Cabot Cove

Cabot Cove, Maine, is the small, fictional fishing village in which Jessica Fletcher lives in the television series Murder, She Wrote. Many episodes of Murder, She Wrote used Cabot Cove as a location because the show's producers were contractually obliged to deliver five Cabot Cove episodes a year. Despite the town's population of 3,560, Cabot Cove became notable as a place where a large number of murders took place. The New York Times calculated that almost 2% of Cabot Cove's residents died during the show's run. More visitors to Cabot Cove died than residents.

Cabot Cove is named after the town's founder, Winfred Cabot. Perhaps setting the stage for the town's reputation for murders, Cabot was killed in a murder-suicide situation with his wife Hepzibah. It has an architectural heritage of Victorian houses. Given the village's rich history, coastal location and close proximity to eastern U.S. cities, Cabot Cove was transformed from a small, sleepy fishing village to a tourist destination for the people coming from New York.

Despite important economic changes, politically there have not been many changes. The mayor has been Sam Booth for many years. The town's sheriff for a long time was Amos Tupper (played by Tom Bosley). He was later replaced by Mort Metzger (played by Ron Masak).

Some of the town's leading citizens were: the mystery writer Jessica Fletcher, Mayor Sam Booth, Sheriff Mort Metzger (second sheriff seen in the series), Sheriff Amos Tupper (original sheriff), and Doctor Seth Hazlitt. Other recurring citizens include: Eve Simpson (real-estate agent), Phyllis Grant (travel agent) and Loretta Spiegel (owner of Loretta's Beauty Parlor).