Dogtown on Cape Ann, Massachusetts
Twenty miles north of Boston, in the middle of Cape Ann, lies an abandoned colonial settlement. At the tip of Cape Ann is Gloucester - America's oldest seaport. Today, much of the population lives less than a mile from the coast. Yet, at one time, there was a small village in the middle of the Cape. Half a century after the town of Gloucester was first settled, people began to live in the Commons Settlement, named for the thousand or so acres of common woodland out of which it grew. At its peak, more than forty families lived in this part of town. Then, around the time of the Revolutionary War, the village began to decline as commercial interests shifted from logging and agriculture to fishing and trading, and people moved to be closer to the harbor. By the early 1800's, the area, which had become known as Dogtown, was a ghost town.
Exploring Dogtown on Cape Ann
Map Showing Trails, Cellar Holes, Babson Boulders, and other Features of Interest
Cold and lonely in the winter, some have compared the middle of the Cape to the Scottish Moors; others imagine the enormous boulders strewn all over the bleak landscape as strange megalithic monuments of earlier times. Yet, scattered here and there are telltale signs of prior habitation: stonewalls, a familiar sight in New England, old roads and trails, and cellar holes - the only visible remains of the village that was once here. Walking along the old roads and trails, one wonders how anyone could have lived in such a place. Overgrown with vegetation it is difficult to picture the old settlement. It is hard to understand why some of the early settlers lived here, and how they survived.
Dogtown can be inscrutable. Without a map, it is easy to get lost in the network of old roads and trails that crisscross the interior of the Cape.
Click here to view an on-line version of the map (Requires Flash Player)
18x24 inch poster can be purchased from stores in Gloucester and Rockport, MA
History books have little to say about Dogtown, other than to speculate on its decline and eventual desertion almost two centuries ago. For those interested in learning about Dogtown, the best way is on foot. But even with a map, many of its secrets remain hidden behind thick brush and cat briar. The Dogtown Guide leads the reader and explorer through what is left of the old settlement, relating the history of Dogtown and its inhabitants to the current landscape.
Click here to read or purchase the book on line
The book may also be purchased from stores in Gloucester and Rockport, MA
Virtual Tour Guide - New!
Unlike most historical sites, Dogtown does not have a visitors center. Other than a few trail markers, there are no signs to guide you through the old settlement. For those not familar with the terrain it is easy to get lost in the woods of Dogtown. For those who would like to explore Dogtown on their own, we have developed a "virtual tour guide" using Mapster, a mapping and navigation app for the iPhone.
At home, use Mapster to download a detailed trail map with important points of interest. Photos and videos (including 360 degree view panoramas) tied to specific locations on the ground give you an idea of the landscape before you get there. When you get to Dogtown use the trail map to navigate around the old settlement using the iPhone's GPS. Pick a point of interest and ask Mapster how to get there. When you arrive it explains what you see. Hold up the phone to see a rendering of the old homes superimposed over your visual surroundings.
Click here for sample screenshots.
Other Resources
NEW!!! Dogtown app for the iPad - Contains Dogtown Guide, trail map, walks in the woods, and more
View Dogtown in Google Maps. Download KML file for Google Earth.
View geo-tagged photos in Dogtown
View trails, stone walls, and points of interest in Dogtown
Rotating 3-D image perspective transform of Dogtown region on Cape Ann (Quicktime)
The Old Rockport Road is one of the oldest surviving roads on Cape Ann. Along this rocky footpath are the site of Gloucester's first mill, built around 1642, and an old school house, which operated in the mid 1600s.
Click here to fly over the Old Rockport Road in a computer generated animation (avi format)
Links
Seania McCarthy's Dogtown Tours
Robert E. Farmer's Dogtown Ecology Walks