Edgartown

As you wander around the quiet back streets you will continually discover little architectural treasures. The roots of the Vineyard go back further and are more intact in Edgartown than in any other place on the Island. Edgartown was originally known as Great Harbour when it became the first English settlement on the Vineyard in 1642. But it wasn't until the 18th century, at the height of the whaling industry, that Edgartown truly came into its own. As whaling captains returned home, they built the stately mansions that still grace Edgartown's streets. Today, Edgartown retains that centuries-old dignity, but it's combined with a lively spirit generated by many upscale restaurants, shops, and galleries. Also, just a short ferry ride across the harbor is the island of Chappaquiddick.

Public Restroom:
Year-round Church Street at the Visitor's Center/bus stop, one block north of the Old Whaling Church and Main Street.

Postal Services:
Post Office Square at the Triangle, off Vineyard Haven-Edgartown Road,
508-627-7318
Visitors Center, 29 Church Street

Internet Access:
Library,
58 N. Water St.,
508-627-4221

Wi-Fi Access:
Espresso Love,
17 Church Street;
Edgartown Pizza,
224 Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road;
Harbor View Hotel,
131 N. Water Street
Ferry Services:
(See Getting Around, page 21 for details).
On Time: (passenger and vehicle, runs between Edgartown and Chappaquiddick island)
Edgartown Ferry/Pied Piper:
(passenger, runs between Edgartown and Falmouth)

Pharmacy:
Triangle Pharmacy,
245 Vineyard Haven-Edgartown Road, at the Triangle, 508-627-5107

Police Dept:
508-627-4343

Points of Interest

Memorial Park
Often called Cannonball Park, the park located between Upper Main Street, Edgartown-West Tisbury Road, and Cooke Street, was dedicated on July 4, 1901 to the 70 Vineyard soldiers who died in the Civil War.

Martha's Vineyard Museum
At 59 School Street, the museum includes the Thomas Cooke House with period furniture and furnishings; the Pease House with five galleries of art and architecture; the Carriage House with its 1854 fire wagon; the 1856 Ross Fresnel lens from the Gay Head lighthouse; and an archival, non-circulating library.

Daniel Fisher House
This Greek Revival-Federalist structure at 99 Main Street was built in 1840 by doctor and businessman Dr. Fisher. Founder and first president of Martha's Vineyard National Bank, he was considered to be the wealthiest man on the Vineyard in the mid-1800s.

Vincent House
Behind the Daniel Fisher House is the oldest Vineyard house, built in 1672 on Edgartown Great Pond by William Vincent and eventually moved to its present location off Church Street. Each of its restored rooms represents a different century on the Vineyard.

Old Whaling Church
Owned and operated by the Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust, this meeting and performing arts center on Main Street was built as a Methodist church. An example of Greek Revival architecture, it was designed by Frederick Baylies Jr. in 1843.

Visitors' Center
At 29 Church Street, the visitors center provides information, restrooms, a post office annex, and from Memorial Day through Labor Day, refreshments. It is the central site for bus transfers.

County Courthouse
In addition to its regular judicial business, the two-story, red brick courthouse at 51 Main Street is where the Superior Court convenes. It was constructed in 1858 with bricks made at the old Chilmark brickyard on the North Shore.

Federated Church
At 45 South Summer Street, facing Main Street, the oldest church on the Vineyard - Baptist in 1925, now Congregationalist - was designed by Frederick Baylies Jr. in 1828.

Captain Pease House
The residence was built at 80 South Water Street in 1836 by Valentine Pease, captain of the Acushnet, and who scholars believe was the model for novelist Herman Melville's Captain Ahab of Moby Dick. Melville went whaling with Captain Pease in 1841.

Old Sculpin Gallery
Across from the Chappy ferry in a building more than 240 years old is the Old Sculpin Gallery, home of the Martha's Vineyard Art Association, incorporated in 1954. The gallery, with its wide-planked floor, hand-hewn beams, and permanent collection display; is open from mid-June to mid-September when it hosts art classes and weekly shows.

Memorial Wharf
Adjacent to the Chappaquiddick ferry, the two-story structure offers picnic tables and views of Edgartown harbor, once known as Great Harbour.

Chappy Ferry
Dock Street is where the Chappaquiddick ferry, "On Time," makes its two-minute run across the channel. Adjacent to the ferry slip is a brick wall bearing names of injured whalers.

Edgartown Lighthouse
Originally built in 1828, then replaced in 1938, this oft-photographed lighthouse, maintained by the Martha's Vineyard Historical Society, is a popular location for wedding ceremonies.