The End of a Dry Spell

It's said that Rockporters "drink wet and vote dry." But no more -- by a vote of 1,939 to 1,562 , Rockport residents voted to end the town's 150-year ban on alcohol yesterday.

I covered this issue when I was the Rockport town reporter for the Gloucester Daily Times, but I wasn't sure how yesterday's vote would turn out. I guess I was a little surprised. Rockport has a very strong and active business community, and Rockport is a tourist town after all. But most of Rockport's population is older, they far outnumber the business owners who live in town, they vote, and they tend to be conservative on this issue.

Then again, I haven't lived or worked in Rockport in about ten years -- of course things must have changed. I wonder if soaring real estate prices have caused a shift in the age of the population there. And if younger people are moving to town, you just know they aren't going to be as passionate about the town's alcohol ban as the old-timers they replaced.

I'd like to see the Times' take on it, but they're an afternoon paper, so they won't be out 'till later today. When they do publish, I'll post a link. Meanwhile, here are links to the Globe and Herald's stories on the historic vote.
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