Martha's Vineyard

Martha's Vineyard is a 100 square mile (259 km²) island off the southern coast of Cape Cod, and is often known simply as "the Vineyard". Located in the state of Massachusetts, the Vineyard makes up most of Dukes County, Massachusetts (the rest of the county consists of Cuttyhunk and the other Elizabeth Islands). It was home to one of the earliest known deaf communities, and consequently a special dialect of sign language, Martha's Vineyard Sign Language, developed on the island. The island is now primarily known as a summer colony.

Tourism

The Vineyard grew as a tourist destination primarily because of its very pleasant summer weather — during many summers the temperature never breaks 90°F — and many beautiful beaches.

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Wealthy Boston sea captains and merchant traders formerly created estates on Martha's Vineyard with their trading profits, and today, the Vineyard has become one of the Northeast's most prominent summering havens, attracting celebrities like the Clintons, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Ted Danson and Mary Steenbergen, Carly Simon, James Taylor, Dan Aykroyd and Donna Dixon, Spike Lee, Michael J. Fox, William F. Buckley, Alan Dershowitz, former US Senator Bill Bradley, Diana Ross, Beverly Sills, Art Buchwald, Walter Cronkite, Mike Wallace, David Letterman, and the late Katherine Graham and Princess Diana.

Related Topics:
Boston - Northeast - Clintons - Warren Buffett - Bill Gates - Ted Danson - Mary Steenbergen - Carly Simon - James Taylor - Dan Aykroyd - Donna Dixon - Spike Lee - Michael J. Fox - William F. Buckley - Alan Dershowitz - Bill Bradley - Diana Ross - Beverly Sills - Art Buchwald - Walter Cronkite - Mike Wallace - David Letterman - Katherine Graham - Princess Diana

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The Vineyard is home to Troubled Shores, a theater company that teaches and performs comedy improv along with other types of theater. Its improv troupe, WIMP, held their last show on July 6, 2005. The IMPers, a teenage improv troup, perform regularly. Troubled Shores also runs a summer theater camp, known as IMP All Things Theater Camp. The Vineyard's only professional theatre is The Vineyard Playhouse located in Vineyard Haven. During the summers the theatre converts from community based productions to a SPT (Small Professional Theatre) approved space featuring equity actors from around the country.

Related Topics:
Troubled Shores - Equity actors

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Martha's Vineyard is one of the traditional resorts of U.S.'s African-American upper class. Due to a long history of racial harmony on the island, many black families started vacationing there a century ago. The epicenter of black culture on Martha's Vineyard is the town of Oak Bluffs, where many African American celebrities own houses. Its main beach has been dubbed "The Inkwell" by African-American residents.

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It now has a year-round population of about 15,000 people in six towns, but in summer the population swells to 100,000 residents, with more than 25,000 additional visitors coming and going on ferries every day. The most crowded weekend is July 4. In general, the summer season runs from June to the end of August, correlating with the months most American children are not in school.

Related Topics:
Ferries - July 4 - June - August

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