Welcome to the Town of Sandwich Massachusetts

Settlers from Plymouth Colony began to build houses in Sandwich in 1637 which makes the town the first European settlement on Cape Cod. Before these settlers arrived in Sandwich, a tribe of Wampanoag Indians occupied the area. Plymouth Colony had a good relationship with these Native Americans who allowed Europeans to settle on the naturally deep harbor in Sandwich.

In the mid-nineteenth century, the Boston & Sandwich Glass Company made the sleepy town of Sandwich into an industrial center. The glass factory   operated from 1825 and 1888 was one of the first factories in the world to produce pressed, lead-based glass. Over six decades, the Boston & Sandwich Glass Company refined the process of pressed glass production and exported its glassware worldwide.

Visitors can learn more about the work of the Boston & Sandwich Glass Company in the Sandwich Glass Museum. This museum contains thousands of examples of the company’s brightly colored tableware, lamps, and perfume bottles. The Sandwich Glass Museum also operates a glass furnace where museumgoers can watch modern glassblowers in action.

Where Sandwich meets Cape Cod Bay, the Sandwich Boardwalk reaches across salty marshlands to connect the town with the water of the bay. Since the late nineteenth century, this sun-bleached “plank walk” has been an iconic symbol of the town. In response to erosion and major damage from winter storms, residents have restored and rebuilt the wooden boardwalk many times over the last century. At the end of Sandwich Boardwalk, lies Town Neck Beach, a long stretch of sand and pebbles. From this beach, visitors can watch ships coming and going in the nearby Cape Cod Canal. On a clear day, the view from the beach includes Wellfleet, Provincetown, and the white cliffs near Sagamore. Swimmers and sunbathers flock to this north-facing beach for its great views and its constant sun.