Let us not forget, among all this recounting of grandeur, the home of the humble Benjamin Ireson. A "much abused" man was Skipper Ireson. Even the poet Whittier did him injustice (unintentional of course) in his ballad about the shipwreck. But fortunately for the good old skipper, the people of Marblehead have resented every attempt to cast reproach on his fair name. They indignantly deny that he deserted a sinking ship, and maintain that, on the contrary, the crew, while the skipper was asleep below, set sail for home and then heaped all the blame on him. But there is another side to the story. The defenders of the crew maintain that the men misunderstood Ireson's reasons for not allowing them to go to the rescue of the sinking ship. His reasons were, that it would be sure death to make the attempt, thus imperilling the lives and property under his charge. Doubtless both skipper and men meant right, and if they erred it was an error of head and not of heart. Ireson was, however, tarred and feathered and conveyed out of town. So, too, we must not neglect the fishing wharves, once busy places, but now very much deserted. Tucker's wharf, with its picturesque steps and precipitous banks adjoining, should not be overlooked.

Towering above all these links in the chain which unites the history of the past with the present, and doubtless will unite all with the eternity of the future; far above all these humble monuments of our modest ancestor, and marking the royal onward march of progress, is that noble pile of masonry on

yonder hill-Abbot Hall. Through the mists of the early morning, or the haze of the noonday, or the faint glimmering of the deepening twilight, the mariner, far out on the ocean, beholds its tall "spire whose silent finger points to heaven," and knows, better than any light-house can tell him, that he is nearing the rugged coast of old Marblehead. But here let the record of the good old town rest until time and space, and ability born of the devotion of a native, shall give it its place in history.

Since the preparation of the Marblehead portion of this book, the town has been visited by a terribly destructive fire. For a time it seemed that the whole course of the town would be changed, so 'that the descriptive portion of this article would have to be rewritten. But in a few months, it became plainly evident that the recovery from the blow would be rapid, and that the prosperity of the place would be only temporarily checked. It seemed advisable, therefore, to leave this sketch as first written.

This fire broke out about two o'clock on the morning of Monday, June 23, 1877, in the rear of the Marblehead Hotel, on Pleasant street. It quickly extended to the south and east, burning over some eight acres of the business portion of the village, and destroying seventy buildings and nearly every shoe manufactory in town. A thousand persons were thrown out of employment; hundreds were rendered homeless. The loss amounted to between four and five hundred thousand dollars, and the insurance to something below three hundred thousand.

- BEVERLY BRIDGE. -EASTERN RYAL INDIAN VIL

RAILROAD AND STAGE COACHES. FIRST HOUSES.
SIDE. -POSTAL CENTRES. NAME OF TOWN.
LAGE. EARLY TOWN OFFICERS. FIRST COTTON MILL.-

HILLS.
PONDS.

BROWNE'S FOLLY.
WATER WORKS.

FINE VIEWS. STREETS.CHURCHES. -FORTS. - MUDDY BROOK MASSACRE. - CANADA EXPEDITION.-A NARROW ESCAPE. THE REVOLUTION. ATTACK ON BEVERLY. HILL.FEMALE RIOTERS.-COMMERCE AND MANUFACTURIES. -PAST AND PRESENT POLICY.-TOWN HALLS.-FIRE DEPARTMENT, MILITIA, ETC.

HUGH

EVERLY lies to the north of Salem, from which it is separated by Beverly harbor. It is bounded on the south by Beverly and Salem harbors, on the north by Wenham, on the east by Manchester and Wenham Neck, and on the west by the Essex Branch river and Danvers. It is eighteen miles from Boston, on the Eastern Railroad. It has a hilly surface, and much rocky and unproductive land, although there is a great deal of valuable and fertile soil. From some of the hills in the town beautiful prospects may be obtained of the surrounding country. It was first settled by the removal of John and William Woodbury, with others of the companions of Roger Conant, from the south or Salem side to the north Cape Ann side" of the harbor. Conant and John Balch, with others, came soon after, about

or "

the year 1630. Nearly one hundred adult male persons bearing the name of Woodbury, or Woodberry, are found in the "Beverly Directory" of 1877, and about a dozen in the "Salem Directory." It is at the present day, one of the principal family names in this town. The names of Conant and Balch are nearly extinct in both places. Many of the bearers of these ancient names are direct descendants of these first settlers, though not all.

Beverly is now connected with Salem by a great bridge which is 1484 feet long and 34 feet wide. The act for incorporating the proprietors of this bridge was passed in 1787. It is built on ninety-three wooden piers of oak timber, driven into the mud. It has a draw for vessels. The first pier of this bridge was driven in May, 1788. The proprietors were authorized to receive toll for seventy years from that date. The term expired in 1858, and the bridge is now a free bridge, and belongs to the Commonwealth. The main pipe of the Wenham water works, through which the city of Salem receives its water, extends along the western side of this bridge on independent piers. Further to the west is the great railroad bridge, over which the trains of the Eastern Railroad make frequent passages, holding speedy communication between Boston and the various points to the east. Previous to the advent of the railroad a fine line of stages was run from Beverly to Boston, and many are the amusing stories told of incidents connected therewith, and of the amusement furnished gratuitously to the passengers, by Woodbury Page and others of the jovial

drivers, who, when not cracking their whips, were cracking well-timed jokes.

One of the first houses in this town is supposed to have been at Woodbury's point, in that part of the town now known as the "Cove." It was a large double house, constructed for defence, and called the garrison house. A settlement by an Ellingwood (probably Ralph) was among the earliest, on what was formerly known as Ellingwood's point, directly opposite the Salem side, but better known to day as Webber's point. The land about here has been in the possession of the Ellingwoods, and their descendants, the Webbers, for nearly two hundred and fifty years.

In 1668 the settlement was incorporated as a distinct township by the name of Beverly, and in 1753, "Ryall side," a piece of territory lying between Danvers and Beverly, was annexed to Beverly.

The territory of the town is nearly seven miles in length, and three and a half in width at its greatest extent. It has three postal centres, viz., Beverly, North Beverly, and Beverly Farms. The most thickly settled portion lies next to Salem, and is supported largely by its boot and shoe manufactories, which employ a large number of the inhabitants, both male and female. North Beverly is devoted largely to farming interests, whilst Beverly Farms, or West Beach, as it is now commonly called, is given up almost entirely to summer residents, from Boston and elsewhere. They have erected here many princely mansions, and own most beautiful estates, which have made it one of the pleasantest