Chappaquiddick Island

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Chappaquiddick Island is a small island off the eastern end of the larger island of Martha's Vineyard and is part of the town of Edgartown, Massachusetts. The island's name became nationally recognized following the Chappaquiddick incident, when Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy drove off the island's Dike Bridge in July 1969.

Until the winter of 2007 the two islands were connected by a narrow two-mile (3 km) strip of beach (Katama Beach), which from time to time would become breached due to weather. As of April 2007, the two entities are not connected, separated by a 300-yard (270 m) breach caused by a strong storm. ^[1] The southeastern point of this beach is called Wasque Point—a popular fishing spot for catching bluefish, striped bass, etc.

Privately owned barge-like ferries called the On Time II and On Time III shuttle pedestrians, bicycles, and up to three cars at a time between Chappaquiddick and downtown Edgartown on Martha's Vineyard. Two ferries run during the summer months and one during the off-season. The island has just one business, a combination of a general store and an automobile mechanic's garage, which is only open in the summer.

Besides the Dike Bridge, tourists come to the isolated island to visit the MyToi Gardens, a small Japanese garden created amidst the native brush.

Contents 1 Origin 2 Geography 3 Incident involving Senator Kennedy 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Origin

The name Chappaquiddick comes from an Indian word "cheppiaquidne" meaning "separated island", so named because this island is separated from Martha's Vineyard by a narrow strait or gut.^[2][3]

The island has been historically spelled as "Chaubaqueduck" or, alternately, "Chappaquidgick."^[4]

The island was once mainly the home territory of the Chappaquiddick band of Wampanoag Indians, remaining exclusively theirs well into the nineteenth century. They still have a reservation of about a 100 acres (400,000 m²) of brush land in the interior.

[edit] Geography

On a map, Chappaquiddick can be located at 41°22′34″N 70°28′33″W / 41.37611°N 70.47583°W / 41.37611; -70.47583. The United States Census Bureau defines it as Block Group 1, Census Tract 2003 of Dukes County, Massachusetts. It has 15.915 km² (6.145 sq mi) of land.^[5]

Administratively, it is part of the town of Edgartown and Dukes County. Socially, its residents form a tight-knit community and see themselves as distinctly separate from the rest of Edgartown.^{[citation needed]} Longtime residents speak of "going to the mainland" when they travel to Edgartown and of "going to America" when (for example) they travel to Boston or Cape Cod. As of the 2000 census, the island had only 172 year-round residents and 475 houses, as well as numerous wildlife preserves and beaches.

[edit] Incident involving Senator Kennedy

Events at Chappaquiddick attracted international notoriety on July 19, 1969 when the dead body of Mary Jo Kopechne was discovered inside an overturned car in a channel on the island. The car belonged to Senator Edward (Ted) Kennedy, who did not report the midnight incident to police authorities until the following morning. Kopechne's body was recovered from the submerged vehicle, and Kennedy entered a plea of guilty to a charge of "leaving the scene of an accident after causing injury." He received a sentence of two months in jail, which was suspended.

[edit] See also

• Cape Poge Lighthouse
• Edgartown Yacht Club Regatta

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Martha's Vineyard Vacation Tips
• Yahoo Travel Guide for Martha's Vineyard
• Chappy Ferry website
• Chappaquiddick Wampanoag
• Mytoi Gardens
• Wasque Reservation

Coordinates: 41°22′34″N 70°28′33″W / 41.37611°N 70.47583°W / 41.37611; -70.47583