The landscape surrounding Strawberry Hill on Jeffreys Neck Rd. invokes a time when saltwater farms were common in Ipswich. Across the street is Greenwood Farm and the First Period Payne House, owned by the Trustees of Reservations.
Author: Gordon Harris
Gordon Harris is a local historian living in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and publisher of the Historic Ipswich site. Follow him at https://www.linkedin.com/in/gordonrharris/
Regarding the Removal of the Ipswich Mills Dam
By Ipswich resident Roger Wheeler On May 21, a yes vote to remove the head of tide Ipswich Mills Dam and free the river will provide Ipswich, Essex County, and New England with a rare fish-accessible river. This could be an extraordinarily uncommon river and watershed if all fish have accessibility at the head of… Continue reading Regarding the Removal of the Ipswich Mills Dam
Photos from the 2016 Drawdown of the Ipswich River
During the 2016 summer drought, the water level behind the Ipswich Mills Dam was intentionally lowered by about 3 feet to ascertain the geology of the river at that location, to examine the foundation of one of the mill buildings, and to help determine what the river upstream of the dam will look like when… Continue reading Photos from the 2016 Drawdown of the Ipswich River
Acadian Exiles in Ipswich, 1755
Massachusetts men played a conspicuous part in the French and Indian War, which resulted in wholesale destruction and deportation in French-speaking Nova Scotia. Surviviors were exiled to the Colonies, their children taken from them and distributed to English families as "nothing more than slaves."
Samuel J. Goodhue’s Pier 1 Canoe Depot
In the late 19th century, Samuel Goodhue operated a canoe rental business on the Ipswich River at the end of Peatfield St in the area known as Pole Alley.
April 29, 1783: How Ipswich Celebrated the End of the Revolutionary War
The manner in which residents of Ipswich celebrated the end of hostilities was recorded in "The Life, Journals and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler."
Portraits from Ipswich a Century Ago
Many of these glass plate negatives taken by George Dexter (1862-1927) and Edward Darling (1874 - 1962), were stored away for a century.
The Industrial History of the Ipswich River
The Industrial History of the Ipswich River was produced for the Ipswich 375th Anniversary by John Stump, volunteer for the Ipswich Museum, and Alan Pearsall, who produced the Ipswich Mural with funding from EBSCO.
The Arnold Expedition Arrives in Ipswich, September 15, 1775
A memorial sits in the intersection between the South Green and the site of the former South Congregational Church in Ipswich. It reads, “The expedition against Quebec, Benedict Arnold in command, Aaron Burr in the ranks, marched by this spot, September 15, 1775."
Plum Island
The General Court on October 17, 1649, divided Plum Island among three towns, granted to Ipswich 2/5, Newbury 2/5, and Rowley 1/5. The salt marsh hay, sand, and wildlife were valuable assets to the towns. In the late 1800s summer resort communities sprung up at the northern end, as well as at Grape Island and… Continue reading Plum Island
Charles Wendell Townsend, Ipswich Naturalist
Charles Wendell Townsend, M.D. was attracted by the natural beauty of Ipswich. He built a summer house overlooking a wide expanse of salt marsh with open sea to the east. From here he wrote a number of books, including Beach Grass, Sand Dunes and Salt Marshes, and the Birds of Essex County.
Ipswich as Described by John Greenleaf Whittier
"This is Ipswich...one of those steady conservative villages of which a few are still left in New England. There is not a better preserved or pleasanter specimen of a Puritan town."
The Plum Island Salt Company
In the 1820s a Frenchman named Gilshenan organized an unsuccessful salt harvesting company on Plum Island with a 10' deep canal and a bull turning an overshot wheel like a hamster. A large sundial survived for a few decades, but no trace remains today.
How the Irish Made Their Mark in New England
From the New England Historical Society: Over 50,000 men, women, and children of Irish descent were forcibly transported to British imperial colonies to serve as indentured labor. By 1790, there were 400,000 Americans of Irish birth or ancestry out of a population of 3.9 million.
The Christian Wainwright House, Demolished
The home of Christian Wainwright house originally sat next door to the Nathaniel Treadwell house at 12 North Main Street. In 1845 Joseph Baker moved it to the corner of Market and Saltonstall Streets. The Ipswich Historical Society tore down the house in order to create a better view of the Whipple House before it was moved to the South Green.
The First Jailbreak in the Colony, March 30, 1662
On the morning of the 30th of March, 1662, the Ipswich jailer found that a prisoner had escaped, the first offense of this nature committed in the country. A hearing was conducted at Spark's Tavern.
Historic Ipswich 