Rye Tavern

Unlike the modern car or bus, stagecoaches and their teams required regular rest stops along their routes of travel. There were two stops  on Old Sandwich Road in Plymouth, Massachusetts and one was what is now the Rye Tavern. The Cornish Tavern was built in 1792 by Josiah Cornish, who maintained the tavern as an inn and popular meeting place for many years. Even after the Old Colony Railroad reached Plymouth in 1845, there was still a need for a resting place of horse-drawn coaches making connections to outlying towns. Taverns in the Plymouth area remained into the 19th century when they were gradually replaced by more modern hotels and restaurants. But in the outlying area of town, along the oldest public road in the country, this traditional 18th century tavern still exists, looking much the same as it did two centuries ago. Pilot Falcon fountain pen with Noodler’s Bullet Proof black ink and Holbein watercolors in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.

2016-07-10 Rye Tavern

Glrn Ridge Home

A quick sketch done between meetings while in New Jersey this week. There are beautiful homes in the historic neighborhood along Ridgewood Avenue in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. I sketched this partial view of a stone home from my car on this hot and humid day. In this sketch I laid down the watercolor first and then added the line work after. The watercolor became muddy from overworking. Oh well, that is what a sketchbook is for. Holbein watercolors and Faber Castell Pitt pens in a Stillman and Birn sketchbook.

2016-07-06 Glen RIdge Home

Stonebridge Marina

Dinner tonight was at the Stonebridge Bistro in Onset, Massachusetts. We had wonderful seats on a perfect evening overlooking the Stonebridge Marina in Onset Harbor. Dinner was fantastic and relaxing with this view. A little marina shack on the docks adjacent to the Stonebridge that crosses a portion of the harbor. Faber Castell Pitt Art pens with Holbein watercolors in a Stillman and Birn Beta sketchbook.

2016-07-02 Stonebridge Marina

Hilltop Steakhouse

The Hilltop Steakhouse, founded in 1961 by Frank Giuffrida, was a at one time, America’s largest restaurant, both in number of customers served and sales volume. On a typical Saturday, the Hilltop, served up to 7,800 meals. It served nearly 2.4 million customers annually, three times the volume of the nation’s second-largest restaurant.  This is a sketch of the locally famous sign on Route 1 in Sagus, Massachusetts. A giant, 68 foot tall neon saguaro cactus sign that is still standing today well after the restaurant closed it’s doors. Faber Castell Pitt Art pens with Holbein watercolors in a Stillman and Birn sketchbook.

2016-07-01 Hilltop

Middleboro Service Station

I have been wanting to sketch this old service station for some time. It is located on a rotary in Middleboro, Massachusetts that is difficult to access. This sketch is from a photo taken from the rotary. It is a cool little building that was probably unique at one point in history. Faber Castell Pitt art pens in black and gray in a Stillman and Birn sketchbook.

2016-06-30 Service Station