This oval basket is attributed to Davis Hall (1828–1906). After a career that included time as a sailor and fisherman, service in the Civil War, and duty as a volunteer life-saver for the Massachusetts Humane Society, Davis Hall joined the crew of the South Shoal lightship in 1877. It is unclear if he learned basketmaking aboard or already knew it.

By the 1880s, Hall’s baskets were regularly recognized at the annual agricultural fair, often in competition with the work of James Wyer. He is traditionally said to have developed the oval basket form.

Check out our Nantucket Lightship Baskets exhibit at Hadwen House to see this basket on display. Open Mon–Sat, at 96 Main Street, 10am–4pm, through October 9.

Image Credit:
Oval lightship basket, late 19th century
Wood, cane
Gift of John Reed Evans, A2019.2.1 ...

Since 1969, the Angler`s Club has encouraged a love of fishing through social gatherings and competitions. Its tournaments, sponsored throughout the year, include pond tournaments, ladies-only tournaments, and the Nantucket Billfish Tournament. The club hosts its members in a space at the head of Old South Wharf and has a certified weigh station where passers-by may chance to see huge fish suspended adjacent to the clubhouse. Younger anglers are encouraged to weigh their fish, in order to be eligible for monthly and yearly awards and prizes. The club also awards scholarships to the children and grandchildren of members.

Image: Members of the Nantucket Angler`s Club steam lobsters at their annual clambake in 1988
Gift of Mary G. Bachman (PH2-11-8) ...

Nantucketers developed the island’s first amenities for tourists in the late 1840s. In the late 1860s, they began concerted efforts to advertise Nantucket as an ideal “watering place.” A rush of hotel building and land speculation followed in the 1870s and 1880s, setting in motion an economy based on real estate sales, land development, and construction. Today, nearly all of the island’s economic activity, including house sales, building, landscaping, and hospitality services—even fishing for the bay scallop—is driven by the needs and demands of the summer resort.

Learn more about the island`s resort economy in the NHA`s exhibition Summer on Nantucket: A History of the Island Resort at the Whaling Museum, at 13 Broad Street, open daily, 10am–5pm.

Image Credits:
Waiting at Steamboat Wharf, ca. 1928
Courtesy of Joan Wilson Godeau and Vivian Wilson Richardson, SC642-14-5 ...

It may be the last day of summer, but the season lives on in our featured exhibition, Summer on Nantucket: A History of the Island Resort. See it now through November 1 at the Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street, open daily, 10am–5pm.

Containing more than 200 artifacts from the NHA collection, this exhibition tells the story of Nantucket as a summer destination, from the opening of the first tourist hotels in the 1840s to the multi-billion-dollar real-estate, construction, and rental economy of today.

The exhibit begins with “Impressions of Summer,” a feast of paintings, trade signs, souvenirs, and other items capturing the flavor of Nantucket in high season. “The Resort Economy” traces the island’s transition from a whaling port to a vacation spot. “Must See, Must Do” explores beach and water recreation, entertainment and dining, and changing tourist activities across more than a century. “Where to Stay?” demonstrates how summer-home options have changed as more of the island has been developed. “Who’s Here?” features new acquisitions from the NHA’s costume and textile collections showing island summer fashions.

“It’s Not All Roses” recognizes the hard work seasonal employees and year-round residents put into making summer happen for everyone and explores some of the downsides to the island’s popularity and success: crowding, traffic, housing insecurity, and economic inequality. The exhibit concludes with “Winter,” a look at the continuation of island life after the crowds depart. ...