HistoryHistory

This article was originally written on December 10, 2013. All updates will be noted.

The Seafarer Inn has a long history as a place to stay to get away from it all when visiting Rockport, Mass. Built in 1890, the Seafarer Inn was first used by the famous Rockport hotel "The Straitsmouth Inn" as a cottage that guests could stay at away from the main hotel. The map below is from 1899 and shows the Seafarer Inn at it's current location on Marmion Way (then called "Estes Ave"), before the Coast Guard Station was built.

The U.S. Coast Guard Station across the street from the Seafarer Inn was originally established in 1874 at Davis Neck. However, it was abandoned in 1882. Later, on May 4, 1882, an act authorized the establishment of a complete life-saving station in Cape Ann, MA. In 1889, the station moved to Gap Cove and was named, appropriately, Gap Cove Coast Guard Station. The station was built shortly after the creation of the map pictured above. On July 1, 1902, the name changed to "Straitsmouth", possibly after a 1900 description of the new site listed it as "on Cape Ann, west one-half mile of Straitsmouth light."[1]

The Straitsmouth U.S. Coast Guard Station was actively used until July 1964, when the property was turned over to the General Services Administration (GSA). The U.S. Coast Guard Station, picture below circa 1905, can be seen alongside the Seafarer Inn.

Ella S. Wilkinson owned the Straitsmouth Inn and much of the adjacent land on Gap Head while E.L. Wilkinson ran a few cottages available seperate from the main hotel just off Gap Head. The Seafarer Inn was part of the Straitsmouth Inn cottages and was known as "Old Cottage." Below is a picture from 1957 of the Seafarer Inn, then known as "Old Cottage."

On January 20th 1966, the Wilkinson's sold the land to George E., Jr., and M. Jeanne Cameron, owners of the Seaward Inn.[2] "Old Cottage" was renamed to "Sea Meadows" around this time. On April 29th 1968, George E. Cameron Jr. sold "Sea Meadows" to John W. and Ruth S. Mahoney. John Mahoney worked as a chef at the Turks Head Inn from 1960 to 1964 in Rockport, then as a chef at the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, MA from 1965 to 1966. The Mahoney's ran the inn until October 14th, 1975 when it was sold to Gerald "Gerry" E. and Mary V.N. Pepin.[3]

When the Pepin's purchased the inn in 1975, the inn was still going by the name "Sea Meadows." The first documentation of the name "Seafarer Inn" can be found in the 1982 edition of the "Rockport Anchor," a book of advertisements released annually by The Rockport Board of Trade/Chamber of Commerce. The name could have been changed anywhere between the Pepin's purchase in 1975 and their promotion of the inn through the Rockport Anchor in 1982. The picture above was taken from the 1986 edition of the Rockport Anchor.

Gerry and Mary Pepin ran the Seafarer Inn until April 26th 1989 when it was sold to Rosalie "Leigh" Reynolds. The house was sold back to the Pepin's November 1990.[4] The Pepin's maintained ownership of the inn until they sold it once again, this time to David K. Cantrell on April 3rd 1998.[5]

David K Cantrell ran the inn from April 1998 through November 2000. During his time, he put out a nice looking brochure found in the Rockport Room of the Rockport Library. The front of the brochure featured custom artwork of the Seafarer Inn, which can be seen in the photo above.

On November 29th 2000, Dolores and Stephen Vagi purchased the inn from Seafarer Inn Inc.[6] Almost thirteen years after taking over, Dolores Vagi sold the home to the current owners, Chris and Beth Roenker on August 28th 2013.[7]