Ipswich, MA ~ A New England Classic

[Expat]

Ipswich was settled by British colonist in 1633. Population of approx. 13,000 and 28 miles north of Boston. Served by MBTA's commuter rail on the Newburyport/Rockport line to North Station.

Clipper ships bypassed Ipswich for deeper ports in places like Salem & Boston. Ipswich remained a fishing & farming village and unable to afford replacing or modernizing their homes. Therefore, the town has many houses from the 1600s and 1700s. Not just a token few. The town is filled with them and most are private residences.

Ipswich is connected to the witch trials usually associated with nearby Salem. Apparently, Salem was so overrun with witches, they had to use the Ipswich jail for overflow prisoners. Plus, Ipswich had some witches of their own.


1. This is the John Whipple House, circa 1642. It has been a museum since 1899.


2. A newer house (wink):


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5. I cannot pass up an old Cadillac:


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11. Notice the plaque near the door. Many houses in Ipswich have this plaque giving the historic information.


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20. Many of these old houses are crooked:


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27. I love working boats:


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29. Low tide on the Ipswich River:


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40. Sumo Pumpkin!


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I took the previous pictures last weekend. The following pictures were taken a year or two ago with an iphone. I may have posted them in threads before, but I feel they are needed to tell a more complete story of Ipswich.

74. Ipswich is known for clams:


75. The Crane Estate - summer home for the Crane family of Chicago. It appears in the movie, Witches of Eastwick. It overlooks Crane Beach:


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77. Crane Beach:


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Thanks for looking!

[ColDayMan]

Almost like a movie.

[seaskyfan]

Wonderful tour. Classic New England!

[Shawn]

Awesome thread - Cape Ann and the North Shore through the NH border is a special place.

Fun fact: Ipswich's history and atmosphere inspired Lovecraft in many ways, his fictional town of Dunwich was largely modeled after Ipswich, but moved from the coast to inland Central Mass to make it more remote and creepy.

[Danny]

Thank you so much for these beautiful pictures of Ipswich, MA, Expat!

I´ve liked to see that collection of beautiful New England houses. Those historic wooden houses, with its garden, its flowers, are really wonderful.

Ipswich looks a very pleasant and quiet town, a place to live in.

I see in your pictures green leaves in the trees. I suppose that Fall is arriving delayed there, isn´t it?

Congratulations and greetings from MAD, Spain!

[Expat]

Danny, I thought of you while in Ipswich this weekend. I know you would love it. But, I thought how much you would like Ipswich after the leaves turn. Our leaves are only beginning to turn. I think they will be at peak by next week, but I will be in New York next week and might miss the best of it.

Guys, thanks for the comments. Ipswich is one my favorite places. We go there regularly for a Sunday drive or lunch or whatever. The entire Cape Ann area is wonderful. I think that no matter where I go in the world, I will always think of Cape Ann fondly. It would be a good place for a weekend house, except it is so close to where I live. It wouldn't make sense. I can be there in a half hour and we go often. And while I wouldn't consider Ipswich and the Cape Ann area suburbs of Boston, in some ways they are. They are connected to the city by commuter rail.

In my dream world, I would keep a place in Ipswich or nearby for summer, New Orleans (or Spain!) for winter, and a place in St. Louis for the in between times. Cape Ann is part of my dream world, no doubt about it. I wish I could truly capture the beauty & serenity of this area. These photos only scratch the surface.

[Danny]

Originally Posted by Expat

Danny, I thought of you while in Ipswich this weekend. I know you would love it. But, I thought how much you would like Ipswich after the leaves turn. Our leaves are only beginning to turn. I think they will be at peak by next week, but I will be in New York next week and might miss the best of it.

Guys, thanks for the comments. Ipswich is one my favorite places. We go there regularly for a Sunday drive or lunch or whatever. The entire Cape Ann area is wonderful. I think that no matter where I go in the world, I will always think of Cape Ann fondly. It would be a good place for a weekend house, except it is so close to where I live. It wouldn't make sense. I can be there in a half hour and we go often. And while I wouldn't consider Ipswich and the Cape Ann area suburbs of Boston, in some ways they are. They are connected to the city by commuter rail.

In my dream world, I would keep a place in Ipswich or nearby for summer, New Orleans (or Spain!) for winter, and a place in St. Louis for the in between times. Cape Ann is part of my dream world, no doubt about it. I wish I could truly capture the beauty & serenity of this area. These photos only scratch the surface.

I´m not surprised you like so much Ipswich and Cape Ann, because they look a fantastic place. Thanks for your quick answer, Expat.

Next week we were going to visit Maine, to spend our holidays there, but we´ve seen the forecast and we see it´s going to rain some days, so we´re going to change of destination. Don´t worry about the pictures next week and thank you very much for your interest.

Of course, I´ve loved this post, like all yours.

Regards.

[xzmattzx]

Nice pictures. Ipswich looks like a great coastal New England town. It's nice when houses from the 1600s survive in such quantity.

[sterlippo1]

one of the best years of my life was the one year i had my condo in Ipswich back in the mid 80's (then got married and had kids, yadda, yadda, yadda) and it truly is a gem. As many towns have, Ipswich's downtown has had a great renaissance since then, not that it was bad but it is really much more beautiful and quaint than it was back when it wasn't a destination but Expat has showed us even more than just the downtown and it's neighborhoods are just, well, so New England....I love Ipswich and the Clam Box? besides the fact you cant have a beer, their clams along with J.T. Farnham's in Essex (you CAN have a beer) are , IMO, the two best fried clams shacks anywhere north of Boston and i have had just about all of them .....Expat, you have out done yourself on this one, just gorgeous!
and have you had pizza at the Riverview? if not, you must and for any Bostonian reading, think of the old waitstaff at the original Regina's in the North End, those snarly old women that tossed the forks and napkins on the table and asked what you wanted with a look that could kill, lol. same here but it's part of the fabric and character of the place but the pizza is great, and really cheap, i think $5

[MolsonExport]

A real beauty.

[stepper77]

I love New England towns and this is no different. So many great homes. Thanks for sharing!

[Travis007]

Classic, charming New England. I love it!

[Expat]

Thanks for the nice comments!

Sterlippo - I haven't had pizza at Riverview. A reason to go back!

[Shasta]

Haven't been to Ipswich in awhile but the Crane Estate was definitely on the wedding circuit amongst my friends back in my late 20s! Nice thread.