FAQ’s

 

1. Where is the Annisquam Historical Society (AHS) located?

The AHS is located in the old Deluge 8 Firehouse.
Physical address is: 7 Walnut Street, Gloucester, MA 01930

Annisquam is a waterfront neighborhood in the city of Gloucester, on the North Shore of Massachusetts, USA.

2. When is the Firehouse open to visitors?

The hours when the Firehouse is open are posted on the Home Page.

3. On your AHS website, what do the headings, Index to Publications, AHS Publications, AHS Public Presentations, Searchable Archives mean?

If you hover your cursor over AHS Publications, a dropdown menu will appear:

The Index of Subjects lists articles that are arranged by theme.

Notes from the Firehouse are usually historical articles of one subject with text and images. They are organized by titles and in reverse chronological order.

Index for the Journals 2015-2020 lists the titles of journal articles and the month published.

Journals are archived articles, often encompassing several subjects, and news of Annisquam that was current at the time of publication.

Squam Portraits by Margaret Fitzhugh Browne is a compendium of 10 articles by Rita Teele. It includes essays of 9 Squam portraits and a mini-biography of the artist herself. (These were originally digitally published, on different dates, in Notes from the Firehouse but are now grouped together.)

Vignettes are short histories, submitted from all who have lived, stayed here, or had links to Annisquam.

AHS Public Presentations are past audiovisual lectures from AHS. Click on Videos from the dropdown menu and select a video to watch, by clicking on the rightward arrow.

You can also link to the Annisquam Village Library videos

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLBPDzx80rKmhQI8N6Z-G-w/videos  which include some prior historical presentations.

Searchable Archives

Click on the title, Searchable Archives, and a list of three links will be displayed:

Digital Commonwealth
Internet Archive-AHS*
Gloucester City Directories.

Information as to what these links provide, is given on the right of the page.

*Please note that when accessing the AVHA scrapbook on the Internet Archive-AHS https://archive.org/details/annisquamhistoricalsociety
that to search text within the scrapbook, you click the search icon on the left side of the screen. To increase size of text, use the lower right icon that includes + within its rim.

4. What do you have on display in the Firehouse?

Some items are not on display all the time, but the contents of the Firehouse include the following:

  • Genealogical records and property data

  • Old books and magazines

  • Maps and Deeds

  • Native American Artifacts

  • Paintings

  • Photographs and postcards

  • Clothing and Accessories

  • Scrapbooks and Albums

  • Tools and Household Objects

  • Stagecoach

Please note that many (but not all) documents in the Firehouse are available online. Please use link labeled Searchable Archives.

If you have a particular research interest, please send particulars to info@annisquamhistoricalsociety.org

5. Do you have the stagecoach on display?

Annisquam’s Concord stagecoach #54, built by Lewis Downing (wheelwright) and J. Stephens Abbot (carriage maker) in Concord New Hampshire during the mid-1800s, is on display in the Firehouse. It has returned to the village after its conservation/restoration at Hansen’s Wheelworks in Letcher South Dakota. An AHS volunteer can provide its history and point out the interesting features of the coach.

6. Who runs the Annisquam Historical Society?

At present, there is a 10 member executive group which includes an ex-officio member from the Annisquam Village Hall Association. The AHS is one of many organizations under the umbrella of the non-profit Annisquam Village Hall Association.

7. How do I contact someone/donate an item?

Please send an email to: info@annisquamhistoricalsociety.org

AHS is run by volunteers and your email will be directed to the person most able to respond to your enquiry.

8.  How can I support the Annisquam Historical Society?

Financial support is always appreciated. Please contact us via info@annisquamhistoricalsociety.org

We need archival supplies for adequate protection of the contents of the Firehouse and funding for ongoing maintenance of the historic Firehouse.

We also have costs associated with keeping Annisquam's history available to all via the website, Annisquamhistoricalsociety.org

 

For donation of historic items, please contact the webmaster via info@annisquamhistoricalsociety.org

Sales of Annisquam-related photographs, books, mugs, coasters, and puzzles are available via The Exchange which is next door to the Firehouse.

Their current hours of operation of the Annisquam Exchange are listed in this link: annisquamexchange.com

9. Can you let me know about parking, restrooms, a restaurant in Annisquam?

Parking in Annisquam is limited because of narrow roads.
On street parking is allowed unless marked otherwise.
There are no parking lots.
There are no public restrooms within the village.
The only restaurant is Talise; their website lists open hours.