil on panel. Collection of the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, MA. Gift of James F. and Jean Baer O'Gorman, 2015 [acc. #2015.57.13]

Architectural drawing of Pavilion Hotel, 1849. Drawing by S.C. Bugbee, architect, for Sidney Mason. Collection of the Cape Ann Museum Library & Archives, Gloucester, MA. Gift of Mrs. Julian James, 1912 [acc. #2013.54.1]

William Lamb Picknell (1853-1897), Wingaersheek Creek Beach, 1887. Oil on Canvas. Collection of the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, MA. Gift of Erving and Joyce Wolf, 2017 [acc. #2017.058]

Holiday Recommendation from the CAM Book Club – The Best Christmas by Lee Kingman Natti

Lee Kingman Natti (1919-2020), Christmas Cheer, 1955. Ink on cotton. Collection of the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, MA.

The Best Christmas by Lee Kingman, 1948. Collection of the Cape Ann Museum Library & Archives, Gloucester, MA.

The Cape Ann Museum Book Club would like to wish the community a happy holiday season and share a reading recommendation for a cold winter’s afternoon: The Best Christmas by Lee Kingman—a beloved Cape Ann author and Folly Cove Designer! The book can be borrowed for free at Internet Archive. Simply sign up for a free account and start reading! ■

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CAPE ANN MUSEUM
27 Pleasant Street, Gloucester, MA 01930

CAPE ANN MUSEUM GREEN
13 Poplar Street, Gloucester, MA 01930

(978) 283-0455

www.capeannmuseum.org

Cape Ann is one of the most important places in the history of American art and industry.

The Cape Ann Museum, thanks to supporters like you, celebrates the history and remarkable contributions of this place to the cultural enhancement of our community and the world at large - yesterday, today and tomorrow.