Pembroke
PEMBROKE -- Shipbuilders, shoe boxes, and cranberries were once the lifeblood of this town. These days, home is where the town is: residential development increased the town's population by 1,000 percent between 1930 and 2000, according to a town history.
Once part of Duxbury, the town was settled by Europeans around 1650 and split off to become its own community in 1712. New England's forests and the North River led to a shipbuilding industry functioning for more than a century. A Pembroke-built ship figured in the Boston Tea Party and Pembroke's link to shipbuilding is reflected in the town seal that features a sailing ship. Wooden ships gave way to cranberry patches and shoe-box making for shoe companies in neighboring towns into the 20th century.
With five ponds -- Furnace, Great Sandy Bottom, Little Sandy Bottom, Oldham, and Stetson -- and the Indian Head River within its borders, Pembroke found itself a popular summer destination that has slowly evolved into a year-round population that is now more than 16,000.
On a recent week, Realtor.com listed 160 single-family homes, ranging from $189,000 for a two-bed, one-bath, 1,000-square-foot home to $1.5 million for a four-bed, 3.5-bath, 4,356-square-foot home. Median price of a single-family home through September was $350,000, according to the Warren Group, which publishes real estate information.
JOHN RICHARDSON ELLEMENT 