The author of Legends & Lore of Cape Cod delves deeper into the colorful local history of Massachusetts's quaint seaside region.Cape Cod may be a popular tourist destination, but it has a strange and distinctive history. The Pukwudgies were two- to three-foot beings with smooth gray skin, hairy faces and horns. These shape-shifting, mischievous "little people" are connected to Wampanoag Indian mythology. Edward Rowe Snow, a New England historian who was al...

Cape Cod has a rich tradition of local lore, stretching back to a time before the Pilgrims arrived. Ancient Wampanoag legends like Granny Squannit and Princess Scargo are as familiar as tales of pirates and explorers, including "Black Sam" Bellamy and Donald Baxter Macmillan. Felines often blocked "Cat's Alley" in pursuit of food from fishermen's boats. The remnants of Billingsgate Island can be seen at low tide, and visits from Jenny Lind and Helen Keller contrast with the mysterious stor...