The upper horn
terminates with Point Shirley, in the town of Winthrop. The lower horn
is a narrow ridge of land of varying width, extending four miles from
the mainland, then abruptly turning to the westward for three miles.
This peninsula is the town of Hull; the sharp elbow is Point Allerton.
The stretch of four miles from the point to the mainland is of greatly
varying width, the harbor side being of most irregular and fantastic
outline; but the side toward the sea is smooth and even, and forms
Nantasket Beach,--one of the most popular watering-places on the
Atlantic coast.
The development of Nantasket as a summer resort began a long time ago,
although the era of large hotels and popular excursions began in the
last few years. Forty or fifty vears ago people from Boston, Dorchester,
Hingham, and other towns, when hungering for a sniff of unalloyed
sea-breeze, or a repast of the genuine clam-chowder, were in the habit
of resorting to this beach, where they could pitch their tents, or
find accommodations in the rather humble cottages which were already
beginning to dot the shore. That the delights of the beach were
appreciated then is evinced by the habitual visits of many noted men of
the time, among them Daniel Webster, who often came here for recreation,
usually bringing his gun with him that he might indulge his sporting
proclivities; and, according to his biographer, "he was a keen
sportsman.
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