Giselle Urbay, University of Florida, Master of Architecture
With this year’s focus on elaborating a previous PIN report under the modern lens, the chosen report addresses Nantucket’s shift to a tourist economy. As someone born from a tourist town (Key West, Florida), I was curious to learn about the efforts made in order to keep the island alive, understand the reasoning behind change, and how the island is recovering from recent issues like Covid-19. One key point that can drawn from the 2013 PIN project on tourism is how as residents began to cater to visitors, their quality of life was disrupted, and a loss of identity resulted from it. With that in mind, I wanted to present how tourism altered the built environment- and to an extent the heritage- of Nantucket through means of visualization. By mapping the trends occurred in the downtown area from the 1800s to present day, this project hopes to inform those of the island’s identity as a culturally rich and community driven town as well as serve as a framework to help revitalize said area.
Was your inspiration a PIN Report or other? What is the missing information? Why does this need to be addressed?
Largely using the 2013 PIN report as the foundation for this project, the information regarding how tourism affected Nantucket’s built environment (the decline of boarding houses, modernization of historic structures, etc.) served to provide the direction of this project. While the report covered events and efforts made from 1846 to 1986, it was strange to see that the research did not continue up to 2013. Coupled with the recent implications caused by the Coronavirus, it was necessary to investigate what businesses were forced to close and what efforts were made/being made to recover from the setbacks Nantucket faced since 1986.
Why is your work important?
At face value, the timeline mapping can be used to casually learn about the local shops that existed on the island and provide basic information such as who owned these shops. The data visualization and the trends mapped out can be used to address multiple aspects as to how Nantucket as adapted to the rise of tourism and the issues that came as a result.
What was your methodology? What resources did you use?
Using the NHA Library, several tourism and vacation guides were collected to begin learning what establishments existed and where they’re located (if available). Then using Nantucket Atheneum’s Newspaper Digital Archive, information about those businesses (owner, opening date, closing date, etc.) were pulled from the articles to provide as much accuracy to the study as possible.
What are your findings, proposal, or recommendations?
While mapping out grocery stores over time, I discovered that the Main Street context was dominated by local markets and groceries up to the 1950’s. When Finast (First National Store) opened in 1945, the local businesses could not keep up with the supermarket and had to close where they were later replaced by general goods.
What are next steps or further research to be done?
The ArcGIS map is not fully comprehensive due to the circumstance of being the sole researcher, as a result, not every business (old and present) is mapped out. The story map included in the presentation provides several suggestions Nantucket could take to begin revitalizing their Main Street in the forms of organizations to join and funding programs to apply for.
Citation List
- (2013). History and Impacts of Tourism on Nantucket (1846-1986). Preservation of Nantucket.
- Nantucket Historical Association Library
- Nantucket Atheneum
- Murphy, John F. (1978). “The Tourist’s Guide to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard”
- Cook, R. H. (July 1871). “Historical Notes of the Island of Nantucket, and Tourist’s Guide”
- (Circa 1930). “Nantucket Island: A Delightful Health and Vacation Resort.”
- I. H. Folger & Rich (1878). “Hand-Book of the Island of Nantucket, containing a Brief History Sketch, with Notes of Interests to Summer Visitors.”
Contacts List
- Michael Murphy, UF Guest Lecturer, Heritage Tourism