I've lived in Sandwich, Massachusetts my entire life, and there's definitely a lot about this small and historic town that is great. From the amazing locals that live here to the wonderful history that lies in this town, it's a special place that I hold close to my heart and there's so many reasons why Sandwich is a great town to live in.
1. The Boardwalk
The Sandwich Boardwalk is about 1350 feet in length and crosses Mill Creek and the marsh, leading to the Town Beach on Cape Cod Bay. Originally constructed in 1875 by Gustavus Howland (1822 – 1905), it has been rebuilt following the original design several times.The Boardwalk remains one of Sandwich’s unique treasures, offering scenic views from the Cape Cod Canal to Scorton Creek. It was chosen by National Geographic as one of the Top 10 boardwalks in the United States somewhat recently.The Sandwich Boardwalk is a major tourist attraction during the summer, and a favorite place for a good swim. You have not truly gotten the "Summer in Sandwich" experience without jumping off this Boardwalk at least once.
2. They Have A Killer Award Winning Show Choir
Sandwich Soul, Sandwich High School's show choir, has performed in many places around town for special performances, as well as traveling outside of the town to perform on bigger stages and venues. Sandwich Soul was asked and performed the National Anthem at the TD Garden for the Boston Celtics at one of their home games this year. They have also received multiple awards from competitions, including first place with a superior rating when they traveled to Florida very recently to participate in a competition there. There's no doubt that the performing arts are thriving here in Sandwich!
3. Cape Cod Baseball: The First Team Was In Sandwich
The Cape Cod Baseball League is recognized as the country’s most prestigious amateur baseball league. The rosters of all ten teams consist of some of the top college players from programs across the nation, many of whom are top MLB prospects and attract professional scouts. If you're a fan of baseball, going to a Cape Cod Baseball League game is always an enjoyable time during the summer. The Nichols Base Ball Club of Sandwich was the first 9-man baseball team on Cape Cod. This baseball league started off in Sandwich!
4. It's The Oldest Town On Cape Cod
Sandwich is the oldest town on Cape Cod, meaning it is full of a lot of history. 377 years of history can be seen throughout Sandwich in buildings, museums and so much more. There are many historic homes in Sandwich, including the Benjamin Nye Homestead, the Benjamin Holway House built in 1789 (which property hosts one of the original Nye Homestead structures built in 1698), and the Hoxie House, the oldest house on Cape Cod. Sandwich was also the site of an early Quaker settlement and today hosts the oldest continuous Quaker Meeting in the US.
5. The Museums
With loads of history, comes loads of museums to learn about that history. Sandwich has many museums throughout the town dedicated to the history of Sandwich and the people who lived here many years ago. While the Thornton W. Burgess Museum closed to the public a few years ago, the Thornton W. Burgess Society operates the Green Briar Nature Center and Jam Kitchen. There you can learn about nature, explore the wildflower garden, meet the resident animals, take a nature walk, make jam "the old-fashioned way" in the Jam kitchen, and also learn about Thornton W. Burgess' legacy and read some of his books. The Glass Museum is another museum where you can view glassblowing right before your eyes, the glass furnace, and new exhibits to better tell the story of the glass industry in Sandwich. You can also visit Dexter's Grist Mill, Cape Cod's oldest Grist Mill which is still working. One of my favorite Museums that I would go to as a child was Heritage Museums and Gardens. This place has exhibits of art, old-fashioned cars, history, and so much more. This museum also includes landscapes full of beautiful gardens and also an indoor carousel.
6. The Ongoing "Sandwich Police" Joke
Yes, this town is named after a food, which tourists find very funny when coming to visit. They find it so funny that it is an ongoing joke that has been posted on popular social media outlets many times. It's funny that our police cars say "Sandwich Police" and it's pretty hard not to make a joke about this. That's what makes our town so great though! We have a sense of humor!
7. The Community
The best part about living in Sandwich is the community of people that you meet. You seem to see so many people who live in Sandwich at all these town events supporting each other. The people in this community care about where they live. They care about the history of this town and work to preserve and embrace it. You will always see most Sandwich residents with a smile on their face and enjoying what the town has to offer. It's a very welcoming community.
These are just a few of the many reasons why I think Sandwich is a great place to live. There are many more I could list off, but then this list would be way too long. I will always think of Sandwich as my home. It's the place I grew up in and where I met so many amazing people. If you live in Sandwich, I think you would agree with me when I say that Sandwich is much more than just another town in Massachusetts. It's home forever... a place full of history...a place where we can participate in this history every day and also create our own history as well.
