Founding
city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, 35 miles (56 km) northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The mooring, winter storage, and maintenance of recreational boats, motor and sail, still generate much of the city's income. A Coast Guard station oversees boating activity, especially in the sometimes dangerous tidal currents of the Merrimack River.
At the edge of the Newbury Marshes, delineating Newburyport to the south, an industrial park provides a wide range of jobs. Newburyport is on a major north–south highway, Interstate 95. The outer circumferential highway of Boston, Interstate 495, passes nearby in Amesbury. The Newburyport Turnpike (U.S. Route 1) traverses Newburyport on its way north. The Newburyport/Rockport MBTA commuter rail from Boston's North Station terminates in Newburyport. The earlier Boston and Maine Railroad leading farther north was discontinued, but part of it was converted into a recreation trail.
In 1680 Elizabeth Morse was convicted of witchcraft in Newbury. She was confined to her property unless she was escorted by a clergymen until she died in 1690.
On January 28, 1764, the General Court of Massachusetts passed "An act for erecting part of the town of Newbury into a new town by the name of Newburyport." The act begins:
Whereas the town of Newbury is very large, and the inhabitants of that part of it who dwell by the water-side there, as it is commonly called, are mostly merchants, traders, and artificers, and the inhabitants of the other parts of the town are chiefly husbandmen; by means whereof many difficulties and disputes have arisen in managing their public affairs – Be it enacted ... That part of the said town of Newbury ... be and hereby are constituted and made a separate and distinct town ....
The act was approved by Governor Francis Bernard on February 4, 1764. The new town was the smallest in Massachusetts, covering an area of 647 acres (2.62 km2), and had a population of 2,800 living in 357 homes. There were three shipyards, no bridges, and several ferries, one of which at the foot of Greenleaf Lane, now State Street, carried the Portsmouth Flying Stage Coach, running between Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Boston.
The town prospered and became a city in 1851. Situated near the mouth of the Merrimack River, it was once a fishing, shipbuilding and shipping center, with an industry in silverware manufacture. In 1792, a bridge was built two miles above the town where the river contained an island. Merrimack Arms and Brown Manufacturing Company made Southerner Derringer pistols in their Newburyport factory from 1867 to 1873. The sea captains of old Newburyport (as elsewhere in Massachusetts) had participated vigorously in the triangular trade, importing West Indian molasses and exporting rum made from it. The distilleries were located around Market Square near the waterfront. Caldwell's Old Newburyport rum was manufactured locally until 1961.
As a part of the triangle trade, the first leg of which involved the purchase of slaves from West Africa, many Newburyporters were anti-abolitionists. Massachusetts abolished slavery in 1783, and many runaway slaves found refuge in the state. In the early 1800s, around 6000 runaway slaves were living in Newburyport. In 1850, the fugitive slave act was passed, requiring all US states to capture and return runaway slaves. Because of this, runaways had to flee the country or risk returning to slavery. In this era, some white Newburyporters became stops on the Underground Railroad. As a port city and part of the triangle trade, Newburyport's abolitionists were often mariners. Capt. Alexander Graves, for example, smuggled slaves from the South and to Canada.
Newburyport once had a fishing fleet that operated from Georges Bank to the mouth of the Merrimack River. It was a center for privateering during the Revolutionary War and War of 1812. Beginning about 1832, it added numerous ships to the whaling fleet. Later, clipper ships were built there. Today, the city gives little hint of its former maritime importance. Notably missing are the docks, which are shown on earlier maps extending into the channel of the Merrimack River, and the shipyards, where the waterfront parking lot is currently located.
George Whitefield, the well-known and influential English preacher who helped inspire the First Great Awakening in America, arrived in Newburyport in September 1740. The revival that followed his labors brought into existence Old South Church, where he was buried after his death in 1770.
The city's historical highlights include:
Historic events:
The Newburyport Five Cents Savings Bank on State Street was founded in 1854 and is one of the oldest banks in the United States still in operation.
Historic houses and museums:
Literary interests:
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 10.6 square miles (27 km2), of which 8.4 square miles (22 km2) is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km2) (20.77%) is water.
The city is part of Massachusetts's North Shore; Newburyport was laid out on the elevated south bank of the Merrimack River between the river and Newbury marshes. The shipyards, now boatyards (and still vigorously active), extended along the bank at the edge of the river. They were connected by Merrimac Street, which ends upriver where the bank merges into bluffs covered with pine forest. Colonial residences extend up the bank from Merrimac Street to High Street running parallel to it near the top of the ridge. The homes of the seafaring entrepreneurs line High Street. Many feature widow's walks, structures on the roof where residents could watch for the return of sailing vessels. Nearly every home maintains a splendid flower garden, most dating to colonial times. Various cross streets, such as State Street, Green Street, and Market Street, connect Merrimac Street and High Street. The top of the ridge proved an ideal location for later institutions, such as Newburyport High School and nearby Anna Jaques Hospital. The ridge drops more sharply to the marsh on the other side. Along its margin a third parallel street developed, Low Street.
The river bank gradually descends to marshes at Joppa Flats beyond downtown Newburyport. The Plum Island Turnpike was pushed out over the marsh on a causeway to a narrow part of the Plum Island River just south of where it connects to the mouth of the Merrimack. A drawbridge was built there, the only access to the island by road. On the Newburyport side a small airport, Plum Island Airport, was built at the edge of the marsh. The portion of Plum Island in the city has no direct access to the rest of the city; similarly, there is no access between the mainland and Woodbridge Island or Seal Island, west of Plum Island (the latter being shared between Newburyport and Newbury). Several parks and beaches dot the city, including Plum Island Point Beach, Simmons Beach, Joppa Park, Waterfront Park, Woodman Park, Cashman Park, Moseley Pines Park, and Atkinson Common and March's Hill Park. Newburyport Forest is in the city's southwest corner, and Maudslay State Park lies along the northwest part of the city, along the banks of the Merrimack.
As of the 2020 census, Newburyport had a population of 18,289. The median age was 50.3 years. 18.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 86.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 83.4 males age 18 and over.
95.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 4.4% lived in rural areas.
There were 7,971 households in Newburyport, of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.4% were married-couple households, 14.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 30.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 8,615 housing units, of which 7.5% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 3.8%.
As of the census of 2010, there were 17,416 people, 8,264 households, and 4,428 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,086.2 inhabitants per square mile (805.5/km2). There were 7,897 housing units at an average density of 942.0 per square mile (363.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 90.2% White, 3.6% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.61% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.7% of the population. The top five ethnic groups are: (United States 2010 Census quickfacts)
There were 7,519 households, out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.7% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.1% were non-families. Of all households, 33.1% were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 20.7% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 28.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $78,557, and the median income for a family was $103,306. Males had a median income of $51,831 versus $37,853 for females. The per capita income for the city was $34,187. About 2.8% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.5% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.
Newburyport is served by the Newburyport Public Library, part of the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium.
Upon adopting a new charter in 2011 which took effect in 2013, Newburyport has been run by a mayor with a four-year term and an eleven-member City Council (prior to that, the mayor's term lasted for two years). The current mayor of Newburyport is Sean Reardon, and the next election year for mayor is 2029.
Newburyport is part of the Massachusetts Senate's 1st Essex district.
Newburyport High School was founded in 1935, and is one of the oldest public high schools in the United States.
Public education is administered by the Newburyport School District.
Newspapers include:
WJOP-LP is a low power FM radio station broadcasting from Newburyport which includes local interviews, sports, and music. WNBP broadcasts from Newburyport as a simulcast of the Boston-based Bloomberg Radio affiliate WBOS. WNEF is a repeater station for the UMass Boston radio station WUMB-FM.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Newburyport, Massachusetts”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.