[2] Although the area that would become Rowley was colonized by English settlers starting in 1639, it was not until 1700 that the town would pay Masoconomet's heirs nine pounds for a quitclaim deed.

[3] In spring of 1638 Rowley was originally colonized as a plantation by Reverend Ezekiel Rogers, who had arrived from England on the ship John of London with approximately twenty families.

[4] The following fall, on September 4, 1639, the town was incorporated, and included portions of modern-day Byfield, Groveland, Georgetown, and Haverhill.

The town was named after Rowley, East Riding of Yorkshire, where Rogers had served as pastor for twenty years before his suspension due to non-conformist Puritan beliefs.

Later, at the start of the 20th century, the town had a booming shoe industry, as well as successful boat building businesses.

The town has other portions which are protected, including parts of the Mill Creek Wildlife Management Area, the Georgetown-Rowley State Forest, the Willowdale State Forest, the Arthur Ewell Reservation, and the Bay Circuit Trail.

Much of the eastern mainland part of town is marshy, feeding Mud Creek, Mill River and the Rowley River, which constitutes part of the town's southern border.

It is bordered to the north by Newbury, to the northwest by Georgetown, to the west by Boxford, and the south by Ipswich.

Interstate 95 passes through the western end of town, with the nearest exits being in Georgetown and Boxford.

In The Nightmare Murders, Ken Blaisdell sets the story about tracking down a serial killer in his original hometown of Rowley.

Rowley lends its namesake to the character of the same name from the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney.