If you've ever been to Yarmouth Port, there is a strong possibility you have visited thisstore, located on the busy corner of Route 6A and Willow Street. For many years it was the home of the Yarmouth Port Christmas Tree Shop - the original store in the popular Christmas Tree Shop chain located throughout NewEngland. Pictured here is the first store that occupied the site, operated by Captain James Crocker.Crocker's store burned in 1863 and was rebuilt in a nearly exact likeness. In 1865, E. Dexter Payne set up business here, selling dry goods, clothing, hats and caps, boots, shoes, four and groceries of all kinds.
----------------------------------------------- Looking east on 6a towards Dennis


this trio of homes is situated just beyond the intersection of Union Street. The first two homes are half capes, typical of the dwellings being built in Yarmouth from about 1750 to 1830 when the Greek
Revival style, seen in the third house, gained in popularity. What is readily apparent in this photograph is the amount of open space surrounding the homes in the 19th century. The harbor was then visible from many spots along Route 6A,
not blocked by tree growth and evelopment as it is today. Trees were valuable on the Cape, being used not only for building but as the major source of heat.
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Looking east on 6a towards DennisLooking west towards summer st

At the end of this view of Old Kings Highway (Route 6A), the road curves to the right and Summer Street veers to the left.
Throughout the 17th and 18th century, Summer Street was known as Hawes Lane,
or the Hyannis Road. It took travelers from Yarmouth and Dennis to Hyannis, and was a very busy thoroughfare. Subsequently,
many businesses were located on this well-traveled stretch of road including the Sears Tavern on the left (now the Old Yarmouth Inn) and Knowles store on the right (now Parnassus Book Service).
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Hallets then
and..Now

 The town now known as Yarmouth Port, located on the north side of Cape Cod, was originally known simply as Yarmouth. Called Mattacheese by the Indians, Yarmouth saw its first European settler arrive in 1638 when the Plymouth Colony gave permission to Mayflower passenger Stephen Hopkins to erect a house and winter his cattle. The following year, ten more settlers arrived and were allowed to "take up freedom at Yarmouth". Several of the families built houses around the present Mill Pond area, while others established homesteads farther east, near the first meeting house.
In ensuing generations, farmers turned to the sea for sustenance and trade. In the late 18th century, the hub of maritime activity centered around Bass Hole and the village boasted a ropewalk, tavern, two windmills, stores, saltworks, and small-scale shipbuilding. By the 1830s, however, the harbor area had begun to
silt in due to storms and shifting sands. Maritime enterprises and packet services were moved further west, to the "port" area of Yarmouth. This brought with it the building of shops, businesses, and many new homes. From 1800 to 1850, at the height of maritime activity, many sea captains built their stately homes along what is now Route 6A, nestled among the more modest Cape farmhouses of previous generations. If you close your eyes, you can almost hear the pounding of the blacksmith's anvil, and the clop clop of horses' hooves. f8TT he Taylor-Bray Farm in Yarmouth Port was originally settled in 1639 by Richard Taylor.
The farm remained in the Taylor family until 1896 when George and William Bray, two brothers who had worked for the Taylors, purchased the property. The Brays were often seen
selling their strawberry crop from a wheelbarrow on Old King Highway.The farm, a r are survivor of a type of property that once characterized north side agricultural development, was placed on the National
Register of Historical Places in 1993. A small flock of sheep is still kept at the farm.

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