Posted on April 26, 2008 by Greg Stone
John Avery Parker personifies the risky entrepreneurial spirit of the late 1700’s. He came to the Head of Westport in the 1790’s, opening a store and building ships. Yet as his business seemed to be failing and it was feared he would become a burden, the selectmen ordered him to leave. Parker moved to New […]
Continue ReadingPosted on April 26, 2008 by Greg Stone
“The day the vessels are launched there would be 3 or 4 hundred present, and as it was understood to be free drinks all day, almost everybody turned out and almost every other person was feeling much pleased with the day’s doings, if indeed they were able to tell how they did feel. Many had […]
Continue ReadingPosted on April 26, 2008 by Greg Stone
Shipbuilding took place all along the river. Thomas Winslow, a shipbuilder from Assonet, bought land east of The Landing. He was the master carpenter and namesake for the last large vessel to be built at the Head, the Thomas Winslow. Built in 1828, it was 135 tons, 73 feet in length, breadth 21 feet, depth […]
Continue ReadingPosted on April 26, 2008 by Greg Stone
Waterpower was key to the Head’s development in the 1700’s and to its involvement in the whaling industry. The river, which dropped nearly 40 feet just before the Head, provided consistent and abundant energy to power mills. George Lawton, one of the first to exploit this natural phenomenon, built a saw and grist mill north […]
Continue ReadingPosted on April 26, 2008 by Greg Stone
It is hard to imagine today, but 200 years ago, the Head of Westport was a dynamic community of merchants, millers, shipbuilders and sailors. It epitomized the entrepreneurial spirit, more so than any other part of Westport. The Head of Westport was perfectly positioned for the whaling industry, located on a fortunate natural confluence of […]
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