How Provincetown Became What It Is Today:
Provincetown has the highest concentration of same-sex couple households than any other town/neighborhood/city in the United States.
Provincetown is a town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts. Sometimes called "P-Town", the town is known for its beaches, harbor, artists, tourist industry and its reputation as a gay resort.
The area was originally settled by the Nauset Tribe, who had a settlement known as Meeshawn. Provincetown was incorporated in 1727 after harboring ships for more than a century. Bartholemew Gosnold named Cape Cod in Provincetown Harbor in 1602. In 1620, the Pilgrims signed the Mayflower Compact in the harbor agreeing to settle and build a self-governing community and then came ashore in the West End. Though the Pilgrims chose to settle across the bay in Plymouth, Provincetown enjoyed an early and strong reputation for its fishing grounds. The "Province Lands" were first formally recognized by the Union of Plymouth colony and Massachusetts Bay colony in 1692 and its first municipal government was established in 1714. The population of Provincetown remained small through most of the 18th century. Following the American Revolution, however, Provincetown grew rapidly as a fishing and whaling center.
The population was bolstered by a number of Portuguese sailors who, hired to work on US ships, came to live in Provincetown. By the 1890's, Provincetown was booming and had begun to develop a resident population of writers and artists, as well as a summer tourist industry. After the 1898 Portland Gale severely damaged the town's fishing industry, members of the town's art community took over many of the abandoned buildings. By the early decades of the 20th century, the town had acquired an international reputation for its artistic and literary output. The Provincetown Players was an important, experimental theater company formed during this period and an example of intellectual and artistic connections to Greenwich Village that began then.
The town includes eight buildings and a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the mid-1960's Provincetown saw population growth. The town's rural character appealed to the hippies of the era; furthermore, property was relatively cheap and rents were correspondingly low, especially during the winter. Many of those wh came stayed and raised families. Commercial Street gained numerous cafes, leather shops, head shops and various hip, small businesses blossomed and many flourished.
In the mid-1970's members of the gay community began moving to Provicnetown. In 1978 the Provincetown Business Guild was formed to promote gay tourism. Today, more than 200 businesses belong to the PBG and Provincetown is perhaps the best-known gay summer resort on the east coast.
