Menemsha ( ) is a small

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 ...

located in the town of Chilmark on the island of

Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard, often simply called the Vineyard, is an island in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, lying just south of Cape Cod. It is known for being a popular, affluent summer colony, and includes the smaller peninsula Chappaquiddick Isla ...

in Dukes County,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, United States. It is located on the eastern coast of Menemsha Pond, adjacent to the opening into the

Vineyard Sound Vineyard Sound is the stretch of the Atlantic Ocean which separates the Elizabeth Islands and the southwestern part of Cape Cod from the island of Martha's Vineyard, located offshore from the state of Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), ...

on the pond's northern end. The village's historic

harbor A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

serves as the point of departure for local fishermen, some from multi-generational fishing families, as well as charter boats to the

Elizabeth Islands The Elizabeth Islands are a chain of over 20 small islands extending southwest from the southern coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts in the United States. They are located at the outer edge of Buzzards Bay, north of Martha's Vineyard, from whic ...

and elsewhere. Besides charter fishing and cruises, other amenities are the public beach adjacent to the harbor and the bicycle ferry across Menemsha Pond to

Aquinnah Aquinnah ( ; ) is a New England town, town located on the western end of Martha's Vineyard island, Massachusetts, United States. From 1870 to 1997, the town was incorporated as Gay Head. At the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 439. Aquinnah ...

. Menemsha is the location of a

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

station, Coast Guard Station Menemsha, and was once known as Menemsha Creek. It was the shooting background for the fictional "Amity Island" of Steven Spielberg's 1975 film '' Jaws''. Sunset at Menemsha Harbor

Notes

External links

Menemsha Harbor
Beaches of Massachusetts Fishing communities in the United States Geography of Martha's Vineyard Landforms of Dukes County, Massachusetts Populated coastal places in Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Chilmark, Massachusetts Villages in Dukes County, Massachusetts Villages in Massachusetts {{USCG-stub