DANVERS MA FACTOID:

Danvers is located nearly halfway between Boston and the New Hampshire state border. It is bordered by Topsfield to the north, Wenham to the northeast, Beverly to the east, a small portion of Salem to the southeast, Peabody to the south and southwest, and Middleton to the northwest. The town center lies 4 miles north from Salem, 16 miles west of Gloucester, 18 miles northeast of Boston, and 19 miles southeast from the nearest point in New Hampshire, at Salem. Interstate 95 and Route 128 both pass through the town, just east of their junction in Peabody. U.S. Route 1 also passes through town, with a large junction with Interstate 95 in the northwest end of town.

The land that is now Danvers was once controlled by the Naumkeag branch of the Massachusett tribe. Around 1630, settlers converted an existing Naumkeag trail into the Old Ipswich Road, creating a connection to the main cities of Salem and Boston. Danvers was permanently settled in 1636 as Salem Village, and eventually petitioned the Crown for a charter as a town. According to legend, the King, rather than signing the charter, returned it with the message "The King Unwilling."