Essex is a coastal town with 3,500 residents sitting just 26 miles north of the bustling city of Boston. Despite having the same name as its county, Essex was incorporated much later than its neighboring towns in 1819. The waterside town was founded by settlers in 1634, but it was inhabited by the Agawam tribe and didn’t become officially settled by Europeans until the early 19th century.
There is little direct access to the Ipswich Bay or the Atlantic Ocean. Despite this, Essex was a major shipbuilding town with a shipyard at its very northeast corner. The central part of Essex mainly lies on a marshland surrounded by the Essex River, several creeks, and many low hills.
Because of this landscape, Essex holds onto that rural charm with plenty of forested areas and open spaces—but this also means that locals are no stranger to uninvited pests including termites and rodents.