The Islands (Massachusetts)

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The Islands is a region of the U.S. state of Massachusetts commonly including Dukes County and Nantucket County. Some notable towns there include Oak Bluffs, Vineyard Haven, Edgartown, West Tisbury, Gosnold, and Nantucket. It is the location of numerous beach resorts, celebrity second homes, and preserved buildings dating back to the whaling era. The disputed territories that would become the Islands came under absolute British control following their acquisition of the former Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, after which they were transferred from the governance of the renamed New York to Massachusetts and then separated into two counties. Originally the home of indigenous Wampanoag, the area was otherwise inhabited by only a few landlords and seafaring families until a brief golden era when local population and wealth grew immensely from being the home of many commercial whalers and their crews due to demand for blubber for use in oil lamps. This market became obsolete following the development of modern petroleum extraction with dire consequences for local sailors and merchants until the area was discovered as a summer colony, first by wealthy visitors from mainland New England and later from around the country and beyond. Much of the isolated rural culture of the Islands has been preserved from new construction despite being the fastest growing part of Massachusetts partly because they can be easily accessed only by ferry or aircraft due to their separation from the rest of of the state by Vineyard Sound and Nantucket Sound. Although the arrival of large numbers of people as well as new homes, retailers, and restaurants has led to rising costs for many long-time residents, the unique local lifestyle is still visible in part by a perennial secession movement of variable strength. Attractions there include Flying Horses Carousel, Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge, Polly Hill Arboretum, and Troubled Shores supplemented by ample opportunities for cycling, equestrianism, fishing, sailing, and some of the finest whale watching in the world. The Islands have been a part of the lives of many noted personalities, including Mary Morrill, Mayhew Folger, Lucretia Mott, Rowland Hussey Macy, Walter Cronkite, William Styron, William Labov, Ted Kennedy, David McCullough, and Carly Simon.