Orleans, Massachusetts, United States

🇺🇸 Orleans is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts situated along Cape Cod.

For geographic and demographic information on the place Orleans, please see the article Orleans (CDP), Massachusetts.

History Orleans was settled in 1693 by Pilgrims from the Plymouth Colony who were dissatisfied with the poor soil and small tracts of land granted to them. The town was officially separated from Eastham and incorporated in 1797. It was named in honor of Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans in recognition of France's support for the Thirteen Colonies during the American Revolution and because the town did not want an English name, as they had been captured twice by the British during the war.

The town's early history revolved around fishing, whaling, and agriculture. As the fishing industry grew, salt works sprang up to help preserve the catches. However, the town's growth depleted it of lumber, a situation that did not begin to be remedied until the railroad came and brought lumber from the mainland in the 19th century. The railroad also brought tourism to the town. In 1898, the French Cable Company built a 3,200-mile-long (5,100 km) transatlantic telegraph cable to Orleans, which operated from the French Cable Station.

Orleans was shelled by a German submarine in July 1918, during World War I. The town's tourism industry was helped in 1961 with the creation of the Cape Cod National Seashore by President John F. Kennedy.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 22.7 square miles (58.7 km²), of which 14.1 square miles (36.6 km²) is land and 8.5 square miles (22.0 km²), or 37.59%, is water. Orleans is bordered by Eastham to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Pleasant Bay and the town of Chatham to the south, Harwich to the south-west, Brewster to the west, and Cape Cod Bay to the northwest.

Orleans is 27 miles (43 km) south of Provincetown, 22 miles (35 km) east of Barnstable, 36 miles (58 km) east of the Sagamore Bridge, and 90 miles (140 km) south-east of Boston. Orleans is located on the inner "elbow" section of Cape Cod. Bogs and ponds dot the western part of town, while there are many inlets, islands and harbors along the eastern coast of the town, including Town Cove, Nauset Harbor, Pleasant Bay, and Little Pleasant Bay. Rock Harbor, bounded by and shared with the town of Eastham, is located in the "crease" of the inner elbow and provides boating access to Cape Cod Bay. Cape Cod National Seashore lies along the coast as well.

Transport The town line between Eastham and Orleans is the site of the termini of Massachusetts Routes 6A and 28. The two routes join in the Orleans town centre and end at a rotary with Route 6 at the Eastham town line. Massachusetts Route 39, which traces a portion of the Brewster town line, ends in the southern part of Orleans at Route 28. Other than two small non-outleted lanes, only Route 6 and Bridge Road pass northward into Eastham. Orleans has no rail or air service in town. The nearest regional air service can be reached in nearby Chatham, and the nearest national and international airport is Logan International Airport in Boston.

Education Orleans, along with Brewster, Eastham and Wellfleet, belongs to the Nauset Regional School District. Each town provides schooling for their own elementary students, and collectively send their middle and high school students to regional schools. Orleans operates the Orleans Elementary School for students from kindergarten through fifth grade. The town is home to Nauset Regional Middle School, which serves students from sixth through eighth grade for the district. High school students attend Nauset Regional High School in North Eastham, but also have the option of attending Cape Cod Regional Technical High School in Harwich free of charge.

Sports and recreation Orleans is home to the Orleans Firebirds, an amateur collegiate summer baseball team in the Cape Cod Baseball League. The team plays at Eldredge Park, and has featured dozens of players who went on to careers in Major League Baseball such as Frank Thomas, Nomar Garciaparra, and Marcus Stroman.

Attacks in wartime Orleans is on an exposed portion of the coast and has been a target in wartime. In 1814, its residents repelled an invasion of British marines from HMS Newcastle during the War of 1812. Nauset Beach was the only United States site hit by foreign munitions during World War I; the shells were apparently aimed at barges close off shore. This was the first time that a foreign nation had fired artillery on United States soil since the Siege of Fort Texas in 1848.

Orleans Arena Theater The Orleans Arena Theater was founded by Betsy (born 1922) and Gordon Argo (born 1924) in 1950 for performing summer stock theater in the round. The couple's three children, Allison, Elizabeth and Walter, grew up around the theater and helped their parents run it. The children also acted in some of the theater's productions. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. wrote a play, Penelope, that was performed at the theater. Penelope later became Happy Birthday, Wanda June, a feature film released in 1971. By 1976 the Argos had long since divorced and for various reasons the theater was sold by Mrs. Argo. It is now known as the Academy of Performing Arts.