Prowling Around P-town

From Dave Brigham:

I just realized that the headline on this piece makes it sound like I was cat burgling around the easternmost tip of Cape Cod. I promise you, dear reader, that I was not. Not that I couldn't have, given how quiet it was when I visited on a cold and cloudy day this past February.

I've been to Provincetown -- aka P-town -- each of the last three summers, but only for short periods of time. I picked up my wife there after she completed the Pan-Mass Challenge bike ride, a massive event that raised bajillions of dollars for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

The streets of the funky resort town -- a very LGBTQ+-friendly enclave -- are jammed with tourists, summer residents and PMC participants and their friends and families the first weekend of August. Bottom line: since we don't stick around long after the ride, I don't get to soak in the atmosphere and make photos of all the great buildings and such.

So I figured a Saturday in the dead of winter was my opportunity to explore.

I stuck mostly to Commercial Street, which, if you haven't been to P-town and/or don't know what the word "commercial" means, is the main retail/restaurant thoroughfare. After parking next to town hall, the first thing that caught my eye was the trio of windows on the second floor above The Cotton Gallery, a shop stocked with tons of funny t-shirts, novelty items and souvenirs.

MACRIS indicates that the common name for this circa-1840 Greek Revival building is Scrimshaw. I'm not sure if that was a restaurant or a retail store. Over the decades this place has been occupied by a furniture store, a restaurant and a post office.

I continued west-southwest. I found the sign for Marine Specialties to be quite charming in a no-frills way.

The store, which bills itself as "Provincetown's Landmark 'Army Navy Store,' has been in business since 1961. It is located in a pre-fab warehouse building that dates to the 1930s, per MACRIS. Previous uses include a gas or service station.

Next up, the hard-to-miss Ladyslipper, "a cocktail spot," per its minimal web site.

This little Greek Revival building is known commonly as The Little Shop, according to an old MACRIS report, which doesn't indicate the date it was built.

There are so many great old buildings along Commercial Street, but I didn't make photos of every one. The next one I found to be camera-worthy was an old firehouse.

"Constructed around 1868 under the direction of John D. Hilliard, Chief of the Board of Engineers, 189 Commercial Street served as the 'Excelsior' Engine #4 so named after the fire engine," per MACRIS. "The original engine was built in Boston by Hunneman & Co. in 1854."

These days the old station houses public restrooms.

I continued in the same direction along Commercial Street for a bit before doubling back. The Kiehl's store facade looked good to me.

The skincare store is one of dozens located around the country. The brand dates to 1851.

As for the building, it dates to 1920 and is known as the Provincetown Advocate / Advocate Press building, after newspapers that were located here from the 1940s to the 1970s, according to MACRIS. Also of note: this was also the location of Gallery 200, which in the 1940s "exhibited many famous painters including first showing of Jackson Pollock," per MACRIS.

Currently occupied by Cape Tip Sportswear, the Second Empire building at 224 Commercial Street was built in 1865 as King Hiram's Lodge, a Masonic hall.

"King Hiram's Lodge was organized on December 12, 1795," according to MACRIS. "It is one of the oldest lodges in the country, and certainly one of the oldest in Massachusetts. The Charter of King Hiram's Lodge was signed by Paul Revere on December 12, 1796." The Masons evidently still meet in this building.

At this point, I was back next to Ladyslipper, looking up at the sign for The Provincetown Bookshop, which has been in business since 1932.

The shop has been in various locations over the decades, only moving to 229 Commercial Street in 2022. The book store is located in a circa-1916 Classical Revival building known commonly as Treasure n' Trash, MACRIS indicates. I'm guessing that was a second-hand store. MACRIS also reports that the building was "formerly the Consolidated Cold Storage plant for fish freezing."

Always cool to uncover a connection to part of a town or city's past that many people, especially tourists, know nothing about. I'll get to another such place in a minute.

On the side of the aforementioned Marine Specialties building is a fantastic work of art I dubbed the Wolf Mural.

It's actual title is Time and the Town, and it was painted in 2021 by Esteban del Valle, a Brooklyn-based artist originally from Chicago. And those are foxes, not wolves, according to the artist, who I guess should know.

"Early on I realized that it was impossible to physically represent the wide range of people that have and continue to pass through Provincetown in its history," del Valle says in this article. "Normally some community murals take a selective icon approach, where they’re picking and choosing historical figures or community figures to focus and highlight. And I just wanted to talk more about the spirit of the place and less about specific people, so foxes became a great way to kind of talk about different time periods, different people passing through, and the overall history versus focusing on individuals," he said.

The mural takes its title from Mary Heaton Vorse's 1942 memoir, Time and the Town: A Provincetown Chronicle.

Between the book shop and the Army-Navy store there is an alley that leads to a harbor-front beach. So of course I had to walk that way. And I'm glad I did.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Lewis and Brown Fish Shed.

Built in 1870, this ramshackle place has served as a lumber wharf, a coal shed and a restaurant down through the years, according to MACRIS. There are remnants of a pier in the harbor adjacent to this property. After a pair of fires in recent years, the building was condemned. A developer has pitched a plan to raze this structure and redevelop the site, along with the building housing the book store.

Across Commercial Street from the book shop and the Army-Navy store is the fabulous Benjamin Lancy House, with a storefront tacked on the front.

This Second Empire gem dates to 1874. It was built for Benjamin Lancy, a merchant and ship owner, per MACRIS, who also owned the wharf across the street that I discussed above. For a time last century, this architectural marvel was home to the Provincetown Historical Society. Current tenants include Cortile Gallery, Sol Optics and Henna Tattoo.

Continuing north-northeast, I passed Whalers Wharf, which I had paid little attention to when I'd walked by earlier. This is an open-air arcade that features small shops and eateries, as well as an intimate movie theater. The original building rose in 1919, but was destroyed by a fire in 1998. A new structure was erected on the same spot.

Below are some images taken inside the arcade.

Across Commercial Street from Whalers Wharf is the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House of Provincetown (on the right in image below).

This house of worship was erected in 1847 and is the oldest extant church in town. On the left in that photo is a lovely Italianate / Victorian Eclectic building with, I believe, a gallery and art studio on the ground floor. I assume the upper floors are residential. In the middle of that image is a small blue outbuilding that MACRIS says dates to 1970. I like how it mirrors the architectural style of the main house. I'm guessing that smaller building may also be a studio.

I walked past the old Scrimshaw building again, and noticed a crusty ghost sign on the side facing Gosnold Street.

Given its location on the side of a building that currently houses a gift shop, I'm guessing The Family Jewels was a similar type of store going back a bit in time.

At this point, I was back to where I parked, in front of the beautiful town hall.

Built in 1886, this Queen Anne stunner was built on land that "was partly donated...and partly bought," according to MACRIS. "[I]t had business buildings fronting Commercial St., an apple orchard on the northern end."

I continued east-northeast on Commercial Street, across Ryder Street, until I was in front of the wildest storefront in P-town, which was created by artist Joey Mars.

Shop Therapy calls itself an alternative lifestyle emporium, and sells "Beads, Bells, Incense, Clothing, Tie Dye, Jewelry, Tobacco Shop, Patches, Stickers, Posters, Sun Glasses, Tapestries & Way More," per its web site.

The store is located at 286 Commercial Street, a place with a colorful history. "In 1912 the 'Star' was born, Provincetown's first movie theater, in time converted into 'Bowlaway' Candlepin Lanes, where the tid-bit diner was a favorite of Capt. Manuel 'Sea Fox' Zora, a legendary rumrunner," according to the Historical Marker Database. "In 1983 Isaac Saada (aka Zukie) introduced his Rubber Chickens. Other tenants included the Hatbox, Cheap Thrills, and Bored Stiff. In 2012 Zukie sold the property to Ron Hazel, who moved Shop Therapy, an 'Antiestablishment,' here."

Hazel passed away in May 2025.

Next door to the eye-popping storefront is Bob Gasoi Memorial Alley.

"This vibrant alley...contains jig sawed figures from murals by artist Bob Gasoi that once adorned the old Shop Therapy store from 1987 to 2010," per this Atlas Obscura article. Prior to moving to this address in 2012, Shop Therapy was located elsewhere on Commercial Street.

Born in 1931, Gasoi earned a degree from The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in Manhattan. He moved to P-town in 1983, and was commissioned by Ron Hazel to create art for the original Shop Therapy store.

"The murals were a collaboration. Shop Therapy’s owner Ronny Hazel would feed stories about his own world travels and experiences to the artist Gasoi who would regurgitate the tales into scenescapes from the Renaissance, The Bible, Alice in Wonderland, 60’s psychedelia, Eastern erotica, comic books and science fiction," according to this Camp Provincetown article.

"There were cherubs, men wearing nothing but wristwatches, lactating figures (an ode to the Giambologna’s Fountain of Neptune), monsters crushing the Pilgrim Monument, mermaids, flesh-eating aliens and men holding fruit trays. Faces and bodies were morphed into the likeness of members of the Shop Therapy family along with local hangers-on, local politicians and members of local law enforcement."

Many of the local muckety-mucks were not happy with such artistic expression, but the works remained in place.

Gasoi passed away in 1997, in Mexico.

A little further along, on the south side of Commercial Street, is the Post Office Cafe & Cabaret.

From the venue's web site: "It was home to the original Lands End Marine Supply in 1940, and converted into the Wreck Club in 1960. In 1974, Phyllis Schlosberg, a theatre MFA and former educator, brought the Post Office to life. Phyllis would go on to launch many artists’ careers from the Cabaret’s stage, including Provincetown’s long-reigning drag sensation Varla Jean Merman, as well as camp queen Elvira, Mistress of the Dark."

I will discuss Lands End Marine Supply below.

As for the building, it dates to 1870 and was presumably at some point a post office, although neither the club's web site nor MACRIS make any mention of such a function.

Upon reaching Standish Street, I headed southeast toward Provincetown Harbor. On the corner, I spied a plain but nevertheless eye-catching sign for John's Foot Long Hot Dogs.

The eatery, which serves a lot more than just hot dogs, seems to have been in business for quite a few years.

The building dates to 1860 and is known commonly as Turner's Candies Store, per MACRIS.

On the MacMillan Pier, I was charmed by numerous small, shingle-covered buildings.

(I think this building is used for storage.)

(Irene's Little Art Shop is one of several art shacks on the pier.)

Back on Commercial Street I made a photo of the legendary Lobster Pot looking a little less iconic, but still gorgeous, with piles of hard-packed snow gathered at its base.

The restaurant's neon sign is well-known on the Cape and far beyond, and the food is prized among tourists (and probably locals). Established in 1943, the eatery has been going strong ever since in the circa-1890 building. "Ralph Medeiros and his wife Adeline opened the Lobster Pot," per Wikipedia. "After Ralph died in 1965 Adeline remarried and kept the restaurant in the family until 1979. It was at this point that a second family would take over as Adeline sold the business to Joy McNulty."

The McNulty family has run the place ever since.

Next door is the Old Colony Tap, which was launched in 1937, in the building now occupied by the Lobster Pot.

In 1943, the bar relocated to its present location. "The structure first appears on the atlas of 1880 and was owned by E. Gayland," according to MACRIS. "In 1901-1907, it was the home of Mrs. Charles Baker. In the mid-20th century, the house was converted to use as a bar on the first floor and a studio above."

The bar provides a little bit old old P-town for locals and visitors alike. "This is the Old Colony Tap, the town’s oldest surviving dive bar, a place where the past clings to the walls and the music never quite stops," reads a line from this Ptownie article.

A little further along is Mad as a Hatter, which is a great phrase and, guessing from its web site, a very cool shop.

The shop has been providing "hats for people with heads" for more than four decades. As for the phrase, "mad as a hatter," of the various possible origins, the one I prefer is this one offered by Wikipedia: "In 18th- and 19th-century England, mercury was used in the production of felt, which was commonly used in the hat-making trade at the time. Long-term use of mercury products often resulted in mercury poisoning-induced erethism among hat-makers....[erethism] was characterized by slurred speech, tremors, stumbling and, in extreme cases, hallucinations."

I doubled back at this point, and of course had to make a photo of the adorable Respoke building.

Founded in 2016, Respoke built its business on the concept of crafting espadrille shoes with Hermes's Eperon D'Or scarf (this sentence barely makes sense to me, a fashion idiot). The store now carries handcrafted footwear, as well as ready-to-wear apparel, accessories, fine art, home decor and more.

As for the building (which is what I really care about), it dates to 1858 and was originally a fire station known as Relief Hose #1, per MACRIS.

Continuing to walk back toward my car, I passed the aforementioned Lands End Marine Supply.

Now part of the True Value hardware chain, the store has been around since at least 1940, as was discussed briefly above. The building dates to 1942.

Arnold's Bike Shop - "Where you rent the bikes" -- is located at 329 Commercial Street, attached to Shirts 'N' Stuff.

"Provincetown Bicycle Rentals by Arnold’s Bike Shop has been selling and renting bikes to local and vacationing bicycle riders since 1937," per the outfit's web site. The building dates to 1950 and was formerly Arnold's Furniture and Appliance Store.

The Governor Bradford is a restaurant/bar/entertainment venue that also features apartments, in a pretty large circa-1840 building. Naturally, I shot the place from the less-glamorous side.

Last, but certainly not least, is The Mayflower, a family-owned restaurant that's been in business since 1929.

The building rose around 1860, and also includes apartments.

Many of these establishments were closed for the season when I passed through Provincetown. These places will surely be hopping soon, if not already. Make sure to check back in two weeks for some cool photos of cottages in neighboring Truro.

Floating Through Fall River, Part IV*

From Dave Brigham:

* No actual floating was undertaken in pursuit of this and other posts about Fall River.

In my last post about Fall River, Mass. , I said that my series about the old mill city was wrapping up (see bottom of this post for that link, as well to the previous two installments). Well, I was wrong, and that's a good thing, because there is so much still to cover. More than a year has elapsed between posts, and there will likely be a long layoff until the next one. But you can be sure there will more.

Over Labor Day weekend I returned to the Corky Row Historic District I explored in 2024, and also checked out some other parts of the city. After parking alongside Kennedy Park, I walked up to South Main Street and spied some fantastic signs for competing hot dog joints.

J.J's Coney Island Hot Dogs and Nick's Hot Dogs are located practically across the street from each other. Having opened in 1920, the latter claims to be the region's "oldest continuous Coney Island hot dog outlet." I'm not sure when J.J.'s began slinging dogs. Each eatery also offers other types of fast food.

Named for the neighborhood in Brooklyn that is known worldwide for its amusement park, a Coney Island hot dog is, according to Wikipedia, "a wiener in a bun topped with a savory meat sauce and sometimes other toppings. It is similar to a chili dog and is often offered as part of a menu of classic American diner dishes and at Coney Island restaurants. Despite its name and association with New York, it is most popular in the Midwestern United States, especially in Michigan. It was invented by early 20th century immigrants from Greece and the region of Macedonia to the United States."

A little north-northeast of Nick's, on the opposite side of South Main, is the Clipper Restaurant, a Portuguese place.

Established in 1980 or 1981, depending on which part of the web site you choose to believe, the Clipper claims to be the "oldest single family owned Portuguese restaurant in North America."

A little further in the same direction, on the east side of the street, squeezed between two buildings where a bridal and dress business operate, is the former Cascade Engine Company #1 station.

Built in 1897, this English Revival firehouse is made of rough-cut Fall River granite, according to MACRIS. The building has also served as a retail store over the years. I'm not sure if there is any business located here presently.

There is a cool mural on the side of the adjoining building, keeping an eye on the old station.

Created by artist Rene Gagnon, the mural "contains the logo of the Capitol Theatre (sic) - that's the building on the right it's painted on," according to Fall River photographer and videographer Will Costa's comment when I posted this photo on Instagram.

The theater dates to 1926, and was renovated in 1980. A fire in 1976 seriously damaged the building, per MACRIS. The building was used as a bowling alley and furniture store subsequently. It is currently occupied by Alexandra's Boutique.

I turned back toward the southwest, peeking up Morgan Street to make a photo of the shuttered Saint Dominique Mini Mart.

St. Dominic "was a Castilian Catholic priest, eventual patron saint and the founder of the Dominican Order," according to Wikipedia. "He is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scientists, and he and his order are traditionally credited with spreading and popularizing the rosary."

Interesting choice of a name for a convenience store. The shop is located on the southwest-facing side of the Moore Building, which was built in 1924.

Back out on South Main Street stands the H.L. Thuot Building, which rose in 1916. I haven't found out anything about this building, other than it was formerly home to Universal Furniture. The building is now occupied by Igreja Universal.

A little further along, just north of Kennedy Park, is a somewhat drab building that nevertheless has a cool history.

The plaque at the roofline caught my eye, leading me to make the photo, even though I couldn't fully make out what it says. I could read the date, 1890, and that was it. This place, as it turns out, started life as the Young Men's Protestant Temperance Society Hall. The temperance movement sought the prohibition of the production, sale or consumption of alcohol. There were many such groups in the late-19th and early-20th centuries in Fall River and across the country.

In 1944, the society sold the building to the Fall River Lodge 456 of the Loyal Order of Moose, according to MACRIS. The temperance society remained active at a different address until 1954.

In 1966, the Moose chapter sold the building to Academica Realty Corp. "A decade later, the Academica Realty Corp. re-incorporated as the Associacao Academica, Inc.," per Wikipedia. "The Associacao Academica was formed in 1962...as a Portuguese men’s social club." I believe a plan has been floated to convert this building to apartments.

Continuing south on South Main Street, I dug the sign for The Moose Cafe at the corner of Park Street.

I'm not sure whether the eatery was named in honor of the old Moose Lodge. From what I can tell, it hasn't been in business in quite a while. I'm guessing the building was originally a service station.

Upon reaching Middle Street, I headed east. I was heading toward one of the spots I'd identified during my online research, but was pleasantly surprised along Third Street to find a lovely sideways sign for Shamrock Village apartments.

I hope this sign used to be more of a Kelly green before fading over time.

At the intersection of Third and Branch streets, I arrived at the Corky Row Club, which I'd discovered during my pre-search.

Located in a low-slung, less-than-welcoming building, the club is "Fall River’s oldest Irish pub, founded 1936," per its web site. "Open to the public and welcoming new member applications."

At one time, the building at 602 Third Street was quite handsome, based on the photo at the club's MACRIS page. Built in 1877, the Italianate building with a mansard roof had three upper stories above the ground floor. I'm not sure whether the building burned or fell into disrepair and was torn down. I believe what stands there now is part of the original structure, but greatly altered.

From the club I wound my way east on Branch Street, then south on 5th Street and out to Plymouth Avenue. After a short walk south-southwest, I found myself at another destination that I'd flagged ahead of time.

Built in 1908, the Flat Iron Building -- are all buildings shaped like a flat iron required to be called the Flat Iron Building? -- features apartments on the upper floors, above M & S Liquors.

From here, I headed north on Second Street until I hit Middle Street again, and then turned west. At the bottom of the hill, across from Kennedy Park, stands an impressive Catholic compound.

St. Anne's Shrine "stands proudly as a masterpiece of architecture and a lasting tribute to the generations of immigrants from French Canada who built it," per MACRIS. Construction on the buildings began in 1891 and was completed in 1916. It is quite majestic. I'm not sure whether services are held regularly. I believe there are also apartments located in the lower buildings.

I had one more site I wanted to check out, so I drove to Ferry Street, along the Taunton River, to find the Tipsy Toboggan.

The restaurant and bar features live entertainment, and sponsored the Fall River Chowda Heads Toboggan racing team at the 2025 U.S. National Toboggan Championships, per its web site. I haven't found out the history of this placee, but it looks like it's fairly old and I'm guessing it was once part of a mill complex.

Below are links to the prior three installments in my Fall River series:

September 7, 2024, "Floating Through Fall River, Part III"

August 31, 2024, "Floating Through Fall River, Part II"

August 24, 2024, "Floating Through Fall River, Part I"

I Pahked My Cah Near Hahvahd Yard

From Dave Brigham:

Parking in and around Harvard Square can be a real pain in the ass. That's because there are so many reasons to visit the beating heart of Cambridge: clothing stores, restaurants, coffee shops, ice cream parlors, barber shops, bars, churches, bookstores, the Harvard Lampoon building.

The Harvard Lampoon is the undergraduate humor magazine of the World's Greatest University. Founded in 1876, the magazine has produced many well-known writers and comedians, including Kurt Andersen, co-founder of Spy magazine; Andy Borowitz, writer, comedian and satirist known for The Borowitz Report; Greg Daniels, who created the American version of the ridiculously popular TV show "The Office"; Fred Gwynne (aka Herman Munster); TV and podcast host Conan O'Brien; and and novelist John Updike.

The magazine has been based in this amazing building since it was built in 1909. I'd admired the Victorian Eclectic building for many years before finding out it was home to the magazine. I discovered National Lampoon, a humor magazine that was spun out of Harvard's publication, when I was in high school. I lived for that rag for a few years, absorbing every stupid cartoon, gratuitous flash of nudity and brilliant long-form story.

From the Lampoon building I bounced over to the Galeria, which I guess is a mini-mall. I've never patronized any of the businesses here, but man do I like the sign.

MACRIS says this place was built in 1975. Current tenants include CorePower Yoga, Shake Shack, The Maharaja Indian restaurant and Staples. The building's owner has floated a plan to add residential units in new construction above the mall.

Around the corner, on Eliot Street facing the Harvard Square Hotel, is the institution known as Charlie's Kitchen.

I'm almost ashamed to say I've never eaten here, even though I've lived in the Boston area for more than three decades and Charlie's has been in business more than twice as long.

Walking up Winthrop Street back towards the Galeria, I had to make a shot of a legendary place that I bet few passers-by know about.

Currently occupied by the Boiling Crab Cajun seafood restaurant, this old house was the original location of the House of Blues. I wrote about this joint many years ago; to learn more, see August 8, 2017, "This Old House of Blues."

Across Winthrop Street is Grendel's Den, a cozy institution founded in the 1960s (not, as the sign says, 1271).

The eatery's name comes from "a monstrous creature defeated by Beowulf in the Old English poem Beowulf," per Britannica.

I zig-zagged around the square, remembering places I used to frequent, mourning places that are gone (Border Cafe, Wursthaus) and eventually made my way to the impressive Sheraton Commader Hotel.

Opened in 1927, the hotel is named in memory of George Washington, who assumed command of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War near this spot. That sign is something else, isn't it?!

I headed southeast along Garden Street and just before the Old Burial Ground (where one of my ancestors is allegedly buried) I checked out the lovely and historic Christ Church Cambridge, from the backside of course.

From the nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places: "Christ Church, Cambridge, designed by Peter Harrison, colonial America's most skilled gentleman-amateur architect, was constructed between 1757-61. The design reflects Harrison's increasing freedom from his dependence upon English design books, perhaps augmented in this case by the need for original solutions placed upon the architect by financial restrictions of the project. The simple exterior, with planked walls and plain wooden belfry belies the refined elegance of the interior. Christ Church is one of the surviving landmarks of colonial Cambridge Common, retaining the quiet charm of its original environment within the busy area of Harvard University."

In the heart of the square is another stately building, this one with a different sort of place in local history.

Located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and John F. Kennedy and Brattle streets, the Abbott Building dates to 1909, and was recently renovated. But it's the sign in the window that I want to bring to your attention: Dewey, Cheetham & Howe. If you don't know about this sign, read it aloud a few times. You'll get it.

Behind that cleverly amusing window was the headquarters of the "Car Talk" universe. The nationally syndicated National Public Radio show was hosted by Click and Clack, aka brothers Ray and Tom Magliozzi. From 1977 to 2012, the Tappet Brothers, as they called themselves, dispensed advice to callers with car problems, cracking up each other and their audience as they did so. I listened casually back in the '90s, and always enjoyed it, even though I knew nothing about cars. To read many of these same words, check out this June 24, 2023, post about Cambridgeport, which includes the brothers' auto body shop.

While the building has been renovated, and the brothers no longer work there (Tom died in 2014), the sign remains the same. That's nice.

Just south of the Magliozzis' old office is a sign for another place that oldtimers will remember.

Like "Car Talk" and the Edsel, Whitney's dive bar is no longer in business. Opened in 1953, the tavern shut down at the end of 2024, either because it was too loud, or because the tenant didn't keep up with rent, depending on who you believe in this Cambridge Day article.

Across the street is a great sign that I've admired for years.

I've shopped at The Garage Mall countless times over the years, mostly at the Newbury Comics store (for music, not comics). I never gave the history of this place much thought until I made this photo. Built in 1924, this building at the corner of John F. Kennedy and Mt. Auburn streets was a parking garage for nearly 50 years before being converted to a shopping and eating destination.

As with so much of Harvard Square, this site is destined to be updated. "The proposed project will create a new, contextually appropriate building on the current site...that offers a more robust ground floor retail presence, establishes an underground space for entertainment and dining, and creates new commercial office with 6 outdoor terraces," per Trinity Property Management.

I'll admit that the current iteration of the mall is fairly lame. So I'm not opposed to progress in this case.

At this point I headed west on Mt. Auburn Street, to make photos of a quaint place out of another time.

This Norwegian-style beauty was designed by architect Allen W. Jackson (no, not this guy) in 1930 for the Cambridge Skating Club, which was founded in 1897. Located next to Longfellow Park, the property was "once known as Mrs. Thorp’s Field," according to the web site for the Cambridge Tennis Club, which was incorporated in 1954 and which shares the property and the building.

In the early days, the site "was flooded during winters and neighborhood folks ice skated there. Annie Longfellow Thorp was a daughter of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow," the web site continues. The club is private.

From there I headed southeast to Memorial Drive until I was in front of a place I've long been curious about....

....a gen-u-wine monastery.

I used to spend a lot more time in and around Harvard Square. For years when driving by this complex I paid it little mind. Increasingly, though, I wondered about it. Located steps from the hustle and bustle of the square, it seemed quite peaceful and separated from the mundane. Eventually I learned that it was exactly that: the Society of Saint John the Evangelist is "[r]ooted in the ancient monastic traditions of prayer and community life," per the group's web site.

As for the church, MACRIS has this to say: "This distinguished Romanesque building is the last in a series of Medieval Revival Cambridge churches. This 1936 design by Cram & Ferguson is the most archaeologically correct of all the City's Medieval churches. The church is enhanced by the riverfront setting, with flanking monastery buildings and walled gardens."

Ralph Adams Cram, who died in 1942 at age 78, "was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic Revival style," per Wikipedia. Among his projects are All Saints Parish in Brookline, Mass., Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, N.Y., First Unitarian Society in Newton, Mass., St. Florian Church in Hamtramck, Mich., and the public library in Fall River, Mass.

Back on John F. Kennedy Street, I diverted down South Street to check out a beautiful building that I assumed was much older than it turns out to be.

This is the headquarters of the Harvard Advocate, which claims to be the oldest continuously published collegiate literary magazine in the country, having been founded in 1866. As for the building, it rose in 1956 but looks like it could have been erected at the periodical's founding, don'tcha think?

My final stop was Pinocchio's Pizza & Subs on Winthrop Street.

This little joint with the great sign has been slinging pies since 1966.