For Immediate Release
Contact: Bradley Reichard
FOCUS Communications LLC
(617) 426-0088, ext. 202
LIPTON CUP OFFICIALLY UNVEILED AT
PROVINCETOWN PUBLIC LIBRARY
- Century-old Trophy to Have
Permanent Home with Half-size Replica of
Fishing Schooner “Rose Dorothea,”
Winner of the Lipton Cup in 1907 -
PROVINCETOWN, Mass. (June 14, 2006) - The Lipton Cup will be formally installed in its permanent home at the Provincetown Public Library in an official ceremony on June 14, 2006. Special guest Clinton Watson, son of victorious skipper Captain John Watson, will have an original photograph of the winning fishing schooner, “Rose Dorothea,” with her fore-topmast snapped off, and an original article from the Atlantic Fisherman from 1924 that describes the race day in full detail.
“My father was only twenty-nine years old at the time, which was fairly young compared to his seafaring competitors,” said Clinton Watson, Captain John Watson’s son. “Captain Perry asked him to serve as skipper since he had already acquired a reputation for his racing expertise. My father went on to become a well-known racing captain, fisherman, yachting skipper, and pilot and also served in the U. S. Navy during World War I.”
The Visitor Services Board has completed the process of polishing and appraising the trophy, installing an alarm system in the Library, and constructing a custom-built display case for the Cup. It is fitting the Cup should call the Library its home along with the replica of the “Rose Dorothea,” which was built under the supervision of Captain Francis (“Flyer”) Santos, who, coincidentally, lives in Captain Perry’s former house.
“The Lipton Cup has a very special place in Provincetown’s heritage and culture,” said Bill Schneider, Administrative Director of Tourism for Provincetown. “It will finally be showcased so that Provincetown residents and visitors alike can appreciate its beauty and historic value.”
The trophy has been stored in a Town Hall safe for the last several years pending a permanent venue. Its new home will be near the Library’s entrance, welcoming visitors who will later encounter a sixty-six foot half-size replica of the fishing schooner Rose Dorothea, the winner of the cup nearly 100 years ago, on display on the second floor.
Sir Thomas Lipton, an avid yachtsman who had founded Lipton tea, offered the silver cup, along with $650, as a prize in a 42-mile sailing race from Boston to Gloucester and back in August 1907. Lipton offered the championship cup to determine the fastest fishing fleet out of Boston, Provincetown, and Gloucester, stoking the great rivalry among them.
However, the battle for speediest schooner does remain unfinished to this day, as no part of the Gloucester fishing fleet participated in the race, unwilling to pull time and money away from netting mackerel for a “frivolous” race. Also, the 1907 race was the first and final, despite Lipton’s intention to hold the race as an annual event. As a result, only the name of “Rose Dorothea” graces the ornate silver trophy, valued at $5,000 at the time and worth far more today.
While the “Rose Dorothea” was owned and captained by Marion Perry (she was named for Perry’s wife), Captain John Watson was the skipper who sailed to victory the day of the race, narrowly beating another Provincetown fishing schooner, the “Jessie Costa,” even after the “Rose Dorothea” snapped her fore-topmast as she rounded Gloucester’s Eastern Point.
Just 125 short miles from
Boston, but worlds apart, Provincetown has been hosting culturally-diverse
visitors since the Pilgrims first arrived in 1620. A year-round
destination nestled along the National Seashore, Provincetown transports
visitors into a world that meshes significant arts and culture with America’s
best beaches, the historic with the modern, and old-world charm with
world-class lodging, dining and entertainment. Provincetown, nominated in 2006 as one of the
Dozen Distinctive Destinations awarded by the National Trust for Historic
Preservation, is listed on the National Register of Historic places.
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