Revere, Massachusetts

About Revere, Massachusetts

Revere is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It borders Winthrop, East Boston and Chelsea to the south, Everett and Malden to the west, Saugus and Lynn to the north, Melrose to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. It comprises 10.0 square miles, although 4.1 of which are open water and wetlands and not suitable for development. Of the 5.9 miles² of developed land, 70% is used for housing. Revere is located approximately 5 miles from downtown Boston. The population was 47,283 at the 2000 census.

Revere’s first inhabitants were Native Americans who belonged to the Pawtucket Tribe and were known as the Rumney Marsh Indians. The leader, or sachem, of the Pawtuckets was Nanepashemet of Lynn. In 1616, an epidemic, probably smallpox, swept the region, killing thousands in its wake. Nanepashemet retired to the Mystic River, in what is now Medford, but was found murdered in 1619 at his fort on the brow of Rock Hill overlooking the river.

Three sons succeeded him in his reign. One of them, Wonohaquaham, also called Sagamore John, had jurisdiction over the Indians at Winnisemmit (later Chelsea) and Rumney Marsh.