Wickford Point

novel by Marquand

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July 19, 2026

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Wickford Point is a 1939 novel by American author John P. Marquand. It is considered one of his most characteristic works, offering a satirical yet sympathetic portrayal of a declining New England gentility.1

The novel is set in the fictional town of Wickford Point, which shares its name with the real resort village of Wickford in Rhode Island, known for its historic buildings and marina. Marquand's work often explored the shifting social patterns of the American middle and upper classes in the mid-20th century, and Wickford Point fits within this theme, examining the psychological impact of social change and reduced status.12

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John P. Marquand
…The Late George Apley (1937), Wickford Point (1939), and H.M. Pulham, Esquire (1941), in which a conforming Bostonian renounces romantic love for duty. He wrote three novels dealing with the dislocations of wartime America—So Little Time (1943), Repent in Haste (1945), and B.F.’s Daughter (1946)—but in these his social perceptions…
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…The Late George Apley (1937), Wickford Point (1939), and H.M. Pulham, Esquire (1941), in which a conforming Bostonian renounces romantic love for duty. He wrote three novels dealing with the dislocations of wartime America—So Little Time (1943), Repent in Haste (1945), and B.F.’s Daughter (1946)—but in these his social perceptions…
Read More