In the early 17th century, English explorer Bartholomew Gosnold gave Cape Cod its name due to the abundant cod fish he saw in its waters. Throughout history, the cod has played a crucial role in feeding various peoples, from explorers on ships such as the Vikings, to Basques, to Europeans, to early settlers of the Cape. They all lived on cod, whether it was fresh, salted or frozen. Author Mark Kurlansky, in hi...

Residents clearly want town officials to scale back spending. The signs were not-so-subtly telegraphed at recent town meetings, and officials would do well to heed those warnings. Harwich began the trend by rejecting $4.5 million for reconstruction of Lower County Road, defeating funds for the controversial pet cemetery and coming within 34 votes of turning down the $39.6 million operating budget—unprecedented...

The Once And Future Volunteer Editor: Chatham has always been blessed with a wealth of people who are willing to step into a vacuum of need and offer assistance.  The recent honors bestowed on Juliet Bernstein are well-deserved and bespeak a life, not just long-lived, but well-lived also.  The passing last week of Pat Cass extinguishes a charitable light that helped illuminate Chatham’s tradition of giving ...

Orleans Police Color Guard stands at attention during Monday's Memorial Day ceremony. ORLEANS — Hundreds of townspeople turned out at Town Cove and Academy Place on Memorial Day to remember their war dead and the 391 local men and women who served in the nation's conflicts. With the help of Nauset Regional ...

HARWICH — “For your tomorrow, we gave our today” are powerful words of sacrifice to reflect upon on Memorial Day. Those words are from an epitaph of a fallen American warrior, Sgt. Jeremy Armstrong told a large crowd gathered around the bandstand at Brooks Park Monday. Monomoy Regional Middle School seventh grade students Megan Crowe, Kathryn Neal a...

CHATHAM — Amid the bustle of the holiday weekend, more than 100 people paused Monday to remember those who died in service to the nation. The U.S. Coast Guard’s honor guard takes its place in Monday’s Memorial Day observance. “This is not just another three-day weekend,” said SPC Ted Miller, U.S. Army, Ret....

Chatham, Harwich and Orleans held Memorial Day ceremonies Monday, remembering local service members who died in the nation's conflicts. We will have full coverage of all three ceremonies on our website and in this week's paper.

Barbara (Drake) Weinz, of Reading, formerly of Maine and longtime resident of Chatham, Cape Cod, passed away on Monday May 13, 2019 at her home surrounded by her loving family and pets.             Born 9/20/1932 in Morristown New Jersey, Barbara was the daughter of the late Fredrick Drake and Martha (Ferguson) Drake. Barbara was a loving daughter, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and friend. She will be...

Following Shark Barrier Loss At Town Meeting CHATHAM — The message from voters at the annual town meeting was clear: Chatham shouldn’t be spending money on shark detection and mitigation at Oyster Pond Beach. But with swimming lessons starting up soon, selectmen are wondering what might still be done to improve safety for beachgoers. “Is there anything else we can do for Oyster Pond?” Selectman Peter Cocolis ...

CHATHAM – Voters in the annual election last Thursday approved borrowing $7.1 million for the next phase in the town's comprehensive wastewater management plan. The town is nine years into the 20-year first phase of the wastewater plan. Work previously completed or authorized, including last week’s approval, amounts to sewering about 20 to 25 percent of the town, according to Natural Resource Director Robert Dun...

CHATHAM — A week after town meeting voters rejected it, the proposal to build a new senior center could soon be making a comeback. A revised plan—likely on a different parcel of land—could be back before voters as early as this summer. “I think we all kind of agree generally we have to move ahead,” Selectman Peter Cocolis said Monday. “I believe that we need a new council on aging building.” Delaying the pro...

Named Mercy Otis Warren Cape Cod Woman Of The Year CHATHAM — Saddened by an act of violence at a women’s clinic in Brookline, Juliet Bernstein decided to organize a candlelight vigil in front of the Eldredge Public Library, and asked selectmen for permission to do so. When the board denied her request, Bernstein went ahead anyway, asserting her constitutional right and giving the town fathers a well-deserved...

In the past week or two, it’s been hard to drive even short distances without encountering a detour sign, traffic cones or road construction crews. But take heart: town officials say much of the work will be done by Memorial Day. It’s a fact of life on Cape Cod, Chatham Public Works Director Tom Temple said. Paving crews have to work in a narrow window of time between the onset of warm weather and Memorial Day...

CHATHAM – Save the date—June 29, at the Chatham VFW on George Ryder Road—for the Art of Charity's final swansong, really-and-truly-last-time event. Local food trucks, music and a limited but extremely selective silent auction will be the highlights of the evening, which will take place from 5 to 9 p.m. It's the Art of Charity Foundation's way of saying so long and thanks to the community, said President Otis Rus...

CHATHAM – Voters spent some $60 million at the annual town meeting, and while the major expenditures received coverage last week, there were numerous smaller appropriations that didn't make the news but nonetheless deserve attention. There were also several articles that were not acted upon, including changes to the Monomoy Regional School district agreement. Although the changes mostly involved removing referen...