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[[United States Genealogy|United States]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go to]] [[United States Migration Internal|Migration]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go to]] [[US Migration Trails and Roads|Trails and Roads]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Massachusetts Genealogy Guide|Massachusetts]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] '''Coast Path'''
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Did an ancestor travel the '''Coast Path''' of Massachusetts? Learn about this settler migration route, its transportation history, and find related genealogy sources.  
Did an ancestor travel the '''Coast Path''' of Massachusetts? Learn about this settler migration route, its transportation history, and find related genealogy sources.  


[[Image:{{CoastPathmap}}]]The '''Coast Path''' was a 45 mile (72 kilometer) migration route between Plymouth and Boston near the shore of Massachusetts.<ref name="HBG">''Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'', 9th ed. (Logan, Utah: Everton Pub., 1999), pages 531 and M-48. {{WorldCat|48077118|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|740321|item|disp=FHL Book 973 D27e 1999}}.</ref> <ref>Frederic J. Wood, ''The Turnpikes of New England and the Evolution of the Same Through England, Virginia, and Maryland'' (Boston: Marshall Jones, 1919), 25. [https://archive.org/details/turnpikesofnewen00woodrich Internet Archive version online].</ref><br><br>  
[[Image:{{CoastPathmap}}]]The '''Coast Path''' was a 45 mile (72 kilometer) migration route between Plymouth and Boston near the shore of Massachusetts.<ref name="HBG">''Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'', 9th ed. (Logan, Utah: Everton Pub., 1999), pages 531 and M-48. {{WorldCat|48077118|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FSC|740321|item|disp=FS Library Book 973 D27e 1999}}.</ref> <ref>Frederic J. Wood, ''The Turnpikes of New England and the Evolution of the Same Through England, Virginia, and Maryland'' (Boston: Marshall Jones, 1919), 25. [https://archive.org/details/turnpikesofnewen00woodrich Internet Archive version online].</ref><br><br>  


=== Background History  ===
=== Background History  ===
Line 19: Line 26:
'''[[Suffolk County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Suffolk County]]'''  
'''[[Suffolk County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Suffolk County]]'''  


:*[[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] (1630<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston Boston] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] (1630<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston Boston] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Dorchester, Massachusetts|Dorchester]] (1630<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorchester,_Boston Dorchester, Boston] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)
{{Block indent|*[[Dorchester, Massachusetts|Dorchester]] (1630<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorchester,_Boston Dorchester, Boston] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)}}


'''[[Norfolk County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Norfolk County]]'''  
'''[[Norfolk County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Norfolk County]]'''  


:*[[Milton, Massachusetts|Milton]] (settled 1640<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton,_Massachusetts Milton, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Milton, Massachusetts|Milton]] (settled 1640<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton,_Massachusetts Milton, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Quincy, Massachusetts|Quincy]] (settled 1626<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincy,_Massachusetts Quincy, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Quincy, Massachusetts|Quincy]] (settled 1626<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincy,_Massachusetts Quincy, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Braintree, Massachusetts|Braintree]] (1640<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braintree,_Massachusetts Braintree, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Braintree, Massachusetts|Braintree]] (1640<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braintree,_Massachusetts Braintree, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Weymouth, Massachusetts|Weymouth]] (settled 1623<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weymouth,_Massachusetts Weymouth, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Weymouth, Massachusetts|Weymouth]] (settled 1623<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weymouth,_Massachusetts Weymouth, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Cohasset, Massachusetts|Cohasset]] (east side of Hingham)(settled 1670<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cohasset,_Massachusetts Cohasset, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)
{{Block indent|*[[Cohasset, Massachusetts|Cohasset]] (east side of Hingham)(settled 1670<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cohasset,_Massachusetts Cohasset, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)}}


'''[[Plymouth County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Plymouth County]]'''  
'''[[Plymouth County, Massachusetts Genealogy|Plymouth County]]'''  


:*[[Hingham, Massachusetts|Hingham]] (settled 1633<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hingham,_Massachusetts Hingham, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Hingham, Massachusetts|Hingham]] (settled 1633<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hingham,_Massachusetts Hingham, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Scituate, Massachusetts|Scituate]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scituate,_Massachusetts Scituate, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Scituate, Massachusetts|Scituate]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scituate,_Massachusetts Scituate, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Marshfield, Massachusetts|Marshfield]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshfield,_Massachusetts Marshfield, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Marshfield, Massachusetts|Marshfield]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshfield,_Massachusetts Marshfield, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Duxbury, Massachusetts|Duxbury]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duxbury,_Massachusetts Duxbury, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Duxbury, Massachusetts|Duxbury]] (settled 1627<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duxbury,_Massachusetts Duxbury, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Kingston, Massachusetts|Kingston]] (settled 1620<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston,_Massachusetts Kingston, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)  
{{Block indent|*[[Kingston, Massachusetts|Kingston]] (settled 1620<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston,_Massachusetts Kingston, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>) }}
:*[[Plymouth Massachusetts genealogy|Plymouth]] (1620<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth,_Massachusetts Plymouth, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)
{{Block indent|*[[Plymouth Massachusetts genealogy|Plymouth]] (1620<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth,_Massachusetts Plymouth, Massachusetts] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 14 October 2014).</ref>)}}


'''Connecting Routes''' Over time the Coast Path connected with half a dozen new migration routes out of the Boston end of the Coast Path:  
'''Connecting Routes''' Over time the Coast Path connected with half a dozen new migration routes out of the Boston end of the Coast Path:  


:*[[Bay Road]] connects [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] (Massachusetts Bay) to [[New Bedford, Massachusetts|New Bedford]] (Buzzards Bay).  
{{Block indent|*[[Bay Road]] connects [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] (Massachusetts Bay) to [[New Bedford, Massachusetts|New Bedford]] (Buzzards Bay). }}
:*[[Kennebunk Road]] links [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] along the New England coast to [[Augusta, Maine]].  
{{Block indent|*[[Kennebunk Road]] links [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] along the New England coast to [[Augusta, Maine]]. }}
:*[[King's Highway]] also known as the Boston Post Road goes from [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]], Massachusetts to New York City, and south to [[Charleston County, South Carolina|Charleston, South Carolina]] with extensions on each end. In Massachusetts and Connecticut there were at least three competing routes for the Boston Post Road. Parts were laid out 1650 to 1735; its length remained in heavy use through 1783, and some parts are used to this day.  
{{Block indent|*[[King's Highway]] also known as the Boston Post Road goes from [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]], Massachusetts to New York City, and south to [[Charleston County, South Carolina|Charleston, South Carolina]] with extensions on each end. In Massachusetts and Connecticut there were at least three competing routes for the Boston Post Road. Parts were laid out 1650 to 1735; its length remained in heavy use through 1783, and some parts are used to this day. }}
:*[[Mohawk or Iroquois Trail]] This trail was established in 1722 from [[Albany, New York|Albany]] to [[Utica, New York|Utica]] to [[Rome, New York|Rome]] to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Oswego Fort Oswego] on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Ontario Lake Ontario]. The [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] to Albany side of that route probably preceded the Albany to Oswego route by many years.  
{{Block indent|*[[Mohawk or Iroquois Trail]] This trail was established in 1722 from [[Albany, New York|Albany]] to [[Utica, New York|Utica]] to [[Rome, New York|Rome]] to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Oswego Fort Oswego] on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Ontario Lake Ontario]. The [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] to Albany side of that route probably preceded the Albany to Oswego route by many years. }}
:*[[Old Connecticut Path]] a pre-historic Indian path from [[Boston, Massachusetts]] to the Connecticut River Valley at [[Springfield, Massachusetts]] and south to [[Hartford, Connecticut]].  
{{Block indent|*[[Old Connecticut Path]] a pre-historic Indian path from [[Boston, Massachusetts]] to the Connecticut River Valley at [[Springfield, Massachusetts]] and south to [[Hartford, Connecticut]]. }}
:*[[Old Roebuck Road]] goes from [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] to [[Providence, Rhode Island]] (Narragansett Bay).
{{Block indent|*[[Old Roebuck Road]] goes from [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] to [[Providence, Rhode Island]] (Narragansett Bay).}}


'''Modern parallels.''' The modern road that roughly matches the old Coast Path from Boston to Plymouth is:  
'''Modern parallels.''' The modern road that roughly matches the old Coast Path from Boston to Plymouth is:  


:*Massachusetts State Highway [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Route_3A Route 3A] between Boston and Plymouth.
{{Block indent|*Massachusetts State Highway [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Route_3A Route 3A] between Boston and Plymouth.}}


=== Settlers and Records  ===
=== Settlers and Records  ===
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The pathway from from Plymouth to Boston near the Atlantic Ocean shore was used by European settlers and traders by 1630, if not earlier. A few scattered settlers from Plymouth may have settled along the route in the decade following 1621. More concentrated European settlements along the route began after Boston was settled about 1630. There are few records mentioning specific Coast Path travelers. Letters mention that Governor Winthrop traveled the route for two days in 1631 to meet with Governor Bradford. On that trip Winthrop was carried across the streams on the backs of Indians.<ref>Rothery, 5.</ref> Also, anyone who settled near the Coast Path during the 1600s likely used the Coast Path or the ocean to reach their new home, or to reach marketplaces in Boston and Plymouth. For records of the earliest settlers (and Coast Path travelers), see resources such as:  
The pathway from from Plymouth to Boston near the Atlantic Ocean shore was used by European settlers and traders by 1630, if not earlier. A few scattered settlers from Plymouth may have settled along the route in the decade following 1621. More concentrated European settlements along the route began after Boston was settled about 1630. There are few records mentioning specific Coast Path travelers. Letters mention that Governor Winthrop traveled the route for two days in 1631 to meet with Governor Bradford. On that trip Winthrop was carried across the streams on the backs of Indians.<ref>Rothery, 5.</ref> Also, anyone who settled near the Coast Path during the 1600s likely used the Coast Path or the ocean to reach their new home, or to reach marketplaces in Boston and Plymouth. For records of the earliest settlers (and Coast Path travelers), see resources such as:  


*Lucy Mary Kellogg, et. al., ''Mayflower Families Through Five Generations: Descendants of the Pilgrims Who Landed at Plymouth, Mass., December 1620'', 23+ vols. (Plymouth, Massachusetts: General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1975- ). {{WorldCat|2168141|item|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|86888|item|disp=FHL Book 974.4 D2mf}}.  
*Lucy Mary Kellogg, et. al., ''Mayflower Families Through Five Generations: Descendants of the Pilgrims Who Landed at Plymouth, Mass., December 1620'', 23+ vols. (Plymouth, Massachusetts: General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1975- ). {{WorldCat|2168141|item|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FSC|86888|item|disp=FS Library Book 974.4 D2mf}}.  
*Robert Charles Anderson, ''The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633'', 3 vols. (Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society, c1995). {{WorldCat|33083117|item|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|22717|item|disp=FHL Book 974 W2a}}.
*Robert Charles Anderson, ''The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633'', 3 vols. (Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society, c1995). {{WorldCat|33083117|item|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FSC|22717|item|disp=FS Library Book 974 W2a}}.


*[https://www.themayflowersociety.org/ General Society of Mayflower Descendants]  
*[https://www.themayflowersociety.org/ General Society of Mayflower Descendants]  

Latest revision as of 09:19, 19 August 2025


Did an ancestor travel the Coast Path of Massachusetts? Learn about this settler migration route, its transportation history, and find related genealogy sources.

Map of the Coast Path in light purple from Boston to Plymouth, Mass.

The Coast Path was a 45 mile (72 kilometer) migration route between Plymouth and Boston near the shore of Massachusetts.[1] [2]

Background History[edit | edit source]

The Pilgrims from England and the Netherlands founded Plymouth in 1620. The Puritans from England founded Boston in 1630. The Coast Path was the earliest overland route between the two.

The Coast Path probably pre-dated both colonies as part of a much longer American Indian trail with extensions as far north as Maine and New Brunswick (see Kennebunk Road) where the English and other Europeans dried cod from the Grand Banks for markets in Europe by the early 1500s.

The Coast Path (Road) was designated a public highway in 1639; in 1803 it was made a turnpike (toll road).[3]

Route[edit | edit source]

The Coast Path passed northwest to southeast through Suffolk, Norfolk, and Plymouth counties:

Suffolk County

*Boston (1630[4])

Norfolk County

*Milton (settled 1640[6])
*Quincy (settled 1626[7])
*Braintree (1640[8])
*Weymouth (settled 1623[9])
*Cohasset (east side of Hingham)(settled 1670[10])

Plymouth County

*Hingham (settled 1633[11])
*Scituate (settled 1627[12])
*Marshfield (settled 1627[13])
*Duxbury (settled 1627[14])
*Kingston (settled 1620[15])
*Plymouth (1620[16])

Connecting Routes Over time the Coast Path connected with half a dozen new migration routes out of the Boston end of the Coast Path:

*Bay Road connects Boston (Massachusetts Bay) to New Bedford (Buzzards Bay).
*Kennebunk Road links Boston along the New England coast to Augusta, Maine.
*King's Highway also known as the Boston Post Road goes from Boston, Massachusetts to New York City, and south to Charleston, South Carolina with extensions on each end. In Massachusetts and Connecticut there were at least three competing routes for the Boston Post Road. Parts were laid out 1650 to 1735; its length remained in heavy use through 1783, and some parts are used to this day.
*Mohawk or Iroquois Trail This trail was established in 1722 from Albany to Utica to Rome to Fort Oswego on Lake Ontario. The Boston to Albany side of that route probably preceded the Albany to Oswego route by many years.
*Old Connecticut Path a pre-historic Indian path from Boston, Massachusetts to the Connecticut River Valley at Springfield, Massachusetts and south to Hartford, Connecticut.
*Old Roebuck Road goes from Boston to Providence, Rhode Island (Narragansett Bay).

Modern parallels. The modern road that roughly matches the old Coast Path from Boston to Plymouth is:

*Massachusetts State Highway Route 3A between Boston and Plymouth.

Settlers and Records[edit | edit source]

The pathway from from Plymouth to Boston near the Atlantic Ocean shore was used by European settlers and traders by 1630, if not earlier. A few scattered settlers from Plymouth may have settled along the route in the decade following 1621. More concentrated European settlements along the route began after Boston was settled about 1630. There are few records mentioning specific Coast Path travelers. Letters mention that Governor Winthrop traveled the route for two days in 1631 to meet with Governor Bradford. On that trip Winthrop was carried across the streams on the backs of Indians.[17] Also, anyone who settled near the Coast Path during the 1600s likely used the Coast Path or the ocean to reach their new home, or to reach marketplaces in Boston and Plymouth. For records of the earliest settlers (and Coast Path travelers), see resources such as:

External Links[edit | edit source]

Sources[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 9th ed. (Logan, Utah: Everton Pub., 1999), pages 531 and M-48. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 1999.
  2. ↑ Frederic J. Wood, The Turnpikes of New England and the Evolution of the Same Through England, Virginia, and Maryland (Boston: Marshall Jones, 1919), 25. Internet Archive version online.
  3. ↑ Agnes Edwards (Rothery), PDF Book: The Old Coast Road From Boston to Plymouth (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1920), 7. At various libraries (WorldCat).
  4. ↑ Boston in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  5. ↑ Dorchester, Boston in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  6. ↑ Milton, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  7. ↑ Quincy, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  8. ↑ Braintree, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  9. ↑ Weymouth, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  10. ↑ Cohasset, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  11. ↑ Hingham, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  12. ↑ Scituate, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  13. ↑ Marshfield, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  14. ↑ Duxbury, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  15. ↑ Kingston, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  16. ↑ Plymouth, Massachusetts in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia (accessed 14 October 2014).
  17. ↑ Rothery, 5.
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