Essex Shipbuilding Museum

Have a Devil of a Time in Ipswich

Published September 23, 2020 | By Clark Norton

According to legend, Ipswich’s “Devil’s Footprint” was formed when Satan leaped off a local church steeple. Photo from Historic Ipswich.

Following up on his Ipswich fried clams post — part I of a two-part series on the historic, scenic, and all-around inviting area of Ipswich and Essex, Massachusetts — contributing writer Bob Waite now asks us to back away from the table long enough to enjoy the other sometimes devilish delights the region has to offer.

By Robert Waite

Ipswich, MA – You can have a devil of a time in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Or at least the residents apparently did back in the 1740’s.

According to local legend, a visit by a famous English fire-and-brimstone preacher, the Rev. George Whitfield, to the town’s First Congregational Church, located atop Town Hill, attracted a crowd of thousands – and a curious Satan.

Whitfield, who had no sympathy for the devil, called Satan… Continue reading →