Townie Trivia: How Much Do You Know About Gloucester?
When mentioning Gloucester, 'fishing town' immediately comes to mind for many people. But as anyone who's ever visited or lived in Gloucester, there's much more to this seaside city. So, how much do you know about Gloucester?
A. Bob
B. Gloria
C. Grace
D. Emily
2. While shipbuilding and fishing are given, a number of other industries operated successfully in Gloucester at one time or another. Which of the following is NOT one of them?
A. granite mining
B. logging
C. rum running
D. livestock/wool production
3. Gloucester-based Gorton's Seafood was originally named what?
A. John Pew & Sons
B. Captain Carlo's
C. Clarence Birdseye & Co.
D. General Seafood
4. Which of the following patron saints of fishermen does Gloucester celebrate each June?
A. St. Andrew
B. St. Peter
C. St. Benno
D. St. Nicholas
5. Historians estimate that in its 350+-year history, Gloucester has lost how many men at sea?
A. 150
B. 800
C. 4,500
D. 10,000
6. Gloucester's Smith Cove is home to what?
A. The Most Expensive Home Ever Sold In Massachusetts
B. The oldest art colony in the country
C. The lanes where candlepin bowling was invented.
D. The nation's first fire station
7. Gloucester is the birthplace of which Marvel character?
A. Steve Rogers, Ultimate Captain America
B. Dane Whitman, Black Knight
C. Bruce Banner, Hulk
D. Arthur Curry, Aquaman
8. The Guinness World Record for the fastest time to cross a 42 ft long greased pole was set at the annual greasy pole competition in Gloucester.
A. True
B. False
9. The ballad "Mary Ambree" inspired the title of which literary work that takes place in Gloucester?
A. The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne
B. Captains Courageous, Rudyard Kipling
C. The Maximus Poems, Charles Olson
D. The Wreck of the Hesperus, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
10. What was responsible for halting Gloucester's fishing industry in the 18th century?
A. The first great fire of Gloucester
B. A series of hurricanes
C. The Industrial Revolution
D. The British Navy
11. The Blynman Bridge, which is often a traffic headache on summer days, was named after:
A. Gloucester's first clergyman
B. A British merchant who funded its building
C. Gloucester's most well-known sculptor
D. A colonial admiral who fought the British in the Battle of Gloucester
12. Dogtown Common in Gloucester consists of all of the following, except:
A. Large rocks carved with inspirational messages
B. An abandoned burial ground
C. Remnants of cellar holes from abandoned homes
D. A former shipbuilding factory
Answers on Page 2
1. The storm at the center of the Gloucester-based book and movie The Perfect Storm was formed by the remnants of which 1991 hurricane?
A. Bob - August, 1991. Struck New England.
B. Gloria - September, 1985. Struck New England.
C. Grace - October, 1991. Grace initially fizzled out before colliding a cold front and a high pressure system, creating the perfect storm.
D. Emily - August-September, 1993. Grazed North Carolina.
2. While shipbuilding and fishing are given, a number of other industries operated successfully in Gloucester at one time or another. Which of the following is NOT one of them?
A. granite mining
B. logging
C. rum running
D. livestock/wool production - There was some livestock/wool production in Gloucester, but it was never a major industry.
3. Gloucester-based Gorton's Seafood was originally named what?
A. John Pew & Sons
B. Captain Carlo's
C. Clarence Birdseye & Co.
D. General Seafood
4. Which of the following patron saints of fishermen does Gloucester celebrate each June?
A. St. Andrew
B. St. Peter - The festival includes the famous Greasy Pole competition.
C. St. Benno
D. St. Nicholas
5. Historians estimate that in its 350+-year history, Gloucester has lost how many men at sea?
A. 150
B. 800
C. 4,500
D. 10,000
6. Gloucester's Smith Cove is home to what?
A. The Most Expensive Home Ever Sold In Massachusetts
B. The oldest art colony in the country. - Dating back more than 150 years, The Rocky Neck Art Colony is believed to be the oldest working art colony in the country.
C. The lanes where candlepin bowling was invented.
D. The nation's first fire station
7. Gloucester is the birthplace of which Marvel character?
A. Steve Rogers, Ultimate Captain America
B. Dane Whitman, Black Knight
C. Bruce Banner, Hulk
D. Arthur Curry, Aquaman
8. The Guinness World Record for the fastest time to cross a 42 ft long greased pole was set at the annual greasy pole competition in Gloucester.
A. True
B. False - The record was set by Gloucester Greasy Pole competition winner Joey DaSilva -- but the actual Guinness Record event took place in California in 2012. His record is 4.96 seconds.
9. The ballad "Mary Ambree" inspired the title of which literary work that takes place in Gloucester?
A. The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne
B. Captains Courageous, Rudyard Kipling - 'Mary Ambree' starts with "When captains courageous, whom death could not daunt."
C. The Maximus Poems, Charles Olson
D. The Wreck of the Hesperus, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
10. What was responsible for halting Gloucester's fishing industry in the 18th century?
A. The first great fire of Gloucester
B. A series of hurricanes
C. The Industrial Revolution
D. The British Navy- During the Revolutionary War, British war ships sunk many of Gloucester's fishing boats.
11. The Blynman Bridge, which is often a traffic headache on summer days, was named after:
A. Gloucester's first clergyman - In 1643, Reverend Richard Blynman oversaw construction of the canal over which the bridge runs. The canal is also named after him.
B. A British merchant who funded its building
C. Gloucester's most well-known sculptor
D. A colonial admiral who fought the British in the Battle of Gloucester
12. Dogtown Common in Gloucester consists of all of the following, except:
A. Large rocks carved with inspirational messages
B. An abandoned burial ground
C. Remnants of cellar holes from abandoned homes
D. A former shipbuilding factory - A,B & C can all be found in the now abandoned area of Gloucester. The carved rocks were the idea of Roger Babson, the founder of Babson College as a way to help unemployed stone cutters during the Great Depression.
