By Gail McCarthy
Gloucester Daily Times
ROCKPORT, Mass. — The artistic legacy in Rockport runs deep, surfacing in many facets of town life, including the Rockport Fire Department.
Ken Knowles, an award-winning artist and gallery owner, hand-paints the town seal — a picturesque ocean view of Thacher Island’s twin lighthouses — on the town’s fire trucks.
He does it in memory of his father, Sheldon O. Knowles Jr., a Rockport firefighter who died in 1993 at the age of 53.
“The reason why I do this is simple,” Ken Knowles said. “My father was a major part of the Fire Department for more than 25 years. He was one of the first EMTs back in the early 1970s. He was very proud of that and I was very proud of him. Growing up with a scanner in the house was interesting, always hearing all the fire calls and police calls, and he’d get up in the middle of the night when a box alarm came in.”
In the wake of his death, Knowles was asked if he would paint the town seal on a new truck, and ever since then, he has continued to volunteer his talents. If one looks closely, the brush strokes can been seen as well as his signature near the bottom edge.
This week, Knowles painted the town’s emblem on a new Combination A fire truck for the Pigeon Cove station.
The unusual twin lighthouses are a favorite subject of the Rockport artist and often appear in his paintings.
Fire Chief Mark Wonson said it is special to have these town seals hand-painted on the trucks and it is appreciated.
For those who worked with the late firefighter, he was remembered for his love of the Rockport Fire Department.
“Sheldon loved Rockport and he was dedicated to the Fire Department,” former Fire Chief James Doyle said. “He loved his kids and his friends. He went way too soon.”
Ken Knowles, who has been painting since he was 15, has been an artist for 43 years, and continues to donate his artworks for a fundraising raffle or auction to help nonprofits make money. These organizations include Care Dimensions, Lights of Love to benefit cancer care services, and Rockport Illuminations, when he donates a painting to raise money for the annual town fireworks display.
Locals and visitors can take in the hand-painted town seals during the annual Rockport Firemen’s Parade on the Fourth of July. The parade kicks off at 6 p.m. from the Rockport public school complex on Jerden’s Lane, continuing down South Street to Dock Square, to Main Street to Beach Street, concluding at the American Legion bandstand near Back Beach.
An 8 p.m. concert at the bandstand will be followed at 9 p.m. by the annual bonfire at Back Beach under the watchful eyes of firefighters.
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