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Our Manchester By The Sea, MA real estate website provides a wealth of information for home buyers and home sellers. Below, you will find information on the history and culture of Manchester By The Sea as well as links to more detailed information such as demographics and schools. You may view a virtual tour, search homes for sale, and access information on different types of properties such as condos, farms, foreclosures, and vacation homes. This website will give you everything you need to buy or sell a home in Manchester By The Sea, MA.
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Manchester By The Sea MA Community Profile & History
Manchester By The Sea, Massachusetts is a historic seaside town on scenic Cape Ann. Just 45 minutes' drive from Boston, Manchester-By-The-Sea offers a thriving local business climate, gorgeous natural surroundings, a bounty of historic and recreational sites, easy accessibility to New England's major cities and an unparalleled quality of life.
Originally settled in 1629, the town was officially incorporated in 1645. The young community displayed its moral foundations by adopting a set of laws and regulations that prohibited the slave trade, made cruelty to animals a civil offence and forbade imprisonment for debt. Historians point out that these goodly beginnings may have led the colonists to go overboard as they continued to try to legislate all behavior with laws about how to conduct a courtship, laws against "excess in apparel" or "immodest laying out of their haire".
In 1644 a tide-mill was established, in 1668 a sawmill was built and in 1684 Aaron Bennett set up a grist mill. Foreshadowing the community's maritime future, John Norton began building ships on land granted him near the shore in 1684. By 1700 the prosperous burghers were able to pay Masconomet, the sagamore of the Agawam Indians, 3 pounds and 19 shillings in silver money for all rights to the lands on which the town stood.
The town's economy was based on some farming and a lot of fishing for cod and mackerel, and the men were known as good mariners. In 1810, 50 masters of vessels were Manchester residents. Manchester men were patriotic as well and they served in the successful assault on Louisburg in Canada, while the town meeting raised money to support the Minutemen. The life of the town was largely maritime with a fishing fleet, fish yards and fish storage warehouses until the decay of the fishing industry freed workers for the newly expanded woodworking and cabinet-making jobs.
In 1845, a new era began when the first summer resident, poet Richard Dana, built his vacation home here. The town quickly became a very fashionable watering place for wealthy people from the city, and tourism became a staple of the growing local economy. In modern times, the community has retained its reputation as a fashionable summer address, while developing a new suburban population as a handsome residential community. Visitors and residents alike enjoy the historic Victorian homes and summer estates that line the main streets and back roads, while popular sites for recreation include Singing Beach, which offers excellent opportunities for swimming, sunbathing and rock climbing on the popular "Eaglehead" rock face; the Coolidge Reservation, a nature reserve adjacent to Kettle Cove and Black Beach on the scenic Coolidge Point peninsula; and Agassiz Rock, a public park that takes its name from two striking boulders formed during the glacial drift of the last Ice Age and circled by a trail that offers stunning views of both.
Manchester By The Sea Massachusetts Community Information
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Different financing alternatives are available depending on whether you are purchasing a single family, condo, multi-family, or investment property. Understanding the pros and cons of each may help you decide which option is the best for you. Speak to our buyer agent professionals and mortgage partners to understand and evaluate your options.