Historic Resource Study-Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts

Summary

From the publication Preface and short Introduction:

This report is intended to fulfill the requirements for a historic resource study of Cape Cod National Seashore. Its purpose is to provide a general history and historic base map of the National Seashore area. The study should provide the basic data needed for planning and interpretation.

The history of the Cape Cod National Seashore region, during most of the period of white settlement, has been one of dependence on the sea for a livelihood. Protection of maritime activity off the Cape shore, through the development of lighthouses and the Life Saving Service, also played a role in the

Cape's history. Disruption of marine activities, from wars and the financial inability to adopt new fishing methods, brought depressions. Even during prosperity the isolated Cape region took a backseat to the commercially prominent Boston area. After the Civil War, as fishing declined, the Cape residents

turned to raising cranberries (although never great on the lower Cape) and promoting tourism. Finally, since the mid-1950s, it has succumbed to suburbanization.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Cape Cod Archaeology and Other Cultural Resources

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