Business View Civil and Municipal | March 2021

58 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL MARCH 2021 AT A GLANCE YARMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS WHAT: Second oldest town in Cape Cod; population 23,000 WHERE: Barnstable County, MA WEBSITE: www.yarmouth.ma.us P rior to the arrival of English settlers in Massachusetts Bay in 1630, several indigenous Native American tribes under the collective Wampanoag nation occupied the lands that today comprise the towns of Yarmouth and Dennis. The area was called “Mattacheese”, which in Wôpanâak (the tribe’s long-lost language) meant “old lands by the borders of water.” Yarmouth’s name first appeared nine years later, in a court-issued document granting the lands to John Crow, Thomas Howes, and Anthony Thacher – none of whom, incidentally, hailed from Yarmouth, England. The true origins of the new Cape township’s name may never be known, but it’s assumed to be a nod to that old English seaport on the Yare River which saw hordes of passengers arriving from Holland, the home country of many Mayflower pilgrims. Modern-day Yarmouth, MA is a 28-square-mile town in Barnstable County – the second oldest on the Cape – with a population of just under 24,000. Comprised of three distinct villages, West Yarmouth, Yarmouth Port, and South Yarmouth, it’s a historically rich place brimming with iconic landmarks including Gray’s Beach boardwalk, the 18th-century Judah Baker Windmill, and the OUTH, The spirit of Cape Cod CHUSETTS