About Martha's Vineyard, MA

2010 Population: 15,005 est.

Martha's Vineyard, the largest resort island in New England, was formed by glacial action 10,000 years ago and lies 7 miles off the coast of Cape Cod. The Island is roughly shaped like a triangle with its base the straight south shore. It is 9 miles wide and 23 miles long at its furthest points and has a total land area of approximately 100 square miles. The Vineyard has 124.6 miles of tidal shoreline. There are 6 towns on Martha's Vineyard; three up-Island towns, Aquinnah (Gay Head), Chilmark and West Tisbury, and three down-Island towns, Vineyard Haven, Oak Bluffs and Edgartown. The terms "up-Island" and "down-Island" are nautical terms referring to longitude on a map.

Martha's Vineyard is part of the County of Dukes County, which also includes the Elizabeth Islands and Noman's Land. There are seven towns in Dukes County; the six Vineyard towns and the town of Gosnold on Cuttyhunk Island, the most southerly of the Elizabeth Islands.

PUBLIC BEACHES
With several exceptions, the Island's public beaches are maintained and operated by town officials and financed with town funds. In most up-Island towns, town residents must obtain a parking sticker and/or beach pass at the local town hall in order to use the private town beach.