Swampscott is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located 15 miles (24 km) up the coast from Boston in an area known as the North Shore. The population was 15,111 as of the 2020 United States Census. A former summer resort on Massachusetts Bay, Swampscott is today a fairly affluent residential community and includes the village of Beach Bluff, as well as part of the neighborhood of Clifton.

The area around Swampscott was inhabited by indigenous people for tens of thousands of years prior to European arrival. The Naumkeag or Pawtucket, speaking an Eastern Algonquin language related to Massachusett, controlled land extending from the Charles River to the Merrimack River at the time of European exploration. Wood’s New England Prospect lists “Swampscott” as a noted habitation in 1633 before extensive European settlement. According to an early twentieth century source, the name “Swampscott” is variously said to mean “at the red rock”, “broken waters”, or “pleasant water place”.

Swampscott was first settled by Europeans in 1629, as the eastern part (Ward One) of Lynn, and was set off and officially incorporated in 1852. In 1857, a piece of the far western end of Salem, then known as the “Salem Finger”, became part of Swampscott. A beach town north of Boston, measuring 3 square miles (7.8 km²) and abutting Salem, Marblehead and Lynn, Swampscott was an important destination for the wealthy at the beginning of the 20th century. While Revere Beach, which lies just several miles down the road, has the honor of technically being America’s first public beach, Swampscott was the de facto first resort town. Lynn was the divider between the poor beach and the rich resort town.

Swampscott’s public school system includes three elementary schools: Hadley School, Clarke School, and Stanley School (demolished as of 2022) ; one middle school, Swampscott Middle School; and one high school, Swampscott High School. The Machon elementary school was shut down in 2008–2009, but the property remains on the district’s rolls. A new building was completed in 2007 for Swampscott High School. In 2011, Swampscott considered installing a wind turbine, with the approximate height of a 30-story building, on the property of the Swampscott Middle School but ultimately rejected the project. In a special election on October 19, 2021, voters approved a new $98 million elementary school to be built on the site of the Stanley School. This new school will replace all three former schools and is set to be opened to students in September 2024.

Swampscott is located at 42°28′27″N 70°54′21″W / 42.47417°N 70.90583°W / 42.47417; -70.90583 (42.474409, −70.905883). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 6.7 square miles (17.4 km²), of which 3.0 square miles (7.9 km) is land and 3.7 square miles (9.6 km²), or 54.83%, is water. Located beside Massachusetts Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, Swampscott lies along a mostly rocky shoreline, though there is enough clear shore for five beaches; Phillips which stretches into Preston and is by far the largest beach in town, Eisman’s and Whales, Fisherman’s, and a part of King’s Beach, which extends into Lynn. There are several small parks, along with the small Harold King Forest in the northwest corner of town and the Tedesco Country Club which bisects part of the town. The town also has two small ponds, Foster Pond and Palmer Pond.

Swampscott is mostly suburban, with most of the clear land in the northwest corner of town. There are three villages within town, Beach Bluff to the east, Phillips Point to the south, and Phillips Beach inland between the two. The town is centered around Monument Square, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted; which is 4 miles (6 km) south of Salem, 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Boston, and 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Cape Ann. The town is 23 miles (37 km) to the nearest point in New Hampshire, in the town of Salem. Swampscott is bordered by Marblehead to the northeast, Salem to the northwest, and Lynn to the southwest. The water rights of the town extend into Massachusetts Bay, bordered by those of Marblehead and Lynn.

As of the census of 2010, there were 13,787 people, 5,579 households, and 3,986 families residing in the town. The population density was 4,725.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,824.7/km²). There were 5,930 housing units at an average density of 1,944.5 per square mile (750.8/km). The racial makeup of the town was 97.47% White, 0.74% Black or African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.27% of the population.