Description

Take a deep dive into the history of one of Gloucester's Grand Hotels and well known watering holes, the Rockaway Hotel (AKA the Rockaway House).

The Rockaway Hotel’s story stretches from its 1890s beginnings as a sturdy seaside boardinghouse to its early 20th century expansion as one of Gloucester’s “Grand Hotels” and part of Boston’s “Gold Coast,” to a mid 20th century heyday as Gloucester’s most raucous social playground. It was a place where fashion shows strutted across makeshift stages, the swimming pool doubled as a parking lot, and late 1970s revelers drank, danced, and laughed their way through countless summer nights, much to the disapproval of the surrounding neighborhood. After decades of unforgettable chaos and coastal charm, the old hotel finally settled into a well earned retirement, transformed into the condominium residence that stands there today — quieter, steadier, but still carrying the echoes of its wild past. Come and relive the story and bring stories of your own about your memories of the old "Rot-Away" Hotel!