Marion, Massachusetts

Archaeologists have traced Indian settlements in this area as far back as 3000 BC. Originally settled as early as 1679 under the name Sepecan, for these early inhabitants, the town became known for its shipbuilding and saltworks. In the nineteenth century Sippican Harbor became the third most productive whaling center in the United States. During this time 23 Sippican whalers made nearly 100 voyages to the whaling grounds of the South Atlantic and the Pacific. Many of the old homes in the center of town date from this period.

Perhaps the best known of the Marion captains is Benjamin Briggs, captain of the Mary Celeste. In November of 1872, Captain Briggs, his wife, Sarah, and daughter, Sophy, and the ship's crew set sail from New York City on the Mary Celeste. The ship was loaded with 1,700 oak casks filled with alcohol bound for Genoa Italy. Eight days later the ship was sighted under short sail about halfway between the Azores and the Portuguese mainland by the Nova Scotia brig Dei Gratia. Upon receiving no answer to a hail, two sailors boarded the Mary Celeste only to find no one on board. There were no signs of fire or of any violence. The ship was undamaged, every thing in its place, except for the Mary Celeste's small boat and evidence of the removal of a piece of rail. Through the 127 years since this discovery, the mystery of the "ghost ship" continues to fascinate. Many theories for the fate of the Mary Celeste’s passengers and crew have been presented ranging from mutiny, to pirate attack, to an encounter with a giant sea creature. However, the most plausible explanation was that of Dr. Oliver W. Cobb of New Bedford who theorized that the alcohol being carried aboard the ship expanded, leaking gas below deck. Fearing an explosion the captain, his family and crew put off in the ship's small boat using a halyard as a towline for return if no explosion occurred. Something caused this halyard to snap. The ship probably drifted away too quickly for the small boat to catch. No trace of those who sailed on the Mary Celeste was ever found. To this day their fate remains one of the most intriguing mysteries of the sea.

In 1852, Sippican became the town of Marion, named after the Revolutionary War hero, General Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox".

The period from the 1880s to the early 1900 became known as Marion's “Golden Age” when the town became a summer resort for a wide variety of artists, writers, politicians and actors. Among the famous visitors were the sculptor, Augustus St. Gaudens; naturalist, Louis Agassiz; actors and actresses, Ethel and John Barrymore, Evelyn Nesbitt and Maude Adams; journalist and war correspondent, Richard Harding Davis and his wife, artist Cecil Clark Davis; architect, H.H. Richardson; and artist and illustrator, Charles Dana Gibson, creator of the Gibson Girl. President and Mrs. Grover Cleveland spent three summers enjoying all that Marion offered. During this period, three large hotels operated in Marion and many wealthy families built summer homes. Although the hotels have long since been torn down, many of the lovely homes remain today.

Dominating the waterfront at the west side of the head of the harbor is the coeducational preparatory school, Tabor Academy. The 92-foot schooner “Tabor Boy” heads Tabor’s fleet of boats. The schools fleet also includes 420s, Lasers, Capri 14.2s, Optimists and a Beetle Whaleboat for interscholastic competition and sailing instruction.

The town of Marion is now a residential community with a year round population of 4,901 and a seasonal population of 7180. Bed and Breakfast establishments, restaurants, boat yards, boat services and equipment, retail and food and liquor stores are available in the town for visitors.

Yacht Supplies

The Harbor

Trash and Sewage