Headquarters
"Wallis’s [Annenberg’s] approach to philanthropy is to look for vision-driven leaders. If you’re a world-class marine biologist, like Dr. Roger Payne, who discovered that humpback whales sing, and you want to save an 1863 paint factory in Gloucester, Massachusetts, so you can move the Ocean Alliance headquarters into it, she’s going to support that.”
- Leonard Aube, Executive Director,
The Annenberg Foundation, 2009
[Excerpted from Vanity Fair]
In 1863, The Tarr and Wonson Paint Manufactory revolutionized the fishing industry with the invention of copper paint. The new paint was used to coat the hulls of ships, improving their speed and maneuverability. This was critical both in battle and in bringing fish to market. Fisherman used the paint factory's smoke stack as a navigational aid. The 120–year–old former paint factory is one of our last links to a time when Gloucester was the capital of the fishing industry, making it a Gloucester icon.
Situated at the entrance to the harbor, the historic paint factory buildings (among the most depicted by New England artists) will become the new headquarters of Ocean Alliance. They stand on more than 1000 feet of waterfront. By consolidating our waterfront activities, including a home-dock for our research vessel Odyssey, we can expand our water access & better support our local research programs. When completed, the renovated facility will simplify logistics, and facilitate expanded programs for the people of Gloucester and for visitors and resident scientists from across the world.
FOR A VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE PAINT MANUFACTORY, PLEASE CLICK HERE
