The site of SMITHS YARD in Hanover is about 300 yards below the old North River Bridge, and about 12 miles up-river from the ocean (although the distance was 15 miles until the Portland Gale altered the river in 1898). The cast iron sign that marks the location for this shipyard reads “SMITHS YARD LATER […]
December 19, 1919 By: Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks A Democracy Afloat Others perhaps had a large share in making history in those history-making days, but in the light of today no vessel reaches quite the picturesque heights attained by the Roanoke, 99 tons, built in 1842 at Barstow’s Lower Yards. […]
December 19, 1919 By: Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks Came to Boston’s Tea-Party Another history-making ship that the North River gave to the nation was the brig Beaver, one of the vessels participating in Boston’s famous tea party on Dec. 16, 1773. The Beaver, tonnage unknown, was built by Ichabod Thomas […]
December 19, 1919 By: Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks Rapid Accretion Another interesting shipbuilder of his time was Alden Briggs of the Briggs family which played so important a part in Plymouth County history. Alden Briggs had the peculiar habit of adding, from year to year, by compound interest to the […]
December 19, 1919 By: Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks Nature Acted When She Got Ready From the earliest days trouble was experienced in getting the larger ships from the river to the sea, and all sorts of contrivances were rigged up to drag the vessels through the shoals. But the thing […]
This is a reprint of an article that appeared in the following newspapers: Pilgrim County Press, Duxbury Pilgrim, Marshfield Mail, Cohasset Cottager, Hanover Advance, Pembroke Colonist, Abington Advertiser, Scituate Herald and Norwell News Friday, December 19, 1919 Romance and Tragedy By: Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks, June 2019 The story of […]
This is a reprint of an article that appeared in the following newspapers: Pilgrim County Press, Duxbury Pilgrim, Marshfield Mail, Cohasset Cottager, Hanover Advance, Pembroke Colonist, Abington Advertiser, Scituate Herald and Norwell News Friday, December 19, 1919 The River of a Thousand Ships By Henry T. Claus Transcribed and edited by Jane Estabrooks, June 2019 […]
By Joe Chetwynd, Pembroke The work has begun to remove and restore the ten cast iron plaques which line the North River, from Hanover, through Norwell, Scituate, Pembroke and Marshfield., Mass, which identify ten major shipyards that operated between 1670 and 1840, when this river valley was a major center of Colonial shipbuilding. From these […]
Have you ever driven over the North River, taken a hike along its shores or gone boating on its waters? Whether or not you have experienced the North River first hand, the history of this waterway will fascinate you. The North River Historical Association has created a blog to bring you stories from the past […]
In the mid-1600s the shores of the North River in what is now Hanover MA took a meandering 15 miles trip down the North River to reach the open ocean. The North River valley was then covered by old growth forests, but the forests were cleared, the land was farmed and for over two centuries […]