{"nrhp_refnum":"96000473","name":"Gloucester Fisherman's Memorial","other_names":[],"category":"object","location":{"address":"S. Stacy Blvd., near entrance of Stacy Esplanade","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gloucester","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.610212098000034,"lon":-70.67092871999995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-05-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Maritime History","Art"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A bronze statue of a fisherman at the wheel of a ship, set on a granite base in the Stacy Esplanade on Stacy Boulevard beside Gloucester Harbor, Massachusetts. Sculptor Leonard F. Craske made it; the Gorham Company cast it in 1925.","why_significant":"It commemorates the more than 10,000 Gloucester men lost at sea over the city's first three centuries and is regarded as a key symbol of the city's maritime heritage. It is also considered perhaps the city's most important work of public art and Craske's finest work. It is significant under Criteria A and C at the local and state levels.","narrative":"Overlooking Gloucester Harbor from the Stacy Esplanade on Stacy Boulevard, this eight-foot bronze statue shows a fisherman in oilskins braced at a ship's wheel, gazing out to sea. English sculptor Leonard F. Craske created it, and the Gorham Company of Providence cast it in 1925. It rests on a green granite base carrying the inscription \"They that go down to the sea in ships,\" and a time capsule with forty-three items is sealed inside. A circle of about 1,800 antique granite blocks surrounds it. The memorial honors the more than 10,000 Gloucester men lost at sea in the city's first three centuries, including 249 fishermen in 1879 alone. Craske won a 1923 competition for the commission after spending time aboard fishing schooners. The statue cost $10,000, paid half by the city and half by public subscription. It was unveiled in 1925 but dated 1923 to mark the city's tercentenary. It is considered Craske's finest work and has become a symbol of Gloucester.","period_of_significance":"1923-1945 as written on the form; the Keeper amended the start date to 1925.","architect_builder":"Leonard F. Craske","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Bronze has lost its original patina and is covered with green and black-brown corrosion; the wheel and deck are worn smooth from handling. The statue stands in a public esplanade with a low chain fence and has a paved circle around its base.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:03.964345-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/58/7902/63790258/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/96000473.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000473/0682bd7a97-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000473/0682bd7a97-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","author":"Bobak at en.wikipedia","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FishermanMemorialGloucester.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Bobak at en.wikipedia</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FishermanMemorialGloucester.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790258","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloucester_Fisherman%27s_Memorial","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4343584"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/gloucester-fishermans-memorial-96000473/"}