Manchester-by-the-Sea. Manchester-by-the-Sea is a town on Cape Ann, in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is known for scenic beaches and vista points. At the 2010 census, the population was 5,136. Manchester was first settled by English colonists in 1629 and was officially incorporated in 1645. It was formed from territory taken from Salem and Gloucester. The community thrived primarily as a fishing community for more than 200 years. Beginning in 1845, it started to attract summer residents from the Boston area after poet Richard Dana built a house in the town. Over the next fifty years, development of summer houses along the coastline established the community as Boston society's community of choice for summer residency. The trend continued with designs of houses by architects, such as Sunny Waters, designed by John Hubbard Sturgis for his older brother, Russell, in 1862. The best known of these summer cottages was Kragsyde, built on Smith's Point in 1883. Commissioned by George Nixon Black, the Peabody and Stearns-designed residence has been hailed as the zenith of the Shingle style substyle of the Queen Anne style of architecture. It was demolished in 1929. To prevent confusion with the nearby and much larger city of Manchester, New Hampshire, the name of the town was officially changed in 1989 following a close town meeting vote that year. This was ratified by an act of the state legislature passed on September 25, 1989. The name change was driven by Edward Corley, a longtime resident of Manchester. All town documents, and the town seal, now use the name Manchester-by-the-Sea. As a result of some minor resident activism, so do the majority of public and private lists of Massachusetts cities and towns, including that of the state government. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 18.3 square miles, of which 9.2 square miles is land and 9.0 square miles, or 49.47%, is water. The town lies along the North Shore of Massachusetts Bay, which in turn leads to the Atlantic Ocean. There are seven beaches lining the coast, and several small islands dot the coast, the largest being Kettle Island and House Island. Several small coves edge the coast, the largest being Manchester Harbor, which is fed by Sawmill Brook and other small bodies of water. There are several protected areas within town, including Cedar Swamp Conservation Area, Cheever Commons Conservation Area, Coolidge Reservation, Dexter Pond, Owl's Nest Nature Preservation Land, Powder House Hill Reservation, and Wyman Hill Conservation Area. Manchester-by-the-Sea is bordered by Beverly and Wenham to the west, Hamilton to the northwest, Essex to the north, and Gloucester to the east. The town is located 9 miles northeast of Salem and 24 miles northeast of Boston. Manchester-by-the-Sea lies along Massachusetts Route 128, the inner of two beltways around Greater Boston. Route 128 has two exits within town as it passes from Beverly to Gloucester, with a small portion crossing through the corner of Essex. Route 127 also passes from west to east through town, traveling through the center of town. There is no bus service directly into town, with service passing east via the Cape Ann Transportation Authority in Gloucester and MBTA Bus, which provides service to Beverly. The town is served by a stop along the Newburyport/Rockport Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail, providing service from Rockport along the North Shore to Boston's North Station. The nearest airport is the Beverly Municipal Airport, with the nearest national and international service at Boston's Logan International Airport.