Ten can’t-miss things on Nantucket

Throughout my childhood, my family spent summers on Nantucket in a gray-shingled cottage named Sunnycliffe built for my great-grandfather in 1887 on the north bluff of Siasconset. We would chug over to the island by steamship, drive our car off the boat, take one whiff of the fragrant, spicy bayberry, and know we had arrived. While the island has changed significantly over time, much of what makes it special still remains. Here are 10 places, bites, sites, treasures, and adventures with a true taste of Nantucket. –Victoria Abbott Riccardi/Globe correspondent

Nantucket lightship baskets

An authentic Nantucket lightship basket can cost anywhere from several hundred to $20,000. Originally the baskets were made by the male crew on lightships, vessels that served as floating lighthouses to warn ships as they passed by the South Shoals, the site of numerous shipwrecks. To pass time during the day, the men fabricated these handled baskets woven from rattan (cane) on a mold around a solid wooden base. Over time, the craft continued on the island. In the 1940s, some weavers began putting lids on the baskets to create purses, adorning the oval, wooden center lid portion with a decorative carving, such as an ivory or ebony whale. Soon, the purses became status symbols. While imitations exist, you can see the real thing, learn the history of the craft, and even take a weaving class, at the Nantucket Lightship Basket Museum, which also has information on where to buy the baskets. 49 Union St., 508-228-1177

‘Three Bricks’ and ‘Two Greeks’

If you walk up Main Street along the cobblestones — originally used as ballast to weigh down empty Nantucket whale oil ships returning from deliveries in England — you’ll come upon the ‘‘Three Bricks,’’ at numbers 93, 95, and 97. Joseph Starbuck, one of the richest whale oil merchants of his time, had the three, identical, Georgian-style brick homes built for his sons, William, Matthew, and George. The homes reflect the economic importance of the whaling industry to Nantucket, as well as the modern elegance that had arrived on the island in 1840 when all three homes were completed for a total of $40,124. While they are privately owned, the middle one still belongs to the Starbuck family. When Starbuck’s daughters, Eliza and Eunice, married, they moved into a double house across the street at 100 Main St. Later, Eunice and her husband built the ‘‘Two Greeks,’’ twin, white, Greek Revival homes still standing at numbers 94 and 96. The latter, called Hadwen House, is open to the public.

Rosehip and beach plum jelly

Whether you make it yourself or buy it, no trip here is complete without some Nantucket rosehip jelly and beach plum jelly (or jam). Rosehips and beach plums grow wild throughout this almost 14-mile-long, 3-mile-wide island, with the fruit ripening around September. The orange-red rose hips, about the size of a small walnut, are the fruit of a pink-flowering Japanese beach rose called Rosa rugosa and create a crimson jelly with a soft, floral fruit flavor. Beach plums, violet-blue when ripe, are about the size of a cherry. With tart skin and sweet flesh, the garnet jelly and jam has a luscious cranberry-plum flavor. Four Winds Gifts Inc. sells both. 6 Straight Wharf, 508-228-1597

The original Nantucket Reds

An authentic pair of Nantucket Reds (pants) is the male version of a Nantucket Lightship Basket purse. In 1945 Phillip M. Murray purchased what was then The Toggery Shop and renamed it Murray’s Toggery Shop, where he sold men’s clothes, including the distinctive coral-pink pants made from sailcloth sacks. Murray’s son, Phillip C., trademarked the name ‘‘Nantucket Reds’’ in the 1950s, making Murray’s the only place on the island that sells the original pants (knockoffs abound) that soften and fade over time. The shop also sells clothes for women and children. 62 Main St., 508-228-0437

Quahog chowder

Some of the first settlers here were Native Americans of the Wampanoag Tribe, who left their mark in many ways, including the island’s name: ‘‘Nantucket’’ is an Indian word for ‘‘faraway land.’’ The Wampanoags also called local hard-shell clams quahogs, which make the best and only kind of chowder to enjoy on Nantucket. While every eatery has its own recipe, most versions contain milk and-or cream, potatoes, onions, and chopped quahogs. A particularly fun spot to enjoy quahog chowder is in The Club Car, situated in the original Pullman Coach that once provided railroad service on the island. 1 Main St., 508-228-1101

Bike to Sankaty Head Lighthouse

On late summer evenings my family often walked up the bluff from our house to Sankaty Head Lighthouse. Built of brick in 1850, it is painted white with a fat red belt. Since weather and time have eroded the bluff, in 2007 Sankaty was moved 250 feet from the bluff’s edge and bluff walking ceased. However, one of the best ways to visit Sankaty is by bicycle, particularly if you’re coming from town. The peaceful ride on the sidewalk along The Milestone Road takes you past 9 miles of fragrant bayberry, pitch pine, heath, broom, and wildlife, into the charming village of Siasconset, where you can then pedal past rose-covered cottages and up Baxter Road to the picturesque lighthouse.

Nantucket Whaling Museum

A visit to the Nantucket Whaling Museum is a must. Renovated in 2005, the museum highlights the island’s whaling history, an industry that involved harpooning sperm whales not for meat, but for their oil (from the blubber) to use in lamps. The museum sits in a former candle-making factory, the history of which is covered in a separate exhibit. Additionally, you can learn about life on Nantucket during the whaling era and see global treasures carried back on whaling ships, along with scrimshaw carved by crewmen, and various decorative arts, including lightship baskets. A recent stunning addition is the 46-foot skeleton of a sperm whale that washed ashore in 1998. The roof deck offers a grand view over the town and harbor. 13 Broad St., 508-228-1894

The Old Mill and fresh-ground cornmeal

Perched on a hill at 50 Prospect St. is the oldest functioning windmill in the country, a 50-foot, grey-shingled, octagonal structure with four 30-foot long, red arms. Carpenter Nathan Wilbur built the mill in 1746 entirely from the wood of shipwrecks; the grain-grinding millstones came from Quincy. Wilbur used the mill for many years until it fell into disrepair. Numerous islanders stepped in over the years to rescue it, ending with the Nantucket Historical Association, which has completely restored the mill to working order, including its ability to grind corn. 50 Prospect St.

Bartlett’s Farm produce

At least once a week my family would load up on fresh fruits and vegetables at Bartlett’s Farm, founded in the early 1800s by the Bartlett family, who still own the farm today. Although it has grown to include a garden center and market, offering prepared dishes, dry goods, organic foods, and home goods, those in the know still buy locally-grown produce. 33 Bartlett Farm Road , 508-228-9403

The Jetties

These craggy, blackened, parallel stretches of granite stones — each running approximately 400 yards out from Nantucket Harbor — were built in the 1880s to warn whaling ships about a treacherous sandbar that had caused numerous shipwrecks. But The Jetties signify something else. Those leaving the harbor by boat, who know of this tradition, will toss a penny overboard when they pass The Jetties, which means, as my mother and grandmother always said, ‘‘you’ll be back again soon.’’