2020 marks a major milestone in the history of famed Crane Beach on the Crane Estate in Ipswich: the 75th anniversary of the gift of the Crane family’s coastal playground to The Trustees. In 1945, Florence Higinbotham Crane (widow of Richard T. Crane Jr.) had the foresight to donate 1,000 acres—which included her incredible beach and the dunes of Castle Neck in Ipswich—to The Trustees for use and enjoyment by the general public, forever.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, Trustees will throw a giant beach party at Crane Beach [NOTE: Due to uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic, this event is being moved to 2021. Once the date, time, and other details are finalized for the event, we will share them here and in special communications.]

This Crane 75 event will honor a long-standing tradition: The Crane family celebrated son Cornelius’s birthday each summer with a “Castle Hill Picnic” for Ipswich schoolchildren at what is now Crane Beach, starting on his 6th birthday in 1911 (pictured left). Trustees has carried on the tradition of holding summer beach parties for local residents through the 75 years it has cared for the property.