Places

There are many not-very-well-known stories about the places on Nantucket. In these varied articles, you might discover some interesting facts about Nantucket you didn’t know and also some advice on how to uncover the history of your own “place.”

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• What is the history of the very old house at the far end of Dukes Road?
  The Elihu Coleman House was built in 1721–22 by Quaker carpenter Elihu Coleman (1699– 1789) when he was still in...More Read more from What is the history of the very old house at the far end of Dukes Road?
• The Archaeology of the Polpis Road Bicycle Path
  Nantucket Island was first explored by Native American groups approximately 11,000 to 12,000 year ago during the early Holocene Paleolndian...More Read more from The Archaeology of the Polpis Road Bicycle Path
• What does Nobadeer mean?
  A: Nobody knows. Back in 1996 the Nantucket Island Chamber of Commerce Guide stated that it means “good fishing grounds,”...More Read more from What does Nobadeer mean?
• Ships of the Boston Tea Party: Eleanor, Beaver, and Dartmouth
  The Boston Tea Party was the culmination of a series of events that steadily aroused the ire of colonists who...More Read more from Ships of the Boston Tea Party: Eleanor, Beaver, and Dartmouth
• History of Nantucket’s Byron L. Sylvaro Post 82 of the American Legion
  Part 1: Founding to the Eve of World War II 2019 marks the centennial of Nantucket’s American Legion post.  Organized...More Read more from History of Nantucket’s Byron L. Sylvaro Post 82 of the American Legion
• Where were Cat Alley and the Indian Trail?
  Both of these footpaths behind the houses on Orange Street are remembered but no longer passable. In 1928 Grace Barnes...More Read more from Where were Cat Alley and the Indian Trail?
• Did Step Lane originally have steps?
  Yes. Nantucket once had at least three passageways with steps in them: Stone Alley, Break Neck Alley, and Step Lane. ...More Read more from Did Step Lane originally have steps?
• Where was Break Neck Alley?
  Break Neck Alley was the name of the way that still exists down from the south side of Academy Hill...More Read more from Where was Break Neck Alley?
• What and where is Snake Alley?
  Snake Alley is a grassy way down into the Lily Pond from Lily Street.  It is the extension of the...More Read more from What and where is Snake Alley?
• What is the history of Stone Alley?
  Stone Alley is a cobbled passage with a few steps midway as it descends from Orange Street down to Union...More Read more from What is the history of Stone Alley?
• Folger’s Marsh on Polpis Road is one of Nantucket’s beauty spots. Who is it named for?
  On the 1869 Ewer map, the area today known as Folger’s Marsh is only identified by the creek running through...More Read more from Folger’s Marsh on Polpis Road is one of Nantucket’s beauty spots. Who is it named for?
• What was the hot topic for Nantucket government in 1882?
  Nantucketers’ traditional practice of opening freshwater ponds to the sea has generated controversy and any number of unauthorized openings over...More Read more from What was the hot topic for Nantucket government in 1882?
• What does a controversy about fishing in Nantucket’s ponds have to do with New York?
  In the spring of 1954 two young Nantucket men were arrested by the game warden for fishing in Long Pond...More Read more from What does a controversy about fishing in Nantucket’s ponds have to do with New York?
• The Nantucket-New York Connection
  At twenty-year intervals during the twentieth century (1937, 1957, 1977), Nantucket received national attention for threatening to secede from Massachusetts...More Read more from The Nantucket-New York Connection
• Why would Nantucket aspire to become part of New York State?
  Three times during the twentieth century Nantucket received national publicity for threatening to secede from Massachusetts and join New York....More Read more from Why would Nantucket aspire to become part of New York State?
• Who was ‘Sconset’s “sanguine genius”?
  In the late 1800s, New Yorker Edward Underhill foresaw a prosperous future for the village of ‘Sconset. A war correspondent...More Read more from Who was ‘Sconset’s “sanguine genius”?
• Who was William Flagg, and what did he have to do with the ‘Sconset Footpath?
  In 1873, William Flagg, a summer resident of Nantucket, obtained title to a large section of land between the village...More Read more from Who was William Flagg, and what did he have to do with the ‘Sconset Footpath?
• What is the history of Jetties Beach?
  After the Civil War, sports in the United States proliferated and many became organized. There were more people with disposable...More Read more from What is the history of Jetties Beach?
• When Did Golfing Begin on Nantucket?
  Summer visitors were responsible for the creation of the island’s golf courses as Nantucket catered more and more to the...More Read more from When Did Golfing Begin on Nantucket?
• A Tourist Village on Coatue?
  Tourism came to Nantucket in the mid-1870s, rescuing the depressed and depopulated island. When whaling declined, many people left the...More Read more from A Tourist Village on Coatue?
• Where is Whale Rock?
  Whale Rock is located approximately 45 yards off Nantucket’s North Shore, west of Steps Beach and east of Sachem Springs...More Read more from Where is Whale Rock?
• How many churches were there in New Guinea?
  There were two. The African Meeting House on the corner of Pleasant Street and York Street housed the African Baptist...More Read more from How many churches were there in New Guinea?
• What were the “Sheep Wars” of the mid-1800s?
  For close to two centuries Nantucketers maintained much of the island outside of town as unfenced Common and Undivided Land...More Read more from What were the “Sheep Wars” of the mid-1800s?
• What is the big planter in the middle of Main Street that traffic has to maneuver around?
  It is a monument dedicated to the memory of Lieutenant Max Wagner, who lost his life in the Spanish-American War....More Read more from What is the big planter in the middle of Main Street that traffic has to maneuver around?
• What is the Madaket Ditch?
  The Madaket Ditch is a waterway that meanders from Hither Creek, starting near Madaket Marine, and ends up connecting to...More Read more from What is the Madaket Ditch?
• When was the African Meeting House at Five Corners built?
  Members of the New Guinea community began building the Meeting House in 1823, but the building was not yet finished...More Read more from When was the African Meeting House at Five Corners built?
• Were Cy and Rose Kaufman the first Jewish entrepreneurs on Nantucket?
  Although Cy’s Green Coffee Pot Bar and Restaurant was an island institution dating back to mid-1930s, the Kaufmans had predecessors....More Read more from Were Cy and Rose Kaufman the first Jewish entrepreneurs on Nantucket?
• Why is there a big water tower on Cliff Road near Maxcy’s Pond?
  It is the third water-storage facility there and all that is left on the site of the original Wannacomet Water...More Read more from Why is there a big water tower on Cliff Road near Maxcy’s Pond?
• Who owns Nantucket’s cemeteries?
  Some of the island’s cemeteries (Prospect Hill Cemetery, the Jewish Cemetery, St. Mary’s Cemetery, the ‘Sconset Columbarium, and St, Paul’s...More Read more from Who owns Nantucket’s cemeteries?
• What is a sheep common?
  In 1659, when a group of English investors purchased shares in Nantucket, they set off homestead lots for each shareholder,...More Read more from What is a sheep common?
• What is a Proprietors’ Road?
  At the beginning of English settlement on Nantucket, most of the island was one unfenced common for the grazing of...More Read more from What is a Proprietors’ Road?
• What and where are the Poot Ponds?
  There are several small kettle-hole ponds in the Middle Moors near Altar Rock. One is known as the Doughnut Pond...More Read more from What and where are the Poot Ponds?
• Where did the cobblestones on Main Street come from?
  There are two different stories about this. One is that they came to Nantucket as ships’ ballast and were repurposed...More Read more from Where did the cobblestones on Main Street come from?
• What are the 1799 Streets?
  From the time when the first English settlers came to Nantucket in the mid-1600s until after the American Revolution, Nantucketers...More Read more from What are the 1799 Streets?
• How many people are buried in the Quaker Cemetery on the corner of Madaket Road and Quaker Road?
  No one knows for sure, but it is estimated that approximately five thousand people are buried in the apparently empty...More Read more from How many people are buried in the Quaker Cemetery on the corner of Madaket Road and Quaker Road?
• What is the significance of the ships’ names over the door of the Pacific Club at the foot of Main Street?
  The sign carries the names of the ships Dartmouth, Beaver, and Bedford. In years past, the sign read Dartmouth, Beaver,...More Read more from What is the significance of the ships’ names over the door of the Pacific Club at the foot of Main Street?
• What was the pest house and what became of it?
  Pest House Pond, Pest House Shore, and Pest House Channel in and near Shimmo appear frequently in the newspapers. But...More Read more from What was the pest house and what became of it?
• Who was Tom Nevers?
  He was actually Tom Never, a member of the Nantucket Wampanoag Never family. According to tradition, Tom Never kept watch...More Read more from Who was Tom Nevers?
• Who lived in the Canacka Boarding House?
  The Canacka Boarding House served transient seamen from the Pacific Islands while they were on Nantucket. It was located somewhere...More Read more from Who lived in the Canacka Boarding House?
• Why isn’t the Lily Pond a pond?
  The Lily Pond was once a pond with an outlet to the harbor running along the present Chester Street. In...More Read more from Why isn’t the Lily Pond a pond?
• What is Phillip’s Run?
  Phillip’s Run is a stream in the vicinity of the village of Siasconset. In the mid-1660s, not long after the...More Read more from What is Phillip’s Run?
• What was Alfonso Hall?
  The building once known as Alfonso Hall was built by Azorean immigrants to Nantucket in the 1890s on land between...More Read more from What was Alfonso Hall?
• When did Nantucket become a vacation hotspot?
  The summer visitor would be the catalyst for Nantucket’s recovery [from the demise of whaling]. As early as 1828 island...More Read more from When did Nantucket become a vacation hotspot?
• Nantucket, New York?
  Nantucket—along with Martha’s Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands—was attached to the New York colony until 1692, when by act of...More Read more from Nantucket, New York?
• Rotch Counting House and Pacific Club
  Dear Libby, I am researching Massachusetts courthouses. Do your records show who built the 1772 Nantucket Courthouse at Water Street...More Read more from Rotch Counting House and Pacific Club
• The Asylum at Quaise: Nantucket’s Antebellum Poor Farm
  Quaise, meaning the “end point” in Algonquian, is anisolated area three miles northeast of Nantucket town. Very little haschanged there...More Read more from The Asylum at Quaise: Nantucket’s Antebellum Poor Farm
• ’Sconset Days: Excerpts from a Life
  GETTING TO ’SCONSET: BOATS The boats, ah, the boats. In those days, we took the Nantucket, the Martha’s Vineyard, the...More Read more from ’Sconset Days: Excerpts from a Life
• Winged Skulls and Garlanded Urns: Recording the Cemeteries of Nantucket
  If you have recently driven by Newtown Cemetery on Sparks Avenue or the Old North on New Lane, and seen...More Read more from Winged Skulls and Garlanded Urns: Recording the Cemeteries of Nantucket
• Researching your Nantucket House History
  Many visitors come to the NHA Research Library to research the history of a house – sometimes because the Historic...More Read more from Researching your Nantucket House History
• Where You Can Always Find a “Turkish ‘Bazarre'”: Sanborn Maps
  Did you know there was a billiard hall upstairs on Main Street in October 1887? That’s where Tonkin Antiques is...More Read more from Where You Can Always Find a “Turkish ‘Bazarre'”: Sanborn Maps