Time Machine Terms
April 29, 1949
Captains, Kings Go; People Take Over
It happened yesterday. One minute before 11 a.m., the Island boat line was administered by the officers and directors of the Massachusetts Steamship Lines Inc., as constituted for some time past; one minute after 11, the management was in the hands of new officers and directors, the responsibility of the New Bedford, Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Steamboat Authority.
April 15, 1949
Followed The Whale Slick All Over The World
Capt. Ellsworth Luce West, last of the Vineyard whaling captains, died at his home on the Middle Road, Chilmark, on Sunday nigh, following some months of failing health. He was in his 85th year and although feeble physically for some time, his faculties had remained active until his death. As an authority on the Arctic, his last days had been spent in the dictation of a volume on Arctic phenomena and his Alaskan experiences. He was also collaborating with Vilhjalmur Stefansson the explorer, in recreating in print various phrases of the whaling era.
April 15, 1949
Recalls Pole Discovery: Matthew Henson, Former Island Visitor, Recalls Momentous Day
A few summers ago the Vineyard, and particularly Oak Bluffs, was host to one of the most notable figures in the world of exploration, Matthew A. Henson, who watched Comdr. Robert E. Peary stake out his claim to the North Pole. It was not until many years after that world-shaking event of forty years ago that Henson’s true place in the picture won general acceptance and his heroism on the icy journey became widely known.
January 14, 1949
A Mechanical Marvel to Help Out Black Gang
A new Linotype bearing the technical name of Blue Streak Master Model 31 was erected in the office of the Vineyard Gazette last week, a mechanical marvel whose weight of a little more than two tons is helping to keep the maple flooring from warping. As indicated last week it got into production in time to help out with the Jan. 7 edition.
October 22, 1948
Cooperative Bank to Make First Move Since 1909
Although the officials of the Martha’s Vineyard Cooperative Bank decline to be quoted now, the story that the institution is on the point of moving from its present quarters has become a general topic of public discussion within the past few days. The report is to the effect that the bank will move from the Martha’s Vineyard National Bank building, Vineyard Haven, where it has been since its inception in 1909, and will take up permanent and independent quarters in the new fireproof building erected by George C. Woods on the Mansion House property something less than two years ago.
July 27, 1948
If You Think You Hear Bells, Probably You Do
Passers-by on Davis Lane, Edgartown, who think they hear bells, probably do. Although a casual glance will fail to disclose their presence, their sound is everywhere when the wind blows, hanging on the air like milkweed blown.
The bells have been fastened to a tree on the property of G. Holmes Perkins. There are four of them, clustered on one branch, and they carol together when the breezes set the tree in motion. In shape they are somewhat like cow bells, but their size is just right for a calf.
June 25, 1948
House Bears Name of Desire Osborn
The old house on Main street, Edgartown, which has been referred to as the Edson house, has received an official and appropriate christening. It is now the Desire Osborn House, called after James Coffin’s youngest child, Desire Allen Coffin, who married John Osborn in 1813, and for whom the house was moved to its present site from the neighborhood of Mill Hill.
June 25, 1948
20-Year Lease for Airport Is Signed
The county commissioners have signed a twenty-year lease for the operation of the Martha’s Vineyard Airport. The decision to do so was announced by S. C. Luce Jr., chairman of the county commissioners, at the close of a public hearing in Edgartown Monday afternoon when the overwhelming sentiment of the participants was that the long term lease be signed.
April 16, 1948
New Hangar Building at Edgartown Airport
A new metal hangar is under construction at the Edgartown Airport. The building will be 40 by 50 feet, with a steel roof, and asphalt flooring. It will have a capacity for two or three ships, and will be situated next to the present hangar.
Another improvement at the airport is a small restaurant, as an annex to the administration building. The luncheonette will contain a counter and two or three tables, and will be finished in knotty pine. Kenneth Carter of Edgartown is to be the manager of the restaurant, and is now assisting Steve Gentle in its construction.
March 12, 1948
She’ll Soon Have the Once in a Lifetime Thrill of Seeing Her First Novel in Print
Dorothy West will soon have the once in a life time thrill of seeing her first novel come out in print. The book was written at Oak Bluffs where Miss West occupies a cottage with her mother, and is to be published this spring by Houghton Mifflin. Its title, The Living Is Easy, came to her as she was describing the story to a friend of hers. At least from a first impression, the same phrase might be used to depict the personality of the author herself.
