Leisure
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New Silver Beach | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s): Silver Beach, New Silver | |
| Coordinates: 41°38′26.78″N70°38′25.69″W / 41.6407722°N 70.6404694°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Massachusetts |
| County | Barnstable |
| Settled | 1893 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.7 sq mi (7 km2) |
| • Land | 1.8 sq mi (5 km2) |
| • Water | 0.9 sq mi (2 km2) |
| Elevation | 23 ft (7 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP codes | 02556, 02565 |
| Area code | 508 |
New Silver Beach is a beach and village [ citation needed ] of the same name. It is primarily a summer colony and is the largest settlement at Wild Harbor, a natural bay on the north shore of Buzzards Bay.
It is located on Massachusetts's famous Cape Cod in the census-designated place (CDP) of North Falmouth, in the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts. The area was first settled in 1893 as a seasonal seaside resort for the growing upper middle class of Boston, Massachusetts.
The original planned settlement was first constructed in 1893 as sea bathing was gaining widespread popularity in Europe and the United States. The first street pattern resembled a star with four avenues radiating out from the waterfront intersection of Ocean View Avenue and Moses Road (then called Beach Road). Building proved profitable for developers and by 1898 Joseph Dahlburg and his Silver Beach Water Company had laid out the plans for New Silver Heights, an expansion of development in the area of higher elevation to the west of the original village. At the turn of the 20th century, the Brockton based Silver Beach Land Co. had profitably developed most of the existing plots and New Silver had gained notoriety as a fashionable destination. In the early 20th century, the Silver Beach Hotel was opened at the corner of Arlington Avenue and Wickertree Road. The hotel, though initially successful with the introduction of the automobile, went bankrupt and was subsequently sold and demolished. In the 1920s, numerous fashionable mansions were constructed on the neighboring peninsula of Nyes Neck and although many period homes remain, only two such Gatsby era mansions remain. The village was severely damaged by the great New England Hurricane of 1938 and rebuilding lasted well into the post-war period. During this time, nearby Old Silver Beach became the preeminent destination for the Upper Cape with the construction of the now famous Sea Crest Hotel. Though New Silver lost its regional fame, the economic booms of the 1980s and 1990s led to the rapid creation of new satellite developments enabling the area to maintain its status as a desirable location for holidaymakers.
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Yachting has a long and prolific history in the area. New Silver Anchorage was dredged from Wild Harbor in the 1920s to shelter Beetle Cat boats which had become popular among the Cape Cod elite. Prior to the Second World War organized sailing flourished out of Wild Harbor, however U-boat hysteria during the war led to dwindling popularity. On August 30, 1953, the Wild Harbor Yacht Club was formed on Wickertree Road to primarily serve New Silver and its constituent communities. The Club was incorporated by the United States Sailing Association the following year. A Widgeon fleet was organized in 1979. The club clinched the Southern Massachusetts Beetle Cat championship in 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, and 1989. In 1990 the club focused its junior sailing on the new 420 class racing vessels which were already popular in Europe and Australia. Wild Harbor is a regional powerhouse and dominates the north shore of Buzzards Bay and competes competitively in the Southern Massachusetts Sailing Grand Prix. Wild Harbor has produced three collegiate all-Americans and a member of the 2000 US International 470 team.
The original village of New Silver is built on the sandy floodplain of the tidal Wild Harbor River. The river flows in and out of Wild Harbor, a shallow natural bay onto which the village fronts. The older village center is separated from the newer Silver Beach Heights by protected marshland. The Greater New Silver Area has come to include the newer constituent developments of Nyes Neck, Seascape, and Wild Harbor Estates.
Wild Harbor is a prominent geographic feature in the area. It is a shallow, natural bay at the mouth of the Wild Harbor River. The bay is formed by two headlands: Nyes Neck peninsula to the north and Crow's Point to the south. The mouth of the bay is oriented to the southwest, the predominant direction of the summer sea breeze giving the harbor unusually rough surf and predictable but strong wind patterns.
The beach is located across the northeast shore of Wild Harbor between the estuary of Wild Harbor River and the channel of the New Silver Anchorage. The village center abuts the northern portion of the beach. The centrally located Moses Road runs parallel to the water between the two public access points at the end of Ocean View and Silver Beach Ave. respectively. The beach is protected from erosion by a series of rock jetties. The sandy output from the Wild Harbor river continually builds sandbars across the southern end of the beach which form a vast network of islands at low tide. A deeper sandbar runs about ten yards from the shoreline in an arc parallel to the rest of the beach and can be under between one and two feet of water at low tide. Because the beach is located on a bay opening onto the larger Buzzards Bay, the water is unusually warm for Cape Cod.
The village has an extraordinary collection of fine 19th century structures. Many of the homes in the older center of the village are original buildings or faithful reconstructions. The village center boasts exquisite examples of the American Victorian cottage style popular across New England before the turn of the 20th century.
Cape Cod is a hook-shaped peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The name Cape Cod, coined in 1602 by Bartholomew Gosnold, is the ninth oldest English place-name in the U.S.
The Cape Cod Canal is an artificial waterway in Massachusetts connecting Cape Cod Bay in the north to Buzzards Bay in the south, and is part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. The approximately seven-mile-long (11 km) canal traverses the neck of land joining Cape Cod to the state's mainland. It mostly follows tidal rivers widened to 480 feet (150 m) and deepened to 32 feet (9.8 m) at mean low water, shaving up to 135 miles (217 km) off the journey around the Cape for its approximately 14,000 annual users.
Barnstable County is a county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 228,996. Its county seat is Barnstable. The county consists of Cape Cod and associated islands.
East Falmouth is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located at the base of Massachusetts' "fishhook" peninsula. The population was 6,038 at the 2010 census, making East Falmouth the most populous of the six CDPs in Falmouth.
North Falmouth is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,084 at the 2010 census.
The village of Pocasset is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Bourne in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, located on Buzzards Bay. The population was 2,851 at the 2010 census.
Woods Hole is a census-designated place in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It lies at the extreme southwest corner of Cape Cod, near Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands. The population was 781 at the 2010 census.
Marion is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,347 at the 2020 census.
Wareham is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2022 census, the town had a population of 23,303.
Massachusetts Bay is a bay on the Gulf of Maine that forms part of the central coastline of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Bourne is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 20,452 at the 2020 census.
Falmouth is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,517 at the 2020 census, making Falmouth the second-largest municipality on Cape Cod after Barnstable. The terminal for the Steamship Authority ferries to Martha's Vineyard is located in the village of Woods Hole in Falmouth. Woods Hole also contains several scientific organizations such as the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), the Woodwell Climate Research Center, NOAA's Woods Hole Science Aquarium, and the scientific institutions' various museums.
Dennis is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, located near the center of Cape Cod. The population was 14,674 at the 2020 census.
Cotuit is one of the villages of the Town of Barnstable on Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. Located on a peninsula on the south side of Barnstable about midway between Falmouth and Hyannis, Cotuit is bounded by the Santuit River to the west on the Mashpee town line, the villages of Marstons Mills to the north and Osterville to the east, and Nantucket Sound to the south. Cotuit is primarily residential with several small beaches including Ropes Beach, Riley's Beach, The Loop Beach and Oregon Beach.
Buzzards Bay is a bay of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. It is approximately 28 miles long by 8 miles wide. It is a popular destination for fishing, boating, and tourism. Since 1914, Buzzards Bay has been connected to Cape Cod Bay by the Cape Cod Canal. In 1988, under the Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts designated Buzzards Bay to the National Estuary Program, as "an estuary of national significance" that is threatened by pollution, land development, or overuse.
Route 28 is a 151.93-mile-long (244.51 km) nominally south–north state highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, running from the town of Eastham via Boston to the New Hampshire state line in Methuen. Following the route from its nominally southern end, Route 28 initially heads south to the town of Chatham then turns west to follow along the south shore of Cape Cod. In Falmouth, Route 28 turns north and continues through the western part of Plymouth County and the eastern part of Norfolk County; it then passes through downtown Boston before heading north via Lawrence to the New Hampshire state line, where it continues as New Hampshire Route 28.
Southeastern Massachusetts consists of those portions of Massachusetts located along Buzzards Bay, including the cities of New Bedford and Fall River and their respective suburbs. Despite the location of Cape Cod and the islands to its south, which are the southeasternmost parts of the state, they are not always grouped in this designation. At its broadest definition, it includes all of Massachusetts south of Boston, southeast of Worcester, and east of Providence, Rhode Island, while at its narrowest definition, it is Bristol County and the Western portion of Plymouth County.
Plymouth Bay is a small, well-protected bay of the Atlantic Ocean on the western shore of larger Cape Cod Bay along the coastline of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Plymouth Bay retains historical significance for the landing at Plymouth Rock in 1620 by the Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower who proceeded to establish the first permanent Northern European settlement in North America at Plymouth Colony.
Back River is a small tidal estuary in Bourne, Massachusetts on the eastern shore of Buzzards Bay. It lies just south of the Cape Cod Canal near the village of Monument Beach. It is separated from Buzzards Bay by Phinneys Harbor. The river's length is 2.1 miles (3.4 km).