Dennis Town

Barnstable County, Massachusetts

Dennis Town Hall is located at 485 Main Street, South Dennis, MA 02660.
Phone: 508‑394‑8300.

Neighborhoods

Beginnings [1]

First settled around 1639, the Town of Dennis was incorporated in 1793. Originally part of the Town of Yarmouth, it was named for the Reverend Josiah Dennis who was pastor of the first meeting house established here.

About 1816 cranberry culture was started at North Dennis by a native who noticed that wild cranberries grew best when a light sand covering had been blown over them. Sand overlay quickly became an essential part of the cultivation of those berries.

About 1837, Dennis was an important fishing and coastal trading center.

1. Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration for Massachusetts, Massachusetts: A Guide to Its Places and People, American Guide Series, The Riverside Press, Cambridge, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1937.