Nantucket was the center of the whaling industry from the late 17th century to the mid-19th century. Captain Ahab and another character from Melville's Moby Dick were from Nantucket. In the Twentieth Century it became a retreat and playground for prosperous folks from other parts of New England. The town has one of the greatest concentrations of pre-Civil War buildings of any town in the country and developers have carefully maintained the integrity of that architecture. The Brant Point Lighthouse was built in 1746. In 1834 The Atheneum was built as a private library. It burned in the Great Fire of 1846 which destroyed much of the town. It was rebuilt as a beautiful Greek Revival structure and opened as the town's library in 1847. Colorful flowers run riot over the island in contrast to the grey of many of the houses.
