New Bedford is a small city on the south coast of Massachusetts, an hour south of Boston. In the 19th century it was the whaling capital of the world — the wealth generated by the trade built much of the city's handsome Federal and Greek Revival architecture that survives in the historic district downtown. In 1854 it was the wealthiest city per capita in the entire United States. Herman Melville shipped out of New Bedford in 1841 on his first whaling voyage, and the opening chapters of Moby-Dick are set here.
The New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park encompasses the downtown waterfront area. The New Bedford Whaling Museum on Johnny Cake Hill is the largest of its kind in the world: its collections include a half-scale replica of the whaleship Lagoda, 3,000 pieces of scrimshaw, thousands of logbooks, and the complete skeleton of a blue whale. The Seamen's Bethel across the street, where Melville prayed before his voyage, still holds services. The Rotch-Jones-Duff House at 396 County Street is the finest surviving example of the mansions built by whaling merchants in the 1830s.
The city today is a working fishing port with a significant Portuguese and Cape Verdean population. The food reflects this — good bacalhau and caldo verde in the local restaurants, and fresh scallops from the city's commercial fleet, which lands more scallops than any other port in America. The Schooner Ernestina-Morrissey in the harbour is a living memorial to the Cape Verdean connection. At Clark's Point to the south, Fort Taber Park offers an entirely different kind of history — military ruins and wide coastal views — a short drive from downtown.