Clipper Heritage Trail Vintage 1969 Metal Sign 12×18, Newburyport Massachusetts
Original metal ” Clipper Trail ” sign. Over 50 years ago this sign marked the Clipper Heritage Trail in Newburyport, Massachusetts. (see historical information below). Attached vertical metal bracket at the back (1″ x 14″). Original blue and white paint. Black paint on the back side. Weighs about 3.5 pounds. Old, retired sign with paint loss (see the photos). Otherwise in good condition. In 1969 an historical walking trail, the ” Clipper Trail, ” was established in Newburyport, Massachusetts, which visitors could follow. The Clipper Trail sign was designed by Edward K. Piel, a model shipbuilder and founder of Piel Craftsmen, and also head of the Chamber’s tourist planning committee. The blue and white signs were placed throughout the city along historical points of interest. Many years later the original “Clipper Trail” was updated to the ” Clipper Heritage Trail”, and granite pavers were installed in the brick sidewalk in front of various historical points of interests in the downtown area. The granite pavers incorporate Mr. Piel’s original design of the Clipper Trail vessel. Today the Clipper Heritage Trail is a series of self-guided history tours of Newburyport, MA, where visitors can “step back in time and walk in the footsteps of shipbuilders and sea captains; bakers, clam diggers and comb makers; silversmiths and soldiers; abolitionists and African Americans; and authors and artists “, where history buffs can explore the hidden corners of a destination where the first settlers of Newbury landed in 1635 on the northern shores of the Parker River.