Updated on Apr 13, 2021
Tisbury is a town located on Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,815 at the 2020 census.
Vineyard Haven is the main village/town center of Tisbury. The two names are used interchangeably. As can be seen in the history section below, the town of Tisbury was incorporated within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1671 and remains the legal name of the town to this day. However, the port and harbor have had varying names. "Holmes Hole" was one of the first names of the port within the town of Tisbury. This name was later changed to "Vineyard Haven", which is the official post office name for the community. To residents of Martha's Vineyard, "Vineyard Haven" is by far the more common usage, although residents recognize Tisbury as the town's legal name.
Vineyard Haven in Tisbury is the main port of entrance to Martha's Vineyard and is the only operational port on the island during most of the year.
The Wampanoag have lived on Martha's Vineyard, which they called Noepe, continuously for approximately 5,000-15,000 years. The first English maritime explorer, Bartholomew Gosnold, came in 1602. Six decades later, in 1660, Tisbury was first settled by James Allen, William Peabody and Lt. Josiah Standish, a son of Captain Myles Standish. It was officially incorporated in 1671 by Francis Lovelace, Governor General of New York. The town, which originally included the lands of West Tisbury, was named for Tisbury, Wiltshire, England, the hometown of Martha's Vineyard Governor Mayhew. Citizens of the island, unhappy with the leadership of Governor Mayhew, petitioned William III and Mary II in 1673 for a change of leadership, and the entire island, including the town, became a part of Massachusetts.
The town was divided into its current boundaries in 1892.
The town has long thrived on the sea and is now the home of the main ferry docks for the island. The island's first and primary ferry line is the Steamship Authority, which runs to and from Woods Hole, New Bedford, and Nantucket (in the summer months from the Oak Bluffs terminal), all in Massachusetts. There are several other private ferry lines that serve Martha's Vineyard as well, with terminals in the towns of Oak Bluffs and Edgartown. To get an idea of the embarkation in summer of passengers, tourists primarily, and goods, see the early scene in the movie Jaws which shows the debarkation on "Amity Island" of a typical boatload in summer at the Vineyard Haven Steamship Authority facility from the steamship Naushon . At the time of the filming of Jaws in 1975 this was the largest of the ferries, running only in the summer months for its high passenger capacity. It ceased service in 1987 and has been replaced by more modern vessels.
Like the rest of Martha's Vineyard, is a popular summer resort for the rich and famous. Residents of Tisbury have included Art Buchwald, William Styron, Mike Wallace, Lillian Hellman, Carly Simon, Thornton Wilder, Dashiell Hammett, Katharine Cornell and Diane Sawyer.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town of Tisbury has a total area of , of which is land and , or 65.79%, is water. The town ranks 329th out of the 351 communities in the Commonwealth in terms of land area, and is sixth out of the seven towns of Dukes County (only Aquinnah is smaller). Tisbury is bordered by Vineyard Haven Harbor, Lagoon Pond and Oak Bluffs to the east, West Tisbury to the southwest, and Vineyard Sound to the northwest. The town shares a common corner, along with West Tisbury and Oak Bluffs, with Edgartown. Localities of the town include Vineyard Haven, Makonikey, Pilot Hill, West Chop, and Lambert's Cove.
Measuring from the western shore of Tisbury to Nobska Point at Woods Hole (town of Falmouth), the town is from the mainland (Cape Cod), the closest point on the Vineyard. Most of central Tisbury is low-lying and near sea level, with elevations rising to in places. West Chop is the northernmost point on the Vineyard, tipped by the West Chop Light. The town is also home to Lake Tashmoo, just south of the tip of West Chop.
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,755 people, 1,646 households, and 902 families residing in the town. The population density was 572.4 people per square mile (221.0/km). There were 2,720 housing units at an average density of 414.7 per square mile
More about WEST CHOP under "Town Info"
This page uses material from the Wikipedia article West Chop, Massachusetts , which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.