Marstons Mills

Marstons Mills (sometimes spelled Marston's Mills) is a village in the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States. The village was first settled by Roger Goodspeed before 1653. It is located on glacial outwash plains, the northern boundary of which is the moraine hills of the West Barnstable conservation lands. It has many notable lakes, cranberry bogs, and ponds, including Mystic Lake, Middle Pond, Hamblin Pond, and Shubael Pond. The only grass airport left on the Cape is Cape Cod Airfield, which originally started in 1929 and was a Massachusetts Air National Guard summer training site in the 1930s. All but two of the bodies of water in the village are considered water surface area for fishing in the smaller lakes. Fishing is less prevalent in Marstons Mill than in the nearby town of Mystic, which is only the only fishing area in the entire Cape Cod area that is not open to the public. The town has two elementary schools, West Villages Elementary and Barnstable United Elementary School. Students in grades 7 and 8 attend Barnstable Middle School at Hyannis in Barnstable. In 2008 the Town of Barn stable closed three elementary schools. The building that housed the former middle school was then converted to Barnstable Horace Mann Charter School (BHMCS), with students in grades 5 and 6. There is also the 18-hole Olde Barnstable Fairgrounds Golf Course which is on the site of the old fairgrounds.

History

Marstons Mills is the primary city name, but also Marstons Mls are acceptable city names or spellings. The village was first settled by Roger Goodspeed before 1653. His granddaughter Lydia married Benjamin Marston who developed the fulling mill and weaving operations, giving the village its namesake. Benjamin built a cottage which stands today as the William Marston House, and is considered a historical building by the town. The village has a population of around 2,000. It is located on the banks of the River Mersey, which flows into the River Thames, which runs through the centre of the village. The town was first established in 1653 and is now home to about 2,200 people. It was first known as a village in 1652 and became a town in 1655. It has a history of more than 100 years, with the first recorded residents being in 1650. The current population is around 2.5,000, with most of the residents living in the village of Marston, which is on the edge of the Merseyside coast. The population has grown since the early 19th century, when it was just a few hundred people. The majority of the population now lives in the town of Williamston, with about 1,500 people living there in total. In the early 20th century the village was known as Marston's Landing, and the name was given to the village by its first inhabitants. The name Marston came from the Marston family, who lived in the area and ran a weaving business in the 17th century. The Marston house is considered to be one of the town's oldest buildings, dating back to the early 1800s.

Physical formation

Marstons Mills is located on glacial outwash plains, the northern boundary of which is the moraine hills of the West Barnstable conservation lands. The plains consist of sands and gravels deposited by glacial meltwaters; to the south finer particles of silts and clays form good agricultural soils. Ponds are formed in deep kettle holes, the most notable of which are Mystic, Middle, and Hamblin. These river valleys were cut by much more powerful forerunners of the present rivers, which are little more than streams today. Stripped of vegetation, these slopes erode easily and can become unstable. The area is best known for its sand dunes, which can be seen from a distance of up to 1,000 metres. It is also home to a number of wildlife reserves, such as the Mystic and Middle lakes, and the Little River, which was once the source of the Marston's Mills River and Little River. In the summer, the area is home to the Great Lakes Biosphere Reserve, which is a UNESCO World Heritage-listed area of grassland. The Great Lakes are the only area of the UK that has been completely glaciated since the mid-20th century, and are home to some of the world's most biodiverse ecosystems, including the Great Barrier Reef and the Arctic Archipelago. It also has some of Britain's most beautiful beaches, including Stony Point, which has been the site of some of England's most spectacular sunsets.

Main Street

Main Street in Marstons Mills is mostly residential, with Liberty Hall and the Mar stons Mills Public Library located on the road. Marston's Mills Community Church is located near the former Marstron's Elementary School and across from Liberty Hall. The town is home to a number of charities, including the American Cancer Society and the American Heart Association. The city's main street is named after the town's founder, William "Bill" Marston, who was born and raised in the town. The community is also known as "The Mills" and "The Mill" because of its location on the Mill River, which flows through the town and runs through the center of the city.

Schools

Marstons Mills has two elementary schools, West Villages Elementary and Barnstable United Elementary School. From the mid-1990s until 2003, Barnstable Middle School housed grades 6 through 8. In 2008 the Town of Barnstable closed three elementary schools. It made the BHMCS into a grade four and five school and Barn stable Middle School into Barnstable Intermediate School for grades six and seven. Students in grades 7 and 8 attend Barnstable High School (formerly BarnstableMiddle School at Hyannis) The eighth grade moved into Barn stable High School. The town's fifth grade building was converted to Barnstable Horace Mann Charter School (BHMCS), with students in grades 5 and 6. The school was closed in 2008 and the fifth grade was moved to the town's sixth grade building, which was converted into a seventh grade building. The seventh and eighth grades moved into the high school building, and the eighth grade went to the middle school. The elementary schools are located in the town of Marston's Mills, in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, on the Massachusetts Turnpike. It is about 50 miles south of Boston, on Route 1, and about 30 miles north of Boston on the Mass Pike. It has a population of about 2,000 people. It was founded as a town in 1838. It became a county town in 1861. It had a post-secondary school in 1872, and a college in 1883. It now has a high school and a middle school, as well as a charter school. It also has an elementary school.

Lakes

Marstons Mills has many notable lakes, cranberry bogs, and ponds. There have been issues with toxic algae in some of the ponds in the last several years. Prince Cove has salt water access, but it does not have a public beach, only a town-owned marina and boat ramp. The township is working to fix the algae problem in the ponds. The town has no saltwater beaches, but Prince Cove does have a salt water beach. It also has a number of ponds, including Mystic Lake, Middle Pond, Hamblin Pond, and Shubael Pond. It has no public beaches, except for Prince Cove, which has a saltwater beach and a marina, but no public beach in the rest of the town. It is located in the town of Marstons Mill, New Hampshire, and has a population of 2,000. It was founded in 1838. The first post-European settlement was in 1839, and the town has been in existence since 1841. It lies on the banks of the Susquehannock River, which runs through the center of the township. The name Marston's Mills comes from the word "marston" or "mills" which means "lake" in English. It's also known as "Mills" and "mill" in French, and "mill" means "mound" in German. It contains several ponds, some of which are called "ponds" and others "bogs".

Recreation

Burgess Park and the herring run provide leisure opportunities for adults and children of all ages. The only grass airport left on the Cape is Cape Cod Airfield, which originally started in 1929 and was a Massachusetts Air National Guard summer training site in the 1930s. There is also the 18-hole Olde Barnstable Fairgrounds Golf Course, which is on the site of the old fairgrounds. All but two bodies of water in the village are considered lakes for depth and water surface area. Fishing in the smaller ponds include mainly small perch and bass. Mercury in the fish is a concern in Mystic Lake. Hunting is less prevalent than fishing in Marstons Mills; the only hunting area is on conservation land in northwestern Marston's Mills, called West Barnstable Conservation. Hunting includes rabbit, deer, and wild turkey. The Long Pond Conservation has a scenic bike path (off Newtown Road). The only gateway to the ocean is Prince Cove which is the only gateway into the village. The village survey revealed that this property is favored second only to the pond beaches and is also identified as one of the valued scenic views. It has proven to be a very popular park for many different activities, most notably disc golf. Concern was expressed, however, for the incompatible nature and location of play equipment at Burgess Park. It was purchased by the town in 1989 for its historic and scenic values. It is located in the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts and is located on Cape Cod.