Anthony J. Marolda

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When we first moved to Gloucester in 1980, I discovered a book of photographs taken by local photographic artists around the turn of the twentieth century. The book was written by Gordon Thomas, the son of a fameous schooner captain and schooner designer. These photos have turned out to be a treasure trove of inspiration for sketches and paintings. Here are two examples.

The sketch to the right is a "typical scene from the 1890's". The shore fisherman "Clara Harwood" is seen in the foreground, her crew baiting up. There are three older type vessels in the background, their sails partially bent on for drying.

The sketch above is the schooner, Canopus, returning from a trip to the Grand Banks, and surrounded by "stream buyers," who are ready to board the vessel to buy parts of the catch of cod. Parts such as sounds and cod livers. The photo on which the sketch was based was taken by Earnest Blatchford.