Book Description

"The North End Papers, 1618-1880," by Oliver B. Merrill, were originally published in installments in the "Newburyport [Massachusetts] Daily News" in 1906 and 1908. The author, a lifelong resident of the North End of the town, had as his purpose to "trace the ownership of the land from the first owners of the sold down to modern time [1908], and to give the history of the substantial and solidly built houses that have stood the sunshine and storms of more than a century, and are good for the use of many generations yet to come." Not content merely to transcribe Merrill's original articles, Margaret Motes scoured the collections of the History Society of Old Newbury for relevant photographs of the North End, as well as shot new photographs of structures that have survived from the author's day. Readers will find 27 such illustrations throughout her transcription, as well as a name and subject index of 3,000 entries to the contents of the volume.