Newburyport, Massachusetts

NEWBURYPORT , MASSACHUSETTS ease of transportation within the community. Long-time Mayor Donna D. Holaday has spent her 11-year tenure making sure the city of Newburyport continues to evolve into the best community it can be through quality of life advancements, infrastructure upgrades, investing in climate change preparedness, and much more. She shares, “Newburyport is a magnificent port community with a tremendous history. People fall in love with Newburyport when they come here because of everything it has to offer. I would say the last five years has really put us on the map; people want to be here to visit and to settle down.” Strolling around the city today is an absolute treat for heritage lovers. The community was first settled in 1635 as part of the Newberry Plantation. In 1764, the recently established Newburyport was the smallest town in Massachusetts, covering 647 acres. In 1851, it became a city – a thriving fishing, shipbuilding, and shipping center with a robust industry in silverware manufacturing. It had three shipyards, and several ferries that carried passengers between Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Boston. The captains of old Newburyport built beautiful mansions along High Street and were very active in the triangular trade, importing West Indian molasses and exporting the rum made from it. The distilleries were located around Market Square near the waterfront. The city once had a fishing fleet that ran from Georges Bank to the mouth of the Merrimack River and was a hub for privateering during the