Ipswich, Massachusetts was founded in 1634 in an area the Native Americans called “Agawam” and is known as “America’s best-preserved Puritan town. There are more remaining First Period houses (1625 through 1725) in Ipswich than any other town in the country, and the historic neighborhoods of Meeting House Green, High Street, the East End, and the South Green offer well-preserved streetscapes of 17th to 19th-century residences.

Resistance by the citizens and leaders of Ipswich to a tax imposed by the Crown in 1687 is commemorated in the seal of the town of Ipswich, which bears the motto, “The Birthplace of American Independence 1687.”

View the Ipswich calendar of events

Ancient Prejudice against “the Indians” Persists in Essex County Today - Beneath broad acceptance of Indian rights and benign admiration for aspects of Native culture lies inherited hostility toward Native people. Unrecognized, it has gone unchallenged, but locally I have found it evident in these six ways.

Conspiracy theories in Colonial America - Cotton Mather wrote that "New Englanders are a People of God" who had conquered "the Devil's Territories." The paranoid believe in conspiracies persists in today's political political battle between truth and deceit.

Sustainable Ipswich - The Ipswich Middle/Highschool GreenTeam is a green-fueled group of 35 bright individuals ready to take on the big fights like climate change. They aim to engage the community in taking a stand with nature, and inspiring by example.

Ruth Strachan - It was with great sadness that we learned today about the sudden passing of Ruth Strachan, a member of the Ipswich Historical Commission and the Architectural Preservation District Commission for several years.

The Ipswich Riverwalk mural - In 2005 EBSCO Publishing commissioned artist Alan Pearsall to paint a 2,700-square-foot mural on one of the old mill buildings occupied by the company in Ipswich. The mural is the centerpiece of the town's Riverwalk.

The Choate Bridge - The American Society of Civil Engineers cites the Choate Bridge in Ipswich as the oldest documented two-span masonry arch bridge in the U.S., and the oldest extant bridge in Massachusetts. 

Settlers and early inhabitants of Ipswich - The Puritan settlers of Ipswich arrived during the “Great Migration. Sources include "Early Inhabitants of Ipswich" by Abraham Hammatt, "Vital Records to 1850," and "Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony" by Thomas Franklin Waters.

Old North Burying Ground - Established in 1634, the Old North Burying Ground in Ipswich, Massachusetts is one of the oldest cemeteries in North America.

Local produce - Several farms, CSAs and sellers of local produce are located throughout Ipswich.