Haunted New England places Dogtown, Cape Ann, Massachusetts

from Dogtown and Babson trail, Dogtown, Mass. 

Here's the first of several blogs about Haunted New England places. It is one in a series from the Quincy Mass. Patriot Ledger newspaper.This one is called Dogtown, located on Cape Ann in Massachusetts.


Dogtown, Cape Ann, Massachusetts

Once a somewhat prosperous inland settlement on Cape Ann in the 1600s, with nearly 100 families and plenty of pasture, the tides of war were not kind to this village north of Gloucester. First, the Revolutionary War brought a new economic boom around fishing and other marine industries, sending people past the village and to coastal Gloucester.

Then, the War of 1812 took the rest of the farmers still living there, creating a perfect place for pirates and other unsavory types to hide out away from the busier cities like Rockport. After the war, the village’s seedy reputation stuck. At one point, it was reportedly inhabited by witches, including Thomazine “Tammy” Younger, known as the “Queen of the Witches,” who would stand in the road and intimidate travelers as they passed by. Eventually even the unsavory residents moved elsewhere — often leaving their pets behind to turn feral, hence the name “Dogtown” — and the last buildings were demolished in 1845.

Now, the area is a public trust and open to hikers — just keep an eye out for the numerous cellar holes that still dot the land, as well as the 36 boulder carvings commissioned by Roger Babson sporting such ominous phrases as, “When work stops, values decay.”

SOURCE: From Patriot Ledger Newspaper- https://www.patriotledger.com/zz/news/20200312/4-creepy-new-england-ghost-towns-to-explore-with-map?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Haunted%20New%20England%2010&utm_content=GTNE_PA&utm_term=031320