Moving to SOUTH SHORE from NJ (Boston, Plymouth: best town, houses, neighborhoods)

[betsye]

My family is considering a move to the following towns. Can anyone please provide insightful info on each of them? We have two boys ages 6, 7 and have been living in a relatively affluent suburb of NYC. Thank you!
COHASSET
MARSHFIELD
DUXBURY

thanks!

[CaseyB]

Originally Posted by johnycakes

I have very limited knowledge of each of these towns... I'm sure someone else has more insight. But my perception of each of these towns can be summed up as follows:

Marshfield - nice
Cohasset - nicer
Deluxbury - nicest

Both Duxbury and Cohasset are both very wealthy towns. Duxbury might be easier to commute from. I know they have a newcomers club of sorts. "The Witches of Eastwick" was filmed in Cohasset.

[baystater]

Hello

I'm originally from Marshfield myself now living in nutley NJ. I say those two towns are very similar in respect that they were once more blue collar working class towns that are slowly turning into upper middle class areas. So if you want a happy medium of very affulent and working class then that's the town you want. P.S. there are more and (as far as I'm conserned) better beaches there than in Cohasset and Duxbury. Now as far as Cohasset goes that's where the super rich of the south shore live. The houses are beautiful and the landscape is very pleasent. But as I said the this is where the really rich live. I would compare it to a Westfield new jersey. You have to pay to play ot live there. As for Duxbury. Well it the the in between of marshfield and Cohasset ( Upper middle class and rich people). I know It has good schools and has one really good beach but for honestly I really don't like that town that much. I especially would not suggest it for people with kids. I know I said that it has good schools but I don't see that much else for kids to do in the town. I knew a lot of kids in the area that would get into trouble because there was nothing better to do. Plus I found that alot of the people in Duxbury has a better than you mentlity. Even though most of there household incomes didn't even come close to Cohassets incomes. P.S. most of Cohasset's people are extremely nice.


Well good luck in moving perhaps I see you up there sometime when I'm visiting my parents in marshfield.

[LovelyBoston]

Originally Posted by betsye

My family is considering a move to the following towns. Can anyone please provide insightful info on each of them? We have two boys ages 6, 7 and have been living in a relatively affluent suburb of NYC. Thank you!
COHASSET
MARSHFIELD
DUXBURY

thanks!

They are all quite nice. Duxbury is lovely -- it has a very secluded feel. I like it, but you do need to enjoy the quiet to enjoy Duxbury. They have very strict zoning laws that keep all big box stores out. Grocery stores, too. It has an upscale New England country feel. You literally will not find a big store anywhere in the town limits -- yet it is very convenient to all shopping, because you can drive to Kingston, the next town over, where any store you might need will be.

Cohasset is closer to Boston, and is just about to get a whole lot easier to commute from, because the state has been building a new line of the commuter rail: check out mbta dot com; the new Greenbush line heads out to Scituate and Cohasset. It's opening sometime this year. That means, of course, that Cohasset may get more built up. It's quite an affluent town but does not have the zoning laws Duxbury has, so I'm not sure what's in store for the town over the next 10 years. (The zoning is strict in Cohasset, but nothing like in Duxbury. I don't think any town has such a strict view of zoning as Duxbury...) But then, it has more access to the Ocean than does Duxbury, even though both are on the coast.

As someone else mentioned, Marshfield is more mixed; it has affluent neighborhoods and working class neighborhoods. It's a nice town. I don't know much more about it, but again, it has nice beaches, and is on a good stretch of Route 3 around a number of nice towns.

I have to disagree with a previous poster about there being nothing to do in Duxbury. For one, all three towns are quiet suburban towns. But Duxbury is next to Plymouth and Kingston -- both of those towns have plenty to do, both a pretty short ride away.

As for schools, Duxbury is by far the best district of the three. Really, an outstanding school.

FYI -- you might also want to check out Hingham; it is a neighbor of Cohasset. Also a nice town, affluent, good schools, and a good commute to Boston by ferry or on the new train line. A quaint little town but with fairly easy access to the city.

[betsye]

Thanks so much for all the advice....
Wondering if anyone has an opinion/advice regarding SCITUATE???
Thank you!

[LovelyBoston]

Scituate is very similar to Cohasset. Very upscale, very nice beaches -- right on the coast. Expensive, but then, so were the other towns you mentioned, so that might not be an issue. Commute will be longer, because it is the last stop on the Greenbush train line. Duxbury is also a ways from Boston (close to last stop on its train line), but Duxbury is also right off of Route 3 so you can drive places pretty easily, and get all over the South Shore with no trouble. Scituate is right on the coast, and it is a bit of a winding and circuitous route to get anywhere other than other parts of Scituate. The other school districts you mentioned were better, too (although Scituate is certainly still quite good). Basically, the other three towns are easier to drive to and from, but Scituate is a similar type of town.

[bballchick123]

Duxbury is the nicest town in all aspects, not even a comparison! go with Duxbury!

[bballchick123]

If you are looking for the best town for kids overall I would say definately choose Duxbury. Its a quiet town, but the schools are the best and the sports programs and the after school programs are wonderful. The beach is well known and beautiful. People from all around travel to the beach each summer. It has a small quaint feeling to it. Excellent town to bring your kids up.

[cohasset143]

I have children in the same age range. I only wish I could have grown up here! We have the beach, sailing, swimming, tons of town sports, and the people are the nicest that I have met in the northeast. I like that the kids all know each other growing up and are not split into different schools. Cohasset has a nice sense of community. The commuter boat to Boston cannot be beat, and the train will be a nice addition. We looked at Duxbury originally, but chose Cohasset because of the schools, commuter boat, small town feel, proximity to Boston, and activities. I thought Duxbury was very pretty, but that it was a little too remote. I like that Hingham and Scituate are nearby. Good luck with your move!

[ch40]

Marshfield is not upscale in general; although some areas are quite beautiful. Duxbury is, by far; the easiest upscale town to travel to & from if you have to do any kind of traveling ---- there are 2 exits off Rte 3. It's easier to get everywhere for shopping etc without going north/closer to Boston. Duxbury is close to 2 supermarkets in Kingston and will soon have a small one of their own. To give you an idea of what Duxbury is like --- although they don't have a grocery store; they have a Talbots!

Because you need to travel secondary roads when you live in Cohasset, Scituate or Hingham (another upscale town) traffic can be a pain.

When you start to look around, you'll know what you like ----- I would just suggest trying to drive to each area at rush hour.

Good luck!