Time Machine Terms
November 15, 1996
Charter School Serves Students By Innovating
The classroom is both comfortable and practical. Furnished with stacks of books, a Macintosh computer and a sprawling leather sofa, it is a bright room with windows offering a view of a forest and enough light to nourish three potted plants.
Here, nestled in the giant L-shaped sofa, half a dozen students read novels and write in journals. Some talk quietly, and others work on "dialogue journals." That means they write entries directed to teacher Meredith Collins, then leave the notebooks in a basket, where Miss Collins finds them and writes responses.
October 25, 1996
From Lobsterville to Squibnocket, Cape Pogue to Tisbury Great Pond, Fishermen Pick Their Favorite Spots
If there was ever a favorite fishing spot on the Vineyard, Lobsterville is it. As fishing spots go, it is fairly easy to get to. It is far enough away to feel remote and, most important of all, there are usually fish to be caught.
October 25, 1996
Scientific Research Is Aided by High Volume of Fish Brought to Derby Weigh-in Station for Examination
The annual fall fishing derby offers the scientific community an ideal platform for monitoring the health of fish and for doing marine research. Gregory P. Skomal, a regional division of marine fisheries biologist, is involved in several key studies with the help of derby organizers.
Derby fishermen provide the perfect mechanism for monitoring fish. Four species of fish are weighed in almost daily, and all a researcher has to do is take his pick. And since the fish are all brought to the same spot for weighing in, it is easy to standardize.
September 17, 1996
Historical Society Gets a New Name
For 73 years, the Dukes County Historical Society has been the resource for those interested in the history, genealogy, culture and natural history of Martha’s Vineyard.
But institutions need to move with the times. At the society’s annual meeting on August 19, the membership voted to change the name of the organization. From now on, the gate house at the corner of School and Cook streets in Edgartown will read Martha’s Vineyard Historical Society.
“What’s in a name?” asked Romeo. The answer the Society expects, will be recognition.
September 10, 1996
State and Private Foundation Reveal Joint Plan to Preserve Historic Farm
During an afternoon trip to North Tisbury last week, Lieut. Gov. Paul Cellucci and the David H. Smith Foundation revealed an ambitious joint plan for preserving Barnard’s Inn Farm, a historic 60-acre farmstead and home to a distinguished arboretum.
The property, located on State Road near the Island’s new fairground, is considered important for several reasons, including its geological significance and its role in defining the rural character of North Tisbury.
September 6, 1996
Public Charter School Is Days Away from Island Launch
In Max Butler's first weeks at school, he will help set up a computer system.
Max, 12, will also join other students of various ages in a writers' workshop. He will take classes called understanding math and algebra, studies in science and problem-solving.
And that's only the first month.
An advisor with the new Martha's Vineyard Public Charter School helped Max design this schedule recently. In coming weeks, they will decide what comes next.
"It's pretty exciting," said Max, of Gay Head. "For the first time ever, I can't really wait to go back to school."
September 3, 1996
Hurricane Edouard Bashes Vineyard; High Winds and Torrential Rains Cause Property Damage and Power Outages
Hurricane Edouard slowly brushed past Martha’s Vineyard yesterday, battering the coastline with fierce, gusting winds and torrential rains, causing property damage, power outages and rudely interrupting the plans of thousands of Labor Day travelers.
The Vineyard was spared the brunt of Edouard - the eye of the hurricane rumbled east of Nantucket early yesterday afternoon - but its blustery, fitful grip upon the Island was long, gloomy and occasionally intense.
September 3, 1996
Edouard Brushed Island in Slow Motion
Hurricane Edouard was an old storm. By the time the violent winds reached our waters, they had crossed the Atlantic and moved in a straight line up the coast to the Cape and Islands.
“We first noticed this storm on August 21. It started as a Cape Verde storm, about 400 miles west-southwest of the Cape Verde islands. It formed as a depression with 30-knot winds,” said John Hastings, a meteorologist with Weather Services Corp. in Lexington.
August 13, 1996
Chilmark Road Race Was Record Run in the Sun
The sun made a rare appearance, an Oak Bluffs man blazed to a course record and a jumbo lobster stuffed the consequences Saturday at the 19th annual running of the Chilmark Road Race.
Art Smith, 28, of East Chop and Cambridge ignored soaring summer temperatures en route to winning the five-kilometer (3.1-mile) race down Middle Road by a wide margin in a record 14 minutes, 38 seconds.
It was Mr. Smith’s second straight victory at Chilmark and - as is the custom - received to cash prize, but instead a large, Island-caught lobster.
July 23, 1996
World Record Blue Shark Caught
A huge 454-pound blue shark was caught during the tenth annual Oak Bluffs Monster Shark Tournament held over the weekend. The shark could be the largest blue ever caught, a world record.
The shark was caught by Pete Bergin of Shrewsbury in his boat Quality Time. Mr. Bergin's boat was one of 65 participating in the Boston Big Game Fishing Club's annual event. Competing boats filled the Oak Bluffs waterfront for most of the weekend. On Friday and Saturday a large number of fish were caught, and even more were released.
