A Piece of Portsmouth History Rendered in Gingerbread!

In a previous post, we mentioned the upcoming gingerbread house contest that was being held at the Discover Portsmouth Center and yesterday, the TMS entry was ceremoniously (and safely) delivered thanks to Gillian and Retta! This gingerbread facsimile of Gilley’s, an iconic downtown landmark, is TMS’s homage to the history and integrity of Portsmouth and to the people who live, work and visit this marvelous city.

The current Gilley’s lunch cart was one of five built in 1940 by the Worcester Diner Co. and is the only one in existence today.  This diner and its predecessor were hauled into Market Square each evening and parked in front of the North Church in readiness for the dinner crowd.  Towed first by a horse, then a tractor and finally by the red truck that is still attached to the structure, Gilley’s is now stationary and has been in its present Fleet Street location since 1974.

This project was approached much like other TMS projects – photographs and measurements were taken, computerized plans drawn up, templates devised, a lighting plan developed and finishing materials research and obtained.  This was truly a team effort and everyone got into the spirit of the project.

We hope you like the final results and be sure to visit all the gingerbread creations on display at the Discover Portsmouth Center until December 23rd.  Happy Holidays!