Essex, Massachusetts

The town of Essex, Massachusetts USA, in Essex County, is located 26 miles north of Boston. It has an outlet to the Atlantic Ocean by way of the Essex River. Essex borders Hamilton to the south, Manchester By The Sea[?] to the southeast, Gloucester to the east and Ipswich to the north. The most recent census (2000) puts the population of Essex at just over 3,000 inhabitants.

Table of contents 1 History 2 Geography 3 Economy 3.1 Seafood, Tourism and Antiques 3.2 Former shipbuilding center 4 Government and Administration 4.1 Schools 5 Cultural Activities 6 Notable Residents of Essex 6.1 John Wise 6.2 Rufus Choate 6.3 Michael G. Ford 7 Notable Events

History Essex was incorporated as a town in 1819. It was previously a part of the town of Ipswich and was then called Chebacco Parish[?]. The first European settlers arrived in 1634. At that time, the land formed part of an area inhabited by Native Americans of the Agawam[?] tribe. The name Chebacco is Agawam in origin and refers to a large lake whose waters extend into neighboring Hamilton. Conomo Point, the eastern-most part of the town, is named for the Sagamore[?] or Chief of the Agawams, Masconomo[?], the leader of the tribe in the late 17th century. Early on, Chebacco Parish lobbied for status as an independent town, asking for permission to build a meeting house. In colonial times the existence of a meeting house in a settlement conferred de-facto autonomy, so Chebacco Parish was denied permission to build such a structure. Popular history tells that one written dictate was issued stating that "no man shall raise a meeting house", so the residents of the settlement interpreted it as to mean that women would be allowed to do so. It is reported that a local woman, Madam Varney, assembled the town's women and construction of a meeting house was carried out by them while the men looked on.

Geography The central part of Essex lies on marsh land the surrounds the Essex River. The central channel of this river flows into the Atlantic Ocean converges with the Annisquam River at the western-most tip of Cape Ann[?]. The land that makes up the limits of the town is close to sea level in altitude with a few low hills dotting the landscape. Essex's population has increased at a sustainable rate over the last quarter century, so it still maintains a certain rural quality with abundant forested areas, wet lands and open spaces. Though not accessible directly by a major highway, Essex can be reached by three divided highways (by the South from Route 22, by the North from Route 133 and from Gloucester by Route 133 as well). Access to major highway Route 128 can be found within two miles of the town limits of both Manchester-By-The-Sea and Gloucester. The aforementioned Chebacco Lake and surrounding wet lands makes up most of the southwestern part of the town.

Economy

Seafood, Tourism and Antiques

The main source of income for the town of Essex comes from the shellfish industry and tourism. The fried clam was reportedly "invented" in Essex by Chubby Woodman early in the 20th Century. Due to the exceptional quality of the clam that lives in the tidal river in Essex, local restaurants thrive by preparing it along with other types of seafood. Tourists are mainly drawn to Essex for its restaurants, but in recent years leisure activities such as excursions down the Essex River in boats or self-guided kayak trips have become increasingly popular. One major disadvantage that Essex has is that its only beach is not easily accessible by land and as such is not a major draw for tourists as are the beaches of neighboring Gloucester, Ipswich and Manchester-By-The-Sea. Essex, with an abundance of natural beauty, must also compete with nearby Rockport for tourists in search of quaint New England charm. In the last two decades, there has also emerged a flourishing antiques trade in Essex. The town now boasts of being the municipality with the greatest number of antique shops per square mile in the US.

Former shipbuilding center

The town of Essex was once home to a prosperous shipbuilding[?] trade. This industry accounted for most of the revenue of the town from the days of its settlement as Chebacco Parish until the early part of the 20th century. Once a leading supplier of schooners for Gloucester and other Atlantic fishing communities, Essex did not adapt to the transition from sail powered wooden ships to engine powered metal vessels and this activity disappeared around World War II. There have been recent attempts to return to shipbuilding on a small scale as a tourist attraction and they have met with some success.

Government and Administration Essex's small size makes New England's traditional direct democracy style of government practical. The residents of Essex elect a board of three selectmen[?] to carry out the routine business of local government while relying on the Town Meeting[?] system to decide major issues. In recent years, the most important these issues have been the controversy over the lease of public lands at Conomo Point, a school regionalization plan with Manchester-By-The-Sea and the construction of infrastructure for dealing with sewerage.

Schools

Essex has one public school that offers instruction to children from Kindergarten to grade 8. Essex does not have a high school at present and must send its grade 9 through 12 students to neighboring Manchester-By-The-Sea. Arrangements in the past have included sending high school students to both Gloucester and Hamilton-Wenham[?] public schools. The town recently approved a plan to create a regional school district with Manchester-By-The-Sea. Under the plan, the two towns will build a new high school. This will mark the the first time in which Essex will not have to send its students to another district to attend high school.

Cultural Activities Essex has several churches of various Protestant Christian denominations (Methodist, Universalist, Congregational) as well as a Roman Catholic parish. There are several active youth sports teams as well as other youth organizations such as the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Notable Residents of Essex

John Wise

Pastor of Chebacco Parish, 1680-1725. Reverend Wise reportedly spoke out against "taxation without representation" more than a half century before the American Revolutionary War

Rufus Choate

(1799-1859) Lawyer, orator, US Congressman and US Senator. Choate was a nationally renown public servant. A close friend of Daniel Webster, Choate was chosen to serve out his unfinished term in the US Senate. Choate is considered today to be one of the fathers of traditional American conservatism.

Michael G. Ford

(1950-) The eldest son of US President Gerald R. Ford lived in Essex at the same time his father occupied the White House. Ford made Essex his home while studying at nearby Gordon-Cornwell Theological Seminary. Notable Events 1995. Feature film The Crucible, starring Winona Ryder and Daniel Day Lewis[?], was filmed in Essex.