Cape Cod National Seashore to Host Program on the Saltworks of Cape Cod

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Date: July 23, 2013
Contact: Sue Haley, District Interpreter, 508-255-3421 ext. 15

Join Janice Burling and Penny Lewis, founders of Cape Cod Saltworks Sea Salt for a fascinating look at the history of the salt industry on Cape Cod and the processes they use today to harvest all-natural sea salt from local waters. This free, one-hour presentation will take place at 7 PM at Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham on July 30.

Resourceful Cape Codders have been harvesting salt from the sea for hundreds of years. Cape Cod sea salt production parallels the growth of America from its earliest days. Sea salt was an essential requirement of colonial life and was the sole means of preserving food when refrigeration didn’t exist. The British blockade of the Revolutionary War forced New Englanders to produce salt for themselves and created an economic boom for Cape Codders who applied their ingenuity to the production of sea salt using the abundant resources of Cape Cod: wind, sun, and salt water. There were 881 saltworks on Cape Cod in 1832, the height of sea salt production. The advent of the railroad, the discovery of salt mines in New York, and the expense of salt evaporation led to the decline of the business. Today, Cape Cod Saltworks Sea Salt is rediscovering this lost industry for a new.

This upcoming program is part of the annual “Tuesday Evening Series” at Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham. Held weekly at 7 PM in July and August in the air-cooled comfort of the visitor center auditorium, programs cover the diverse natural and cultural resources on the Outer Cape and are suitable for all ages, free of charge and accessible. The series is funded by the Friends of the Cape Cod National Seashore.

IF YOU GO: Salt Pond Visitor Center is located at the intersection of Route 6 and Nauset Road in Eastham, and can be contacted by calling 508-255-3421. The center is open from 9 AM to 5 PM and staff is available to assist with activity planning. Stop by and visit the museum, view a park film, enjoy panoramic views of Salt Pond and Nauset Marsh and shop in the gift store featuring interpretive items such as books, maps, puzzles and games. For more information about the seashore’s programs, visit the park website at www.nps.gov/caco.

 

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The great Outer Beach of Cape Cod is protected within Cape Cod National Seashore. Forty miles of pristine sandy beach, marshes, ponds, and uplands support diverse species. Lighthouses, cultural landscapes, and wild cranberry bogs offer a glimpse of Cape Cod's past and continuing ways of life. Swimming beaches and walking and biking trails beckon today's visitors.





Last updated: February 26, 2015

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99 Marconi Site Road
Wellfleet, MA 02667

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