Cape Cod is a geographic cape extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The name Cape Cod, coined in 1602 by Bartholomew Gosnold, is the ninth oldest English place-name in the U.S.
The Cape Cod National Seashore (CCNS), created on August 7, 1961 by President John F. Kennedy, encompasses 43,607 acres on Cape Cod, in Massachusetts. It includes ponds, woods and beachfront of the Atlantic coastal pine barrens ecoregion. The CCNS includes nearly 40 miles (64 km) of seashore along the Atlantic-facing eastern shore of Cape Cod, in the towns of Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet, Eastham, Orleans and Chatham. It is administered by the National Park Service.
Provincetown is a New England town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, in the United States. A small coastal resort town with a year-round population of 3,664 as of the 2020 United States Census, Provincetown has a summer population as high as 60,000. Often called "P-town" or "P'town", the locale is known for its beaches, harbor, artists, tourist industry, and as a popular vacation destination for the LGBT+ community.
Wellfleet is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, and is located halfway between the "tip" and "elbow" of Cape Cod. The town had a population of 3,566 at the 2020 census, which swells nearly sixfold during the summer. A total of 70% of the town's land area is under protection, and nearly half of it is part of the Cape Cod National Seashore. Wellfleet is famous for its oysters, which are celebrated in the annual October Wellfleet OysterFest.
Eastham is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, Barnstable County being coextensive with Cape Cod. The population was 5,752 at the 2020 census.
Truro is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, comprising two villages: Truro and North Truro. Located slightly more than 100 miles (160 km) by road from Boston, it is a summer vacation community just south of the northern tip of Cape Cod, in an area known as the "Outer Cape". English colonists named it after Truro in Cornwall, United Kingdom.
Provincetown Harbor is a large natural harbor located in the town of Provincetown, Massachusetts. The harbor is mostly 30 to 90 feet deep and stretches roughly 1 mile (1.6 km) from northwest to southeast and 2 miles (3.2 km) from northeast to southwest – one large, deep basin with no dredged channel necessary for boats to enter and exit.
The Surfman Badge is a military badge of the United States Coast Guard, issued to enlisted or officer personnel who qualify as Coxswains authorized to operate surf boats in heavy surf. Those so qualified are referred to as surfmen, a term that was originally used by the United States Life-Saving Service, one of the predecessors to the Coast Guard.
The Virginia Beach Surf & Rescue Museum honors and preserves the history of Virginia's maritime heritage, coastal communities, the United States Lifesaving Service, and the United States Coast Guard along the Atlantic coast.
Nauset Regional High School is an NEASC accredited high school located in Eastham, Massachusetts, United States and a part of Nauset Public Schools. Nauset is inside the Cape Cod National Seashore, making it the only high school on the East Coast located within a National Park. The open campus is situated about a half-mile from Nauset Light. Nauset's colors are Black and Gold and the school's mascot is the Warrior.
Race Point Light is a historic lighthouse on Cape Cod, in Provincetown, Massachusetts; it is on the National Register of Historic Places. The original tower, first illuminated in 1816, was replaced in 1876 with the current 45-foot tall iron-plated tower and a new keeper's dwelling. The American Lighthouse Foundation operates the property and rents out two buildings for overnight stays. The actual light is maintained by the Coast Guard. The site is reached by walking about 45 minutes over sand; with a National Park Service Oversand Permit, a four-wheel-drive vehicle can be used.
A Lyle gun was a line thrower powered by a short-barrelled cannon. It was invented by Captain David A. Lyle, US Army, a graduate of West Point and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and were used from the late 19th century to 1952, when they were replaced by rockets for throwing lines.
Joshua James was an American sea captain and a U.S. Life–Saving Station keeper. He was a famous and celebrated commander of civilian life-saving crews in the 19th century, credited with saving over 500 lives from the age of about 15 when he first associated himself with the Massachusetts Humane Society until his death at the age of 75 while on duty with the United States Life–Saving Service. During his lifetime he was honored with the highest medals of the Humane Society and the United States. His father, mother, brothers, wife, and son were also lifesavers in their own right.
Klipsan Beach was the site of a station of the United States Life-Saving Service. The station buildings still remain, although they are privately owned. The station is on the National Register of Historic Places. The station's name was originally Ilwaco Beach, and only later became known as Klipsan Station. The station was one of several assigned to provide protection in the area known as the Graveyard of the Pacific.
Long Point Light Station is a historic lighthouse at the northeast tip of Long Point in Provincetown, Massachusetts. As a navigational aid, it marks the southwest edge of the entrance to Provincetown Harbor. The United States Coast Guard Light List describes it simply as a "white square tower". The light it casts is green, occulting every 4 seconds, and, at a focal height of 35.5 feet (10.8 m) above mean sea level, has a visible range of 8 nautical miles. When the weather affords low-visibility, one can hear the station's fog horn – sounding a single blast for two seconds, and repeating every 15 seconds – as it seems to call out for its nearly-identical closest neighbor, the Wood End Light.
The Marconi Wireless Station Site in South Wellfleet, Massachusetts, is the site of the first transatlantic wireless communication between the United States and Europe, on January 18, 1903. At this location, now in the Cape Cod National Seashore, inventor Guglielmo Marconi erected a large antenna array on four 210-foot (64 m) wooden towers, and established a transmitting station powered by kerosene engines that produced the 25,000 volts of electricity needed to send signals to a similar station in Poldhu, Cornwall, United Kingdom. The first transmission received in North America by Marconi was at Signal Hill, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in 1901; Glace Bay, Nova Scotia was the site of the first such two-way transmission, in 1902. One of the station's most notable roles occurred with the sinking of the RMS Titanic in April 1912. Operators at the station were able to alert the RMS Carpathia so that the rescue of some of the Titanic's passengers could be effected. The station was shut down in 1917 in part over concerns about its use in World War I, but also because its towers were threatened with erosion. In 1920, usable materials and equipment were removed from the site, and it was abandoned. Erosion has taken its toll over the years since then, and there was little left as of the date of the National Park Service brochure. No trace of the site remains as of September 2014; the sea has claimed it all.
The Indian River Life-Saving Station was established at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware in 1876 to rescue mariners shipwrecked along the Delaware coast, as part of the United States Life-Saving Service. It was designed in 1874 as a 1+1⁄2-story board-and-batten frame structure with decorative brackets supporting overhanging eaves in a version of the Queen Anne style. It sheltered a surfboat which could be quickly rolled out through double doors facing the beach and down a ramp to the water. The main station house remains of what was once a complex that included a barn, stable, meat house, feed house and privy. An auxiliary boathouse stood about a mile to the south. The original plans for the station survive.
The Humboldt Bay Life-Saving Station was originally built in November 1878 on the north side of the entrance to Humboldt Bay in northern California, United States near Eureka, adjacent to the site of the first Humboldt Harbor Light (1856–1892). Rebuilt in 1936 with marine railways to launch rescue surfboats, the historic facility was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 30, 1979. The station continues to function as an important asset of the United States Coast Guard in the Coast Guard Group/Air Station Humboldt Bay.
The Dune Shacks of Peaked Hill Bars Historic District includes dune shacks that were home to American artists and writers from the 1920s to present day. The historic district, located in the Outer Cape towns of Provincetown and Truro, comprises 1,950 acres of the Cape Cod National Seashore. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. The name is derived from a Life-Saving Station known as Peaked Hill Bars that was established in 1882 on the lower cape.
Coast Guard Beach is part of the Cape Cod National Seashore in Eastham, Massachusetts. From mid-June to Labor Day, the parking area at this location is closed to all but park staff and visitors who are disabled, and access is provided by shuttle bus from the Little Creek parking area. Although the parking lot at Coast Guard Beach is open the remainder of the year, parking is limited. There are seasonal restrooms and a wheelchair-accessible rampway to the beach.
