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Dear Nantucket Lovers:
All good things must come to an
end. So we can take a rest,
come back refreshed and do it
all over again, bigger and
better.
During the 2007 season we
presented our new guestroom,
the Black Orchid, we hosted a
07.07.07 wedding, made new
friends, caught up with the old
ones, we went live on Martha
Stewart Living Radio Show and
many other adventures. We hope
those of you who stayed with
found a home at the Century
House.
Those of you who keep coming
back, thank you for eating our
berries, telling us a joke or
two, and most of all being a
part of us. You are now a
fixture just like the furniture
(no we're not comparing any of
you to our couch), like the
memories forever embedded
between the historic walls of
the Century House.
Nantucket - a perfect vacation
destination.
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Nantucket
Baskets |
Weaving Baskets. Nantucket
Style.
Discover the Freedoms of
Nantucket by learning about the
many forms of
artistic expression on Island
during the Annual Fall
Art Festival from
September 29 through October 7.
This issue features the
Nantucket Lightship Basket whose
history can be traced to the mid
1800s on Nantucket Lightship
vessels; these boats served,
essentially, as floating
lighthouses on the island's
South Shoal. The craft
resembled barrel-making so it
was easy for the sailors who had
nothing to do during their
frequent "down time" -to pick
up. According to Susan & Carl
Ottison, (brilliant weavers and
dear friends of the Innkeepers)
"the basic
construction is the same." The
weaver starts with a circular
base, pushes the staves (the
vertical wooden strands) into
the base, then weaves the
horizontal strands in and out of
the staves. "Every basket is a
one-off thing. You can tell the
difference of any basket maker,
the style of the weaving, the
shape of the handle."
Most island basket weavers
attribute the overwhelming
popularity of this native
craft popularity of this
native craft to Jose Reyes,
who, in the late 1940's
decided to add an
embellished ivory lid and a
handle to the woven case,
transforming it into
a purse.
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On Martha Stewart Living Radio |
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 Yes!!
We could not believe it
either: the famous Martha
Stewart Living Radio show
asking us how we make beds? So
we agreed to go on the show
LIVE to teach them a thing
or two!
LISTEN TO
IT HERE
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Cranberry Festival/Artist Featured |
Ironic,
how the Century House, art
and Nantucket Island have
recurring themes. During the
early days of the Artist in
Residence Program, a young
artist by the name of Paul
Arsenault did a brilliant
oil of Front Street Sconset
which put a new spin on
one's vision of the lane
which in subsequent years
has been caught by many
another artist. More
recently, the Century House
Fall 2006 Newsletter
highlighted the world-famous
Eastman Johnson whose
magnificent oil Nantucket
Cranberry Harvest Innkeepers
Gerry and JeanE discovered
on the wall of a private
museum in
Balboa Park, San Diego, CA
Johnson painted the work
while living on Nantucket up
the road a piece from the
Century House.
Fascinated by the subject
matter and Nantucket
Fall environment, Artist In
Residence, Gene Green is
now following in Johnson's
footsteps to capture the
cranberry scene in his soft
impressionist delivery.
Join us for the Cranberry
Harvest the first two weeks
of October 2007 and
experience both the Art
Festival and the Cranberry
Harvest.
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Century House |
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The historic Century House dates
back to the Cliff Road land
purchase in 1833. According to
research performed by Edouard A.
Stackpole, renowned Nantucket
historian and former director of
the Peter Foulger Museum, a
member of an old Nantucket
family of Scottish roots,
Captain Robert Calder, built the
Century House. Over the years,
Capt. Calder took part in
several long, successful voyages
to hunt whale, and eventually
completed the construction of
the house in the early 1840's.
It is said that Capt. Calder
chose this site because of the
privacy, the ocean breezes, the
views, and the genuine serenity
the location provided in the
1840's and still exhibits today.
According to Mr. Stackpole, the
Century House is the oldest
continuously operating
guesthouse on Nantucket Island
to date. Visit
www.centuryhouse.com for
details. Season begins May 15
and ends October 15.
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Celebrating 175
Years.. |
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Hidden Treasure:
Nantucket Atheneum
&
Century House
Question: What do the
Century House and the
Nantucket Atheneum have in
common?
Answer: they are
both in the same age bracket
--- the Nantucket Atheneum
having opened its big double
doors 172 years ago and the
Century House
entering its 175th
year (Season
2008 )of serving the Island
Traveler.
"We have a hunger of
the mind which asks for
knowledge of all around us,
and the more we gain, the
more is our desire; the more
we see, the more we are
capable of seeing."
Maria Mitchell, Atheneum's
first Librarian (1836-1856)
and the first astronomer (see
article here).
The stewards know that the
library is more than just an
impressive and historic
building; not a temple nor
shrine to preserve the past,
but a dynamic gathering
place of ideas sparked by
the information and the
stories available within its
walls.
In keeping with the
traditions of the 19th
and 20th
centuries when speakers such
as Frederick Douglas,
Ralph Waldo Emerson
and
Henry David Thoreau
spoke in the Atheneums'
Great Hall, the Atheneum has
continued to offer world
class lectures including
speakers such as
David McCullough,
Senator Bill Frist,
Katie Couric,
Lesley Stahl,
Tim Russert
and just this August 15
2007, the astute GE
ex-corporate and business
gurus Jack and Suzy Welch,
Business Week Columnists
and Authors of
Winning.
Discover the freedoms of
Nantucket!
and enjoy the luxury of
strolling just a few blocks
down down the cobblestones
and attending one of these
prestigious lecture series
in the intimate setting of
Historic
Nantucket.
No traffic nor crowds to
fight, just the simple
pleasures of Island
breezy living.
By the way, the Atheneum
also owns an exceptional
special collection of
island-related artifacts and
artwork. From whaling
ships' logs to records of
the town dating back to
1688, the special collection
provides a window to the
past centuries on Nantucket
.
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Clam Chowder Contest!!!
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Nantucket is
best known for its seafood and more
so, the best chowder this side of
the world.
OCTOBER 13, SATURDAY
2:00 pm - 3:30 pm
CLAM CHOWDER CONTEST
Taste a variety of chowders
created by some of Nantucket's
best chefs and vote for your
favorite chowder! $5 per
person. The Chowder Contest
takes place in the Grand Union
Parking Lot under a tent, at the
end of Main Street.
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