In 1642, a dam and fulling mill were built on the Mill River in Rowley. The stone arch bridge on this property was constructed between 1850 and 1870.
The Jewel Mill and Stone Arch Bridge
Author: Gordon Harris
Gordon Harris is a local historian living in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and publisher of the Historic Ipswich site. Follow him at https://gordonharris.bsky.social/
Norm Abram and Matt Diana Go Inside Two Old Houses
The 1677 Whipple House and the 1694 Paine house at Greenwood Farm are two well-preserved First Period houses in Ipswich that are occasionally open to the public.
Unrequited Love and a Murder-Suicide
The 1941 Ipswich Town Report included a tribute to the late Water and Light Commissioner Walter G. Brown without mentioning that he murdered his former girlfriend Phyllis Chisholm and committed suicide.
Four Old Houses That Stood on High St.
The Jacob Manning house, the Caleb Lord house, the Nathaniel Lord house at the corner of High and Manning Streets, and the thatched roof William Baker house at the corner with Mineral Street.
Destination Ipswich: A Walk in the Dunes
Gordon Harris kicks off the first episode of Ipswich ICAM'S "Destination Ipswich" series with a walk in the sand dunes at Castle Neck.
Mark Quilter, Upon Complaint Against Him for Striking Rebeckah Shatswell
Mark Quilter was a cow-keeper on the north side of town with a reputation for drinking. When Goodwife Shatswell visited Goodwife Quilter and insulted both of them, Quilter lost his temper.
Ipswich Arts Association
The Ipswich Arts Association held its organizational meeting on February 26th at 2pm at the Ebsco Hall (5 Peatfield Street, We hope you'll join us in becoming a founding member! Join at https://www.ipswichartassociation.org/shop
“Dalliance and Too much Familiarity”
William Row v. John Leigh, Mar. 28, 1673: “For insinuating dalliance and too much familiarity with his wife and drawing away her affections from her husband, to the great detriment both in his estate and the comfort of his life.”
The Price Act, Passed at Ipswich, February 1777
In 1777, the Ipswich Selectmen and the Committee of Correspondence and Safety, acting under the authority of the General Court, issued a schedule of prices covering all articles of food, clothing, wages of labor of every kind, entertainment at hotels, shipping rates etc.
Leslie’s Retreat, or How the Revolutionary War Almost Began in Salem, February 26, 1775
In our struggle for Independence, the British military received its first setback from the inhabitants of Salem in an episode that could not have been more ludicrous or entertaining if it had been written for Monty Python.
The Commons
When the Town of Ipswich was established, ownership of a house and land within the town bounds carried with it the right of pasturage beyond the Common Fence. In 1788, the commoners resigned all their land interests to pay the heavy town debt incurred during the Revolution.
Paul Revere’s Not So Famous Ride Through Ipswich, December 13, 1774
On the cold icy morning of December 13, 1774, Paul Revere headed out on a 60 mile gallop from Boston along the Old Bay Road through Ipswich to warn the citizens of Portsmouth that British troops may be landing.
Stories From the Courts
In 1641, the General Court established four quarter-annual courts kept yearly by the magistrates of Ipswich & Salem, two to be held at Salem & the other two at Ipswich, with jurisdiction in all matters not reserved to the Court of Assistants. Read stories of Ipswich residents who faced the magistrates.
The Keeping of Cattle on Jeffreys Neck
In Ipswich, cows would be put to pasture on the Neck in the spring, and every October they would be rounded up and herded into a pen. Many of the town's laws regarding land use, property rights, labor and sanitation grew from issues surrounding the keeping of livestock.
The Hovey Clan and Knowlton’s Close, a 19th Century Neighborhood
In 1844, John Sawyer sold to Josiah Caldwell an undeveloped tract known as "Knowlton's Close." Caldwell sold the land in house lots, where houses constructed in the popular vernacular Greek Revival style still stand today.
Nathaniel Ward (1578-1652)
Ward emigrated to Massachusetts in 1634 an served for two years as the minister in Ipswich. His "Body of Liberties" established a code of fundamental principles of government. Ward's book "The Simple Cobler of Aggawam in America" was published in England in 1647.
Historic Ipswich 