Beverly (Massachusetts)

Having a varied landscape, Beverly is home to a number of different neighborhoods each with their own unique personalities and institutions.

There are roughly 10 neighborhoods:

• Downtown Beverly — The center of the city, and the most urban neighborhood, based mainly on Cabot, Rantoul, and Elliot Streets. Divided into the sub-neighborhoods of Goat Hill, Fish Flake Hill, and Prospect Hill. Home to the Cabot Theater, Montserrat College of Art, residences, and numerous businesses. Possesses the Beverly train station.
• Ryal Side — Suburban neighborhood on western side of the city. Mostly residential, but does possess some businesses on Bridge and Elliot Streets including the Ryal Side Plaza. Divided into the sub-neighborhood of Shingleville.
• North Beverly — Placid, mostly residential neighborhood with businesses scattered on main thoroughfares of Cabot, Dodge, Conant, Enon, and McKay Streets including the North Beverly and Commodore Plazas. Subdivided into the sub-neighborhoods of Raymond Farms and Folly Hill/Apple Village. Possesses the North Beverly train station along with Beverly Airport.
• Gloucester Crossing — Semi-urban, semi-residential neighborhood, originally built-up for housing the workers at the Shoe. Somewhat rough around the edges in its residential part, it's also home to the Shoe's service-based and highly renovated successor - the Cummings Center.
• Montserrat — Loosely defined, suburban, residential neighborhood. Home to the Sterling YMCA, Beverly Hospital, and Sally Milligan Park. Possesses the Montserrat train station.
• Cove — Suburban, relatively affluent (though not so much as Prides Crossing/the Farms), residential neighborhood. Home to Lynch Park, the city's primary greenspace, and several beaches. President William Howard Taft once rented a summer home here, in the area that is now this park. More built up than the neighborhoods to the east, and closer to the Downtown.
• Centerville — Suburban, mostly middle class, car-dependent neighborhood. Relatively wooded and isolated, it is close to Route 128 and has a small nucleus of stores centered on Hull St.
• Beverly Farms — Also known locally as simply the Farms, in combination with Prides Crossing it is one of the more affluent and isolated sections of the city. Namesake of the glamorous Beverly Hills, California. Centered around a small village center of small shops on Hale and West Streets, with much of its area wooded and rural. Contains large homes in the woods and on the beach, while more humble residences lie near the village center. Possesses the Beverly Farms train station.
• Prides Crossing — A sparsely built-up, wooded neighborhood centered on a tiny cluster of buildings at its center, and defined by large houses and old mansions on private drives. Possesses the Prides Crossing train station, which is unsurprisingly only stopped at on peak times and is also home to a well-known eponymous candy store. Endicott College lies in the neighborhood, founded in the area's old mansions.

Depending on the neighborhood, Beverly can be navigated by a variety of transportation means. In the city's downtown, walking is recommended as there is much to see on a walk up Cabot, Rantoul, or Loring Streets. Biking is also encouraged. Both means of transportation have been encouraged the city, with Beverly planning on making its center more bike and walk friendly in the near future.

If you're traveling to the neighborhood of North Beverly, Montserrat, Prides Crossing, or Beverly Farms from the downtown, as stated before each of them possesses an eponymous train station that makes it convenient to move around. Keep in mind that, having so many train stations, some of these neighborhood stations are flag stops during non-peak times. In addition, Prides Crossing station has the third lowest ridership on the entire MBTA, so trains only stop there at peak times when flagged. If at a non-peak time and going to Prides Crossing via train, stop at Beverly Farms station instead and make the short walk east. The Newburyport/Rockport line splits into the Newburyport and Rookport branches after Beverly station, with North Beverly being on the Newburyport branch and Montserrat, Prides Crossing, and Beverly Farms, being on the Rockport branch, so make sure to get on the right train to where you need to go.

For the more isolated neighborhoods such as Centerville or the outer reaches of Beverly Farms, it may be advantageous to travel by car. However, in nice weather travel by bicycle is a pleasant if strenuous form of transportation as the isolated wooded roads of the aforementioned neighborhoods can make for an enjoyable ride.

• 🌍 Balch House - Historic Beverly, Rt. 1A, ☏ +1 978-922-1186. One of the oldest standing timber-framed houses in America, dating to at least 1679. Operated by Historic Beverly. Open for tours during summer months. $5 adults, $4 Seniors, free for children under 16. 
• 🌍 Cabot House - Historic Beverly, 117 Cabot Street, ☏ +1 978 922-1186. Tu F Sa 9:30AM – 4PM, W 1 – 9PM, Th 9:30AM – 9PM. Closed all Sundays & Holidays.. Tu-F 10AM-4PM, Sa noon-4PM. Closed all Sundays & holidays. One of the first brick structures built in Beverly, and once home to the headquarters of the Beverly Bank. Open year round. $5 adults, $4 seniors, free for children under 16.. 
• 🌍 Cabot Street Cinema Theatre, 286 Cabot St. Stately old theater, built with frescoes, filigrees, golden dome, and full balcony - dating to 1920. Once home to Le Grand David, the longest-running stage magic show in the world, which had its last show in 2012 after 35 years. Functions as a performing arts center, "The Cabot," offering a mixture of film, music, and performances. (updated Jan 2017)
• 🌍 Fish Flake Hill, Front St (between Cabot St and Bartlett St overlooking Beverly Harbor). This oldest section of Beverly was named a Historic District in 1971. Its historical significance is as a major fish-drying location and the former residence place of several prominent sea captains, including Revolutionary War privateer Hugh Hill. 
• 🌍 Hale Farm - Historic Beverly, 39 Hale Street, ☏ +1 978 922-1186. Closed all holidays. Built in 1695, and added on to over the years by the Hale family until its sale to the Beverly Historical Society in the 20th century. Open for tours during summer months. $5 adults, $4 seniors, free for children under 16.. 
• 🌍 Long Hill, 572 Essex St. Atlantic Monthly editor Ellery Sedgwick purchased the 114-acre Long Hill in 1916 and the house was built in 1921 with bricks from an early mill in Ipswich. Now managed by the Trustees of Reservations, the property also contains formal gardens, 2 miles (3.2 km) of hiking trails, woodlands, meadows and an apple orchard. The 5 acres (20,000 m²) of cultivated gardens and 100 acres (0.40 km²) of woodland grounds are open to the public daily. 
• 🌍 222 Cabot Gallery and Studios, Second Floor, 222 Cabot St., ☏ +1 802-999-5506. Th 5-7PM, Sa 11AM-2PM. Local art gallery with a mission to create opportunities for artists and creative professionals to exhibit their artwork and host events geared toward holistic collectors in Beverly and surrounding communities. Hosts monthly exhibitions. 
• 🌍 North Shore Music Theatre, 62 Dunham Rd, ☏ +1 978 232-7200. The largest non-profit professional theater in New England with its 26 acre Dunham Woods campus. Arranged the largest non-profit professional theater in New England. Laid out as a 1500-seat signature theatre-in-the-round, it presents Broadway quality musicals, concerts and Kids Shows. 
• 🌍 United Shoe Machinery Co., 181 Elliott Street (Now the Cummings Center.). Built in 1903-06 and affectionately remembered by locals as the Shoe, it is ranked by architectural historians as one of the most significant industrial landmarks in the United States. It was the largest concrete reinforced structure in the world until 1937. The main buildings comprising the site are now home to the Cummings Center, which contains exhibits and memorials to the once ever-present city employer. 

• 🌍 North Shore Charters, 43 Water St., ☏ +1 978 479-8648, +1 617-513-5830, northshorecharters@gmail.com. Fishing for striped bass and other gamefish. Keepers guaranteed. 

There are numerous shops to visit in Beverly, especially along Cabot Street which is home to comic book store Paper Asylum, bookstore Cabot Street Books & Cards, and chocolatier Winfrey's Fudge & Chocolates. Cabot Street is also home to several clothing and consignment stores such as Worthy Girl and The Golden Hangar, housed in a historic building at Ellis Square. A block away from the Montserrat School of Art, goods & gifts shops Field House and Good Neighbor are in the center of the city and sell a creative array of items.

Elsewhere, in North Beverly there is the North Beverly Plaza, a center of commerce for decades home to Staples, Modell's Sporting Goods, The Paper Store, Dressbarn, Gamestop, and more. Further north, there is Commodore Plaza which is home to a branch of Edible Arrangements, athletic supply store New England Running Company, and across the street from dressmaker Over the Rainbow. Also in North Beverly, there is Barbara's Hang-Up a picture frame shop highly visible from Route 128 and the highly acclaimed bookstore Annie’s Book Stop.

There are numerous places to eat in Beverly (including over seven competitive pizza places) but here are a few of the most prominent:

• 🌍 The Indo, 298 Cabot St. Aye, it's the olde Irish pub. (updated Sep 2018)

• 🌍 Beverly Farms Bed & Breakfast Inn, 28 Hart Street, ☏ +1 978 922-6074. 

Beverly is generally a very safe community, with a violent and property crime rate below the state average. In daytime, you should feel safe walking pretty much anywhere in the city.

The neighborhoods of Gloucester Crossing and Downtown near Rantoul/Park Streets are somewhat rougher and grittier than the rest of the city, so it may be advisable to take caution in those areas at night. Still, the chance of a violent crime committed on someone, especially a visitor, is quite low.

• Take Route 1A or Route 97 north to Wenham, home of the Wenham Museum and Gordon College.
• Drive on Route 128 or Route 127 east to Manchester-by-the-Sea, home of Singing Beach, or go further to the seaport towns of Gloucester and Rockport on Cape Ann.
• Go south on the Veterans Memorial Bridge or Kernwood Bridge to Salem, famous for its 1692 witchcraft trials and annual Halloween celebration.
• Go west on Route 128, Route 62, or Conant St. to Danvers, home of the Liberty Tree Mall and the actual location of the 1692 witchcraft hysteria.