Mattapoisett, Massachusetts
Mattapoisett is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,508 at the 2020 census.[1] Mattapoisett Center is located in the town.
For the river, see Mattapoisett River.Mattapoisett is a part of the South Coast region of Massachusetts which encompasses the cities and towns that surround Buzzards Bay (excluding the Elizabeth Islands, Bourne and Falmouth), Mount Hope Bay and the Sakonnet River.
History[edit]
Governor William Brenton purchased Mattapoisett in 1664 from Wampanoag chief Metacomet, also referred to as King Philip. Brenton left it to his son Ebenezer, who sold it.[2] The town of Mattapoisett was settled in 1750 and officially incorporated in 1857, originally a part of Rochester. There is evidence of prior Wampanoag Indian settlements throughout the town, including burial grounds. The name Mattapoisett is Wampanoag for "a place of resting".[3]
Early industry included logging and farming, but Mattapoisett became best known for its role in the history of whaling. Some 400 ships were built in the town's shipyards from 1740 until the 1870s, including the Acushnet, the ship that Moby-Dick author Herman Melville sailed on and later deserted. The town supplied many of the whalers used on the East Coast in the first half of the nineteenth century. The last one was the Wanderer, built in 1878, shortly after the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania which led to the demise of commercial whaling in the United States.
With the decline of whaling and associated shipbuilding, Mattapoisett transitioned into a popular summer vacation spot for prominent New York and Boston residents, including Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Today, the town is largely a suburban community, with most residents commuting to jobs in Fall River, New Bedford, Worcester, Providence, or Boston, or operating businesses targeting summer tourism.[4]
Transportation[edit]
Interstate 195 runs through the town, and U.S. Route 6, is the main local road through town. I-195 has an exit for the town, Exit 31A/B, "Mattapoisett/N. Rochester," which accesses North Street.
Regional bus service can be reached in New Bedford, as can regional air service. The nearest rail service is either in Providence or at the terminus of the Middleborough-Lakeville line of the MBTA's commuter rail service to Boston. The nearest national airline service can be found at T. F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, and the nearest international service can be reached at Logan International Airport in Boston.
Education[edit]
Mattapoisett is a member of the 2,700-student Old Rochester Regional School District. The town, along with Marion and Rochester, operate a single school system with each town having its own school subcommittee. Mattapoisett operates the Center School for prekindergarten through third grade students, and the Old Hammondtown School for grades 4–6. Seventh- and eighth-grade students attend Old Rochester Regional Junior High School, and high school students attend Old Rochester Regional High School. Both regional schools are located on Route 6 in Mattapoisett, near the Marion town line. The high school, commonly known as "O.R.R.," competes in the South Coast Conference for athletics. Their mascot is the bulldog, and their colors are red and white. The town's Thanksgiving Day football rival is Apponequet Regional High School in Lakeville.
In addition to public schools, high school students may also choose to attend Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School, located in Rochester. The nearest private schools are Tabor Academy in Marion and Bishop Stang High School in Dartmouth.
Prior to the opening of the Old Rochester Regional High School in 1961, students in grades 10–12 attended Fairhaven High School in Fairhaven.