(2017)
Capt. Gamaliel Bowly Smith (1812-1888) | Gifford.
Our town’s only direct link to Boston from 1863 to 1874 was the steamer George Shattuck, commanded by Captain Smith, whose grave is marked by the life-size sculpture of an especially alert dog. (A pointer, perhaps?) The steamer called at Bowly’s Wharf, which was extended into deeper water to accommodate its deep draft. “Every inch a seaman and a gentleman,” the Advocate said about Captain Smith in 1869. The Barnstable Patriot echoed the praise in 1872: “That prince of ship masters … has not his best as a steamboat commander on the Atlantic coast.” The curious date on the stone — 1874 — puzzles historians. In Provincetown’s Historic Cemeteries and Memorials, Amy Whorf McGuiggan suggested that it may denote the year George Shattuck ended its service and Captain Smith moved to Boston, where he died. [Lot No. 72.]
¶ Last updated on 28 March 2021.
Provincetown’s Historic Cemeteries and Memorials, Key G-21, Page 7.
Find a Grave Memorial No. 142807323.