From the Clam Box in Ipswich to J.T. Farnham’s in Essex, a plan of Route 133 is a clam lovers paradise. The fried clam was invented here almost a century ago, as legend has it, and remains its claim to fame, a quintessential New England tradition framed by sleepy inlets. Woodman’s, which says it invented the fried clam in 1916, is the most famous, followed closely by the Clam Box. But many locals say Farnham’s and Essex Seafood are every bit as good, if not superior.