The Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority Vineyard and Nantucket that are not transported by air. The present Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority was formed from the New Bedford, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket Steamboat Co., which in turn was a consolidation of earlier companies dating to the early 19th century, just before the railroad arrived. Early steamers included the "Marco Bozzaris", "Telegraph", "Massachusetts", "George Law", "Naushon", "Helen Augusta", "Metacomet" (1854), "Canonicus" (1856), "Eagle's Wing" (1854–1861), "Monohansett", "River Queen", "Island Home", "Martha's Vineyard", "Nantucket", "Gay Head", "Uncatena", "Sankaty", "Nobska", "New Bedford", "Naushon", "Mercury", and "Hackensack". The motor vessel retired in 2007. The last steamship in
Martha's Vineyard is still a substantial Wampanoag population on the Vineyard, mainly located in the town of Aquinnah. Aquinnah means "land under the hill" in the Wampanoag language. The island was the last refuge of the Heath Hen, a once common game bird. Despite 19th Century efforts to protect the hen, by 1927, the population of birds had dropped to 13. The last known Heath Hen perished on Martha's Vineyard in 1932. The linguist William Labov wrote his MA essay on changes in the Martha's Vineyard dialect of English. The 1963 study is widely recognized as a seminal work in the foundation