Salem, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia
Salem is a city in Essex County
, Massachusetts
, United States
. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence
are the county seat
s of Essex County. Home to Salem State University, the Salem Willows
Park and the Peabody Essex Museum
, Salem is a residential and tourist area which includes the neighborhoods of Salem Neck, The Point, South Salem and North Salem, Witchcraft Heights, Pickering Wharf, and the McIntire Historic District (named after Salem's famous architect and carver, Samuel McIntire
).
Salem was one of the most significant seaports in early America. It has the first National Historic Site designated by Congress, Salem Maritime National Historic Site
, which protects Salem's historic waterfront.
Featured notably in Arthur Miller
's The Crucible
, much of the city's cultural identity is reflective of its role as the location of the Salem Witch Trials
of 1692: Police cars are adorned with witch logos, a local public school is known as the Witchcraft Heights Elementary School, the Salem High School
athletic teams are named The Witches, and Gallows Hill, a site of numerous public hangings, is currently used as a playing field for various sports.
Tourists know Salem as a mix of important historical sites, New Age
and Wicca
n boutiques, and kitschy Halloween
or witch-themed attractions.
Salem was founded at the mouth of the Naumkeag river in 1626, at the site of an ancient Native American village and trading center (it was originally called Naumkeag and was renamed Salem three years later) by a company of fishermen from Cape Ann
led by Roger Conant, and incorporated in 1629. Conant’s leadership had provided the stability to survive the first two years, but he was immediately replaced by John Endecott, one of the new arrivals, by order of the Dorchester Company. Conant graciously stepped aside and was granted 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of land in compensation. These “New Planters” and the “Old Planters” agreed to cooperate, in large part due to the diplomacy of Conant and Endicott. In recognition of this peaceful transition to the new government, the name of the settlement was changed to Salem, a hellenized
form of the Hebrew word שלום (shalom
).
Naumkeag was first settled in 1626 by the Dorchester Company with Roger Conant as Governor. That settlement was located east of the present day Salem commuter rail station.
A year later, Dorchester Governor John Endecott
arrived in Naumkeag and a patent was solicited by the Massachusetts Bay Company in England. Endecott moved the Great House from Cape Anne reassembling on what is now Washington Street north of Church Street. And a year later, the Massachusetts Bay Charter was issued creating the Massachusetts Bay Colony with Thomas Craddock as Governor and Endecott as a Governor's Assistant. Endecott was not Massachusetts' first Governor as some have asserted. A challenge to Endecott's authority in Naumkeag arose in London and was settled within the Massachusetts Bay Company in London. One week later, Governor John Winthrop was elected Governor and John Endecott was re-elected Governor's Assistant, followed by the Great Puritan Migration/Fleet of 1629/1630. Endecott's greeting of Winthrop is the subject of a plaque on the Boston Common.
In 1639, his was one of the signatures on the building contract for enlarging the meeting house in Town House Square for the First Church in Salem. This document remains part of the town records at City Hall. He was active in the affairs of the town throughout his life. Samuel Skelton
was the first pastor of the First Church of Salem, MA, which is the original Puritan
church in North America. Endecott already had a close relationship with Skelton, having been converted by him, and Endecott considered him as his spiritual father.
Roger Conant died in 1679, at the age of 87, but to celebrate this majestic life, a gigantic statue stands overlooking Salem Common. Salem originally included much of the North Shore
, including Marblehead
. Most of the accused in the Salem witch trials
lived in nearby 'Salem Village', now known as Danvers
, although a few lived on the outskirts of Salem. Salem Village also included Peabody
and parts of present-day Beverly
. Middleton
, Topsfield
, Wenham
and Manchester-by-the-Sea, too, were once parts of Salem.
William Hathorne
was a prosperous businessman in early Salem, and became its commanding character of the time period. He led troops to victory in King Philip's War
, served as a magistrate on the highest court, and was chosen as the first speaker of the House of Deputies. He was a zealous advocate of the personal rights of freemen against royal emissaries and agents.
Puritans had come to Massachusetts to obtain religious freedom for themselves, but had no particular interest in establishing a haven for other faiths. The laws were harsh, with punishments that included fines, deprivation of property, banishment or imprisonment.
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1559, as an activist movement within the Church of England. The designation "Puritan" is often incorrectly used, notably based on the assumption that hedonism and puritanism are antonyms: historically, the word was used to characterize the Protestant group as extremists similar to the Cathari of France, and according to Thomas Fuller in his Church History dated back to 1564. Archbishop Matthew Parker of that time used it and "precisian" with the sense of stickler. T. D. Bozeman therefore uses instead the term precisianist in regard to the historical groups of England and New England.
One of the most widely known aspects of Salem is its history of witchcraft allegations, which started with Abigail Williams
, Betty Parris
, and their friends playing with a Venus glass and egg. Salem is also significant in legal history as the site of the Dorthy Talbye
trial, where a mentally ill woman was hanged for murdering her daughter, because at the time Massachusetts made no distinction between insanity and criminal behavior.
William Hathorne's son, Judge John Hathorne
, came to prominence during this period. People generally believed witchcraft to be real. Nothing caused more fear in the Puritan community than people who appeared to be possessed by demons, and witchcraft was a serious felony. Judge Hathorne is the best known of the witch trial judges, and he became known as the "Hanging Judge" for sentencing witches to death.
at the North River, preventing British
Colonel Alexander Leslie and his 300 troops of the 64th Regiment of Foot
from seizing stores and ammunition
hidden in North Salem. A few months later, in May 1775, a group of prominent merchants with ties to Salem, including Francis Cabot, William Pynchon, Thomas Barnard, E.A. Holyoke and William Pickman, felt the need to publish a statement retracting what some interpreted as Loyalist leanings and to profess their dedication to the Colonial cause.
During the Revolution
, the town became a center for privateering. Although the documentation is incomplete, about 1,700 Letters of Marque, issued on a per-voyage basis, were granted during the American Revolution. Nearly 800 vessels were commissioned as privateers and are credited with capturing or destroying about 600 British ships. By 1790, Salem was the sixth largest city in the country, and a world famous seaport—particularly in the China
trade. Codfish was exported to the West Indies and Europe
. Sugar
and molasses
were imported from the West Indies, tea
from China, and pepper
from Sumatra
. Salem ships also visited Africa
, Russia
, Japan
and Australia
. During the War of 1812
, privateering resumed.
Prosperity left the city with a wealth of fine architecture
, including Federal style mansions designed by one of America's first architects Samuel McIntire
, for whom the city's largest historic district is named. These homes and mansions from Colonial America now comprise the greatest concentrations of notable pre-1900 domestic structures in the United States.
This wealth of architecture in Salem can be directly attributed to the Old China Trade
, which was ongoing for years with America and Great Britain. The neutrality of the United States was tested during the Napoleonic Wars
. Both Britain and France imposed trade restrictions in order to weaken each others' economies. This also had the effect of disrupting American trade and testing the United States' neutrality. As time went on, harassment by the British of American ships increased by the British Navy. This included impressment
and seizures of American men and goods. After the Chesapeake Leopard Affair, Thomas Jefferson
was faced with a decision to make regarding the situation at hand. In the end, he chose an economic option: the Embargo Act of 1807 and Thomas Jefferson basically closed all the ports overnight, putting a little damper on the seaport town of Salem. The embargo of 1807 was the starting point on the path to the War of 1812
with Great Britain
.
Salem was incorporated as a city on March 23, 1836, Salem adopted a city seal in 1839 with the motto "Divitis Indiae usque ad ultimum sinum", Latin
for "To the farthest port of the rich Indies." Nathaniel Hawthorne
was overseer of the port from 1846 until 1849. He worked in the Customs House http://www.salemweb.com/guide/tour/attract5.shtml near Pickering Wharf, his setting for the beginning of The Scarlet Letter
. In 1858, an amusement park
was established at Salem Willows
, a peninsula
jutting into the harbor. It should be noted that up until the War of 1812
, the port of Salem was a major center of trade in America.
The book "The Salem-India Story" written by Vanita Shastri narrates the adventures of the Salem seamen who connected the far corners of the globe through trade. This period (1788–1845) marks the beginning of US-India relations, long before the 21st century wave of globalization. It reveals the global trade connections that Salem had established with faraway lands, which were a source of livelihood and prosperity for many.
But shipping declined throughout the 19th century. Salem and its silt
ing harbor were increasingly eclipsed by Boston and New York. Consequently, the city turned to manufacturing. Industries included tanneries
, shoe factories and the Naumkeag Steam Cotton Company. More than 400 homes burned in the Great Salem Fire of 1914
, leaving 3,500 families homeless from a blaze that began in the Korn Leather Factory. The historic concentration of Federal architecture
on Chestnut Street were spared.
facility at Salem because there was no space to expand the Gloucester Air Station at Ten Pound Island
. Coast Guard Air Station Salem
was located at Winter Island
, an extension of Salem Neck
which juts out into Salem Harbor
. Search and rescue
, hunting for derelicts and medical evacuations were the Station's primary areas of responsibility. During the first year of operation, Salem crews performed 26 med-evac missions. They flew in all kinds of weather and the radio direction capabilities of the aircraft were of significant value in locating vessels in distress.
During World War II, air crews from Salem flew neutrality patrol
s along the coast and the Air Station roster grew to 37 aircraft. Anti-submarine patrols were flown on a regular basis. In October 1944, Air Station Salem was officially designated as the first Air-Sea Rescue
station on the eastern seaboard. The Martin PBM Mariner, a hold-over from the war, became the primary rescue aircraft. In the mid 1950s helicopters came as did Grumman HU-16 Albatross amphibious flying boats (UFs). Salem Harbor was deep enough to host a seadrome with three sea lanes, offering a variety of take-off headings irrespective of wind direction unless there was a strong steady wind from the east. This produced large waves that swept into the mouth of the harbor making water operations difficult. When the seadrome was too rough, returning amphibian aircraft would use Naval Auxiliary Air Facility Beverly. Salem Air Station moved to Cape Cod
in 1970.
In 2011 The City of Salem made it official the plans for the tip of the 30-acre Winter Island Park http://salem.patch.com/articles/benefits-concerns-discussed-at-wind-turbine-hearing and squared off against residents who are against bringing two power generating windmills to the tip of Winter Island. http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/news/lifestyle/columnists/x1145375982/John-Goff-Salem-windmills-revisited The Renewable Energy Task Force, along with Energy and Sustainability Manager Paul Marquis, have recommended the construction of a 1.5-megawatt power turbine at the tip of Winter Island, http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/features/x1260731137/Wind-turbine-project-moves-forward-in-Salem?img=2#axzz1UlBIsVsO which is the furthest point from residences and where the winds are the strongest. The results of the City of Salem wind tests can be viewed http://www.salem.com/Pages/SalemMA_BComm/metdata.
The nearly 30-acre park has been open to the public since the early 1970´s. In 2011 a master plan was developed with help from the planning and design firm The Cecil Group of Boston and Bioengineering Group of Salem and the City of Salem paid $45,000 in federal money. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x194733685/Plan-calls-for-amphitheater-other-fixes-at-Winter-Island
In the long term the projected cost to rehabilitate just the barracks is $1.5 million. But in the short term, there are multiple lower-cost items like a proposed $15,000 for a kayak dock or $50,000 to relocate and improve the bathhouse. This is a very important project since Fort Pickering guarded Salem Harbor as far back as the 17th century.
.http://www.armedforces.com/salem-designated-as-national-guard-birthplace/ Each April, the Second Corps of Cadets gather in front of St. Peter's Episcopal Church, where their founder, Stephen Abbott, is buried. They lay a wreath, play Taps
and fire a 21-gun salute
. In another annual commemoration, soldiers gather at Old Salem Armory to honor soldiers who were killed in the Battles of Lexington and Concord
.
sold at auction for $662,500.http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=5401630 The price set a world record for Federal furniture
. McIntyre was one of the first architects in the United States and his work represents a prime example of early Federal-style architecture. Elias Hasket Derby
, Salem's wealthiest merchant and thought to be America's first millionaire, and his wife, Elizabeth Crowninshield
, purchased the set of eight chairs http://antiquesandartireland.com/2011/01/antique-furniture-record/ from McIntire.
The Samuel McIntire Historic District represents the greatest concentration of 17th and 18th century domestic structures anywhere in America. It includes McIntyre commissions such as the Peirce-Nichols House
and Hamilton Hall
. The Witch House
or Jonathan Corwin House (circa 1642) is also located in the District. Samuel McIntyre's house and workshop were located at 31 Summer Street in what is now the Samuel McIntyre Historic District.
filmed on location in Salem. In 2008, Bride Wars
was filmed http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/fun/entertainment/x2118742612/Bride-Wars-takes-Salem-by-storm
in Salem and in September 2011, Rob Zombie
, musician and movie director,
http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1078452797/A-real-Zombie-visits-Salem was visiting and scouting locations for his latest horror movie, "The Lords of Salem."
, the city has a total area of 18.1 square miles (46.9 km²), of which, 8.1 square miles (21 km²) of it is land and 9.9 square miles (25.6 km²) of it (55.09%) is water. Salem lies on Massachusetts Bay
between Salem Harbor, which divides the city from much of neighboring Marblehead
to the southeast, and Beverly Harbor, which divides the city from Beverly
along with the Danvers River, which feeds into the harbor. Between the two harbors lies Salem Neck and Winter Island, which are divded from each other by Cat Cove, Smith Pool (located between the two land causeways to Winter Island) and Juniper Cove. The city is further divided by Collins Cove, and the inlet to the North River. The Forest River flows through the south end of town as well, along with Strong Water Brook, which feeds Spring Pond at the town's southwest corner. The town has several parks, as well as conservation land along the Forest River and Camp Lion, which lies east of Spring Pond
.
The city is divided by its natural features into several small neighborhoods. The Salem Neck neighborhood lies northeast of downtown, and North Salem lies to the west of it, on the other side of the North River. South Salem is south of the South River, lying mostly along the banks of Salem Harbor southward. Downtown Salem lies fifteen miles (24 km) northeast of Boston
, sixteen miles southwest of Gloucester
and Cape Ann
, and nineteen miles (30 km) southeast of Lawrence
, the other county seat of Essex County. Salem is bordered by Beverly to the north, Danvers
to the northwest, Peabody
to the west, Lynn
to the southeast, Swampscott
to the south, and Marblehead
to the southeast. The town's water rights extend along a channel into Massachusetts Bay between the water rights of Marblehead and Beverly.
The connection between Salem and Beverly is made across the Danvers River and Beverly Harbor by three bridges, the Kernwood Bridge to the west, and a railroad bridge and the Essex Bridge, from the land between Collins Cove and the North River, to the east. The Veterans Memorial Bridge
carries Route 1A
across the river. Route 1A passes through the eastern side of the city, through South Salem towards Swampscott. For much of its length in the city, it is coextensive with Route 114, which goes north from Marblehead before merging with Route 1A, and then heading northwest from downtown towards Lawrence. Route 107
also passes through town, entering from Lynn in the southwest corner of the city before heading towards its intersection with Route 114 and terminating at Route 1A. There is no highway access within the city; the nearest highway access to Route 128 is along Route 114 in neighboring Peabody.
Several lines of the MBTA Bus
service pass through the city. Salem has a station
on the Newburyport/Rockport Line
of the MBTA Commuter Rail
. The railroad lines are also connected to an abandoned portion of the Springfield Terminal lines which lead into Peabody, and a former line into Marblehead has been converted into a bike path.
The nearest small airport is Beverly Municipal Airport
, and the nearest national and international service can be reached at Boston's Logan International Airport
.
In October 2010, Mayor Kimberley Driscoll announced that the City will formally acquire the Blaney Street http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dominion-to-sell-blaney-street-property-to-city-of-salem-95773339.html parcel from Dominion Energy, paving the way for the Salem Wharf project. The City of Salem secured $1.25 million from the Massachusetts Seaport Advisory Council and $2.5 million in federal grant dollars to move forward with the construction of the project. The City acquired the parcel with the help of a $1.7 million grant received from the Seaport Advisory Council. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x962027262/Salem-is-focusing-its-sights-on-shore/
The City of Salem's plans call for a total build-out of the current Blaney Street pier, known as the Salem Wharf project. When finished, The Blaney Street pier will be home to small to medium sized cruise ships, commercial vessels and The Salem Ferry.. This project is fully engineered and permitted.
http://www.salem.com/Pages/SalemMA_PressReleases/I02CF1FBC. In 2010,
Examples of work to be finished in this early phase that will be complete for the 2011 Season, a contractor is running underground utility cables and erecting an interim terminal building that will be used by the Salem Ferry, replacing the current trailer. The building will have an indoor bathroom — a first at the ferry landing — along with a waiting room and possibly an outdoor area with awnings. Also new for 2011 is a paved lot with about 140 parking spaces replacing the existing dirt parking lot.
Also in 2011, A Construction crews have been building a long seawall at the Blaney Street landing, which runs from the edge of the ferry dock back toward Derby Street and along an inner harbor. This is one of the early and key pieces of the Salem Pier, which the city hopes to have completed by 2014 and is the key to eventually bring cruise ships to Salem. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x300778348/Salem-pier-work-under-way.
http://boston.cbslocal.com/2011/05/11/salem-harbor-power-station-to-close-in-2014/
At the end of the 2011 season of the Salem Ferry, In the late fall of 2011, after the ferry season ends, contractors will start building the first section of the T-shaped, 350-foot pier. Work on that phase is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2012. As of April 2011, The City Of Salem has secured half of the $20 million and still needs to secure about $10 million in state and federal funds to complete this waterfront pier. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1324603491/Grant-of-2-5M-to-aid-wharf-makeover
http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/salem/2011/05/dominion_salem_harbor_will_clo.html
The City of Salem was awarded a $200,000 grant from the Clean Energy Center prior to the closure of the plant and with the closure scheduled for June 2014, this grant money is being used to plan for the eventual re-use of this property. http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/features/x1539858512/Countdown-to-closure-Part-of-Salem-power-plant-may-still-be-needed-after-2014#axzz1V3hia1Hh That study is underway and we are working with engineers and land use planners on re-use options. The City of Salem has been reaching out to state and federal officials to ask for their cooperation and assistance in planning for the future and money to clean up The Salem Harbor Power Plant 60 Acre Site.
of 2010, there were 41,340 people, 19,130 households, and 9,708 families residing in the city. The population density
was 4,986.0 people per square mile (1,926.1/km²). There were 18,175 housing units at an average density of 2,242.7 per square mile (866.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.9% White, 4.9% African American, 0.22% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 6.74% from other races
, and 2.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.6% of the population.
There were 17,492 households out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were married couples
living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.5% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,033, and the median income for a family was $55,635. Males had a median income of $38,563 versus $31,374 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $23,857. About 6.3% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
campuses are a separate system), with 7,500 undergraduates and 2,500 graduate students; its five campuses encompass 115 acre (0.4653889 km²) and include 33 buildings. The Salem State Foundation hosts an annual lecture series, featuring high-profile speakers from around the world.
The university was founded in 1854 as the Salem Normal School (for teacher training) based on the educational principles espoused by Horace Mann
, considered to be the "Father of American Public Education."
Salem State University enrolls over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students representing 27 states and 57 foreign countries, and is one of the largest state universities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university also offers Continuing Education courses for credit or non-credit. Situated on five campuses totaling 115 acre (0.4653889 km²). Currently, the university houses 2,000 students in its five residence facilities.
Public elementary schools include the Bates, Bentley, Carlton, Horace Mann, Nathaniel Bowditch, Saltonstall and Witchcraft Heights schools. Collins Middle School, Nathaniel Bowditch School, and Salem High School are located on Highland Avenue. Private schools are also located in the city, including two independent, alternative schools, The Phoenix School and the Greenhouse, as well as the Salem Academy Charter School.
Salem also once had a very strong Roman Catholic school system. Once home to almost a dozen schools, the last school in the city, St. Joseph School, closed in July 2009 after over 100 years of providing Catholic Education. St. James High School, St. Chretienne Academy, St. Chretienne Grammar School and St. Mary's School closed in 1971, St. James Grammar School closed in 1972, St. Thomas the Apostle School closed in 1973, St. Anne School closed in 1976, St. John the Baptist School closed in 1977 and St. Joseph High School closed in 1980.
In late 2007 and early 2008, the city's public school system garnered regional and even national attention after officials announced a $4.7 million budget shortfall that threatened the jobs of teachers and other staff members. The Massachusetts General Court passed legislation, and residents raised enough money, that averted teacher layoffs. Several dozen support workers were still laid off. Police were investigating what happened to the money in a search for criminal violations of the law.
, built circa 1664, abuts the Witch Memorial and Burying Point Cemetery, the second oldest burying ground in the United States.
The Gedney House
is a historic house museum built circa 1665 and is the 2nd oldest house in Salem.
One of the most popular houses in Salem is The Witch House
, the only structure in Salem with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials
of 1692. The Witch House is owned and operated by the City of Salem as a historic house museum.http://www.salemweb.com/witchhouse/
Hamilton Hall (Salem, Massachusetts)
is located on Chestnut Street in Salem, where many grand mansions can be traced to the roots of the Old China Trade
. Hamilton Hall was built in 1805 by Samuel McIntire and is considered one of McIntire best pieces. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
by the National Park Service
in 1970.
dates back to at least the first half of the 20th century, when dry goods merchant Daniel Low sold souvenir spoons with witch images. Such tourism expanded significantly in the 1970s, when the television situation comedy
Bewitched
filmed several episodes here. Witch-related tourism expanded significantly in the 1990s, and the city added an official "Haunted Happenings" celebration during the October tourist season.
In 2007, the city launched the Haunted Passport program which offers visitors discounts and benefits from local tourist attractions and retailers from October to April. The goal of the program is to get visitors to come back to Salem after Halloween and experience businesses that may not be directly tied to Halloween. Thousands watched in 2007 as Mayor Kim Driscoll started a new trend with a massive fireworks display that kicked off at 10:00 pm on Halloween.
In recent years, tourism has been an occasional source of debate in the city, with some residents arguing the city should downplay witch tourism and market itself as a more upscale cultural center. In 2005, the conflict came to a head over plans by the cable television network TV Land
to erect a bronze statue of Elizabeth Montgomery
, who played the comic witch "Samantha" in the 1960s series Bewitched. A few special episodes of the series were actually filmed in Salem, and TV Land said that the statue commemorated the 35th anniversary of those episodes. The statue was sculpted by StudioEIS
under the direction of brothers Elliott and Ivan Schwartz. Many felt the statue was good fun and appropriate to a city that promotes itself as "The Witch City", and contains a street named "Witch Way". Others objected to the use of public property for what was transparently commercial promotion.
was finished and sailed to Salem Harbor, where she sits today. The Friendship of Salem is a reconstruction of a 171 feet (52.1 m) three-masted East Indiaman trading ship, originally built in 1797, which traveled the world over a dozen times and returned to Salem after each voyage with goods from all over the world. The original was taken by the British during the War of 1812, then stripped and sold in pieces.
In 2006, with the assistance of a 1.6 million dollar grant and additional funds provided by the City of Salem, Mayor Driscoll launched The Nathaniel Bowditch, a 92-foot catamaran with a top speed of 30 knots which makes the trip between Salem and Boston in just under an hour. Bowditch
, who was born in Salem and had a home on North Street, is considered the founder of modern maritime navigation. His book, Bowditch's American Practical Navigator
, first published in 1802, is still carried on board every commissioned U.S. Naval vessel.
The original Fame was a fast Chebacco fishing schooner that was reborn as a privateer when war broke out in the summer of 1812. She was arguably the first American privateer to bring home a prize, and she made 20 more captures before being wrecked in the Bay of Fundy in 1814.
The new Fame is a full-scale replica of this famous schooner. Framed and planked of white oak and trunnel-fastened in the traditional manner, the replica of Fame was launched in 2003. She is now based at Salem's Pickering Wharf Marina, where she takes the paying public for cruises on historic Salem Sound. http://www.schoonerfame.com/main.html
Salem Harborwalk opened in July 2010 to celebrate the rebirth of the Salem Waterfront as a source of recreation for visitors as well as the local community. The 1,100 foot walkway from the area of the Salem Fire Station to the Salem Waterfront Hotel.
The Peabody Essex Museum
is a leading museum of Asian art and culture and early American maritime trade and whaling; its collections of Indian, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese art, and in particular Chinese export porcelain, are among the finest in the country. Founded in 1799, it is the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States. The museum owns and exhibits a number of historic houses in downtown Salem. In 2003, it completed a massive $100 million dollar renovation and expansion, designed by architect Moshe Safdie
, and moved a 200-year-old 16-room Chinese home from Xiuning County
in southeastern China
to the grounds of the museum.
The Pioneer Village, created in 1930, was America's first living-history museum. The site features a three-acre re-creation of a Puritan village and allows visitors the opportunity to participate in activities from the lives of Salem's earliest English settlers.
The Old Salem Jail, an active correctional facility until 1991, once housed captured British soldiers from the War of 1812. It contains the main jail building (built in 1813, renovated in 1884), the jail keeper's house (1813) and a barn (also about 1813). The jail was shuttered in 1991 when Essex County opened its new facility in Middleton. In 2010, a $12 million renovation was completed. One feature of the reconstruction is the jail keeper's house, a three-story brick, Federal-period building originally built in 1813. The project went into a long phase of stagnation when in 1999 the county government was dissolved, resulting in the sale of Salem Jail by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to the City of Salem for $1. The Old Salem Jail complex was renamed 50 Saint Peter Street and is now private property, with private residences.
Essex County, Massachusetts
-National protected areas:* Parker River National Wildlife Refuge* Salem Maritime National Historic Site* Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site* Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence
Lawrence, Massachusetts
Lawrence is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States on the Merrimack River. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a total population of 76,377. Surrounding communities include Methuen to the north, Andover to the southwest, and North Andover to the southeast. It and Salem are...
are the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
s of Essex County. Home to Salem State University, the Salem Willows
Salem Willows
Salem Willows is an oceanfront neighborhood and amusement park in Salem, Massachusetts. It is named for the European white willow trees planted there in 1801 to form a shaded walk for patients convalescing at a nearby smallpox hospital...
Park and the Peabody Essex Museum
Peabody Essex Museum
The Peabody Essex Museum , originally the Peabody Museum of Salem and the Essex Institute, in Salem, Massachusetts is the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States, and holds one of the major collections of Asian art in the US; its total holdings include about 1.3 million pieces, as...
, Salem is a residential and tourist area which includes the neighborhoods of Salem Neck, The Point, South Salem and North Salem, Witchcraft Heights, Pickering Wharf, and the McIntire Historic District (named after Salem's famous architect and carver, Samuel McIntire
Samuel McIntire
Samuel McIntyre was an American architect and craftsman, Chestnut Street District, a legacy to one of the earliest architects in the United States, Samuel McIntyre is a primary example of Federal style architecture....
).
Salem was one of the most significant seaports in early America. It has the first National Historic Site designated by Congress, Salem Maritime National Historic Site
Salem Maritime National Historic Site
The Salem Maritime National Historic Site consists of 12 historic structures and about 9 acres of land along the waterfront in Salem, Massachusetts, plus a Visitor Center in downtown Salem...
, which protects Salem's historic waterfront.
Featured notably in Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
's The Crucible
The Crucible
The Crucible is a 1952 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatization of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay during 1692 and 1693. Miller wrote the play as an allegory of McCarthyism, when the US government blacklisted accused communists...
, much of the city's cultural identity is reflective of its role as the location of the Salem Witch Trials
Salem witch trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
of 1692: Police cars are adorned with witch logos, a local public school is known as the Witchcraft Heights Elementary School, the Salem High School
Salem High School (Massachusetts)
Salem High School is a four-year public high school in Salem, Massachusetts. It has an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students and is accredited by the Massachusetts Department of Education and by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges....
athletic teams are named The Witches, and Gallows Hill, a site of numerous public hangings, is currently used as a playing field for various sports.
Tourists know Salem as a mix of important historical sites, New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
and Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
n boutiques, and kitschy Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
or witch-themed attractions.
History
Cape Ann
Cape Ann is a rocky cape in northeastern Massachusetts on the Atlantic Ocean. The cape is located approximately 30 miles northeast of Boston and forms the northern edge of Massachusetts Bay. Cape Ann includes the city of Gloucester, and the towns of Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea, and...
led by Roger Conant, and incorporated in 1629. Conant’s leadership had provided the stability to survive the first two years, but he was immediately replaced by John Endecott, one of the new arrivals, by order of the Dorchester Company. Conant graciously stepped aside and was granted 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of land in compensation. These “New Planters” and the “Old Planters” agreed to cooperate, in large part due to the diplomacy of Conant and Endicott. In recognition of this peaceful transition to the new government, the name of the settlement was changed to Salem, a hellenized
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
form of the Hebrew word שלום (shalom
Shalom
Shalom is a Hebrew word meaning peace, completeness, and welfare and can be used idiomatically to mean both hello and goodbye...
).
Naumkeag was first settled in 1626 by the Dorchester Company with Roger Conant as Governor. That settlement was located east of the present day Salem commuter rail station.
A year later, Dorchester Governor John Endecott
John Endecott
John Endecott was an English colonial magistrate, soldier and the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. During all of his years in the colony but one, he held some form of civil, judicial, or military high office...
arrived in Naumkeag and a patent was solicited by the Massachusetts Bay Company in England. Endecott moved the Great House from Cape Anne reassembling on what is now Washington Street north of Church Street. And a year later, the Massachusetts Bay Charter was issued creating the Massachusetts Bay Colony with Thomas Craddock as Governor and Endecott as a Governor's Assistant. Endecott was not Massachusetts' first Governor as some have asserted. A challenge to Endecott's authority in Naumkeag arose in London and was settled within the Massachusetts Bay Company in London. One week later, Governor John Winthrop was elected Governor and John Endecott was re-elected Governor's Assistant, followed by the Great Puritan Migration/Fleet of 1629/1630. Endecott's greeting of Winthrop is the subject of a plaque on the Boston Common.
In 1639, his was one of the signatures on the building contract for enlarging the meeting house in Town House Square for the First Church in Salem. This document remains part of the town records at City Hall. He was active in the affairs of the town throughout his life. Samuel Skelton
Samuel Skelton
Samuel Skelton was the first pastor of the First Church of Salem, MA, which is the original Puritan church in North America.Rev. Skelton was probably born in Yorkshire, England. He graduated from Cambridge in 1611 and earned a master's degree there in 1615...
was the first pastor of the First Church of Salem, MA, which is the original Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
church in North America. Endecott already had a close relationship with Skelton, having been converted by him, and Endecott considered him as his spiritual father.
Roger Conant died in 1679, at the age of 87, but to celebrate this majestic life, a gigantic statue stands overlooking Salem Common. Salem originally included much of the North Shore
North Shore (Massachusetts)
The North Shore is a region in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, loosely defined as the coastal area between Boston and New Hampshire. The region is made up both of a rocky coastline, dotted with marshes and wetlands, as well as several beaches and natural harbors. The North Shore is an important...
, including Marblehead
Marblehead, Massachusetts
Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...
. Most of the accused in the Salem witch trials
Salem witch trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
lived in nearby 'Salem Village', now known as Danvers
Danvers, Massachusetts
Danvers is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts, Danvers is most widely known for its association with the 1692 Salem witch trials, and for its famous asylum, the Danvers State Hospital.-17th century:The land...
, although a few lived on the outskirts of Salem. Salem Village also included Peabody
Peabody, Massachusetts
Peabody is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population is about 53,000. Peabody is located in Boston's North Shore suburban area.- History :...
and parts of present-day Beverly
Beverly, Massachusetts
Beverly is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 39,343 on , which differs by no more than several hundred from the 39,862 obtained in the 2000 census. A resort, residential and manufacturing community on the North Shore, Beverly includes Beverly Farms and Prides...
. Middleton
Middleton, Massachusetts
Middleton is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,987 at the 2010 census.- History :Middleton was first settled in 1659 and was officially incorporated in 1728. Prior to 1728 it was considered a part of Salem, and contains territory previously within the...
, Topsfield
Topsfield, Massachusetts
Topsfield is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,085 at the 2010 census.Part of the town comprises the census-designated place of Topsfield.-Colonial period:...
, Wenham
Wenham, Massachusetts
Wenham is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,875 at the 2010 census.The Town of Wenham was originally settled in 1635 and has retained much of its unique historic character and tranquil rural scenery...
and Manchester-by-the-Sea, too, were once parts of Salem.
William Hathorne
William Hathorne
William Hathorne was one of the most able, energetic and widely influential men in early New England.Hathorne is also the first American ancestor of the distinguished author, Nathaniel Hawthorne .-Biography:Hathorne was the son of a plain English yeoman, came to America in 1630, and rose to...
was a prosperous businessman in early Salem, and became its commanding character of the time period. He led troops to victory in King Philip's War
King Philip's War
King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies in 1675–76. The war is named after the main leader of the...
, served as a magistrate on the highest court, and was chosen as the first speaker of the House of Deputies. He was a zealous advocate of the personal rights of freemen against royal emissaries and agents.
Puritans had come to Massachusetts to obtain religious freedom for themselves, but had no particular interest in establishing a haven for other faiths. The laws were harsh, with punishments that included fines, deprivation of property, banishment or imprisonment.
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1559, as an activist movement within the Church of England. The designation "Puritan" is often incorrectly used, notably based on the assumption that hedonism and puritanism are antonyms: historically, the word was used to characterize the Protestant group as extremists similar to the Cathari of France, and according to Thomas Fuller in his Church History dated back to 1564. Archbishop Matthew Parker of that time used it and "precisian" with the sense of stickler. T. D. Bozeman therefore uses instead the term precisianist in regard to the historical groups of England and New England.
One of the most widely known aspects of Salem is its history of witchcraft allegations, which started with Abigail Williams
Abigail Williams
Abigail Williams was one of the initial accusers in the Salem witch trials of 1692, which led to the arrest and imprisonment of over 150 innocent people.-Salem Witch trials:...
, Betty Parris
Betty Parris
Elizabeth "Betty" Parris was one of the accusers during the Salem witch trials. In the winter of 1691–1692, Betty, the nine-year-old daughter of the Salem, Massachusetts' Reverend Samuel Parris and his wife Elizabeth, was the first to claim illness due to being "bewitched"...
, and their friends playing with a Venus glass and egg. Salem is also significant in legal history as the site of the Dorthy Talbye
Dorothy Talbye trial
The Dorothy Talbye Trial is an early American example of a trial of an insane woman at a time when the insane were treated no differently than ordinary criminals...
trial, where a mentally ill woman was hanged for murdering her daughter, because at the time Massachusetts made no distinction between insanity and criminal behavior.
William Hathorne's son, Judge John Hathorne
John Hathorne
John Hathorne was an executor in the Salem witch trials, and the only one who never repented of his actions. He was also a merchant in Salem, Massachusetts....
, came to prominence during this period. People generally believed witchcraft to be real. Nothing caused more fear in the Puritan community than people who appeared to be possessed by demons, and witchcraft was a serious felony. Judge Hathorne is the best known of the witch trial judges, and he became known as the "Hanging Judge" for sentencing witches to death.
Salem & The Revolutionary War
On February 26, 1775, patriots raised the drawbridgeDrawbridge
A drawbridge is a type of movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a castle surrounded by a moat. The term is often used to describe all different types of movable bridges, like bascule bridges and lift bridges.-Castle drawbridges:...
at the North River, preventing British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
Colonel Alexander Leslie and his 300 troops of the 64th Regiment of Foot
64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot
The 64th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was created as the 2nd Battalion, 11th Regiment of Foot in 1756, redesignated as the 64th Regiment of Foot in 1758, and took a county title as the 64th Regiment of Foot in 1782...
from seizing stores and ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
hidden in North Salem. A few months later, in May 1775, a group of prominent merchants with ties to Salem, including Francis Cabot, William Pynchon, Thomas Barnard, E.A. Holyoke and William Pickman, felt the need to publish a statement retracting what some interpreted as Loyalist leanings and to profess their dedication to the Colonial cause.
During the Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, the town became a center for privateering. Although the documentation is incomplete, about 1,700 Letters of Marque, issued on a per-voyage basis, were granted during the American Revolution. Nearly 800 vessels were commissioned as privateers and are credited with capturing or destroying about 600 British ships. By 1790, Salem was the sixth largest city in the country, and a world famous seaport—particularly in the China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
trade. Codfish was exported to the West Indies and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
and molasses
Molasses
Molasses is a viscous by-product of the processing of sugar cane, grapes or sugar beets into sugar. The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey". The quality of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or sugar beet,...
were imported from the West Indies, tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
from China, and pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
from Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
. Salem ships also visited Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. During the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, privateering resumed.
Prosperity left the city with a wealth of fine architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, including Federal style mansions designed by one of America's first architects Samuel McIntire
Samuel McIntire
Samuel McIntyre was an American architect and craftsman, Chestnut Street District, a legacy to one of the earliest architects in the United States, Samuel McIntyre is a primary example of Federal style architecture....
, for whom the city's largest historic district is named. These homes and mansions from Colonial America now comprise the greatest concentrations of notable pre-1900 domestic structures in the United States.
This wealth of architecture in Salem can be directly attributed to the Old China Trade
Old China Trade
The Old China Trade was the name given to the early commerce between the Qing Empire and the United States under the Canton System, spanning from shortly after the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1783 to the Treaty of Wanghsia in 1844...
, which was ongoing for years with America and Great Britain. The neutrality of the United States was tested during the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. Both Britain and France imposed trade restrictions in order to weaken each others' economies. This also had the effect of disrupting American trade and testing the United States' neutrality. As time went on, harassment by the British of American ships increased by the British Navy. This included impressment
Impressment
Impressment, colloquially, "the Press", was the act of taking men into a navy by force and without notice. It was used by the Royal Navy, beginning in 1664 and during the 18th and early 19th centuries, in wartime, as a means of crewing warships, although legal sanction for the practice goes back to...
and seizures of American men and goods. After the Chesapeake Leopard Affair, Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
was faced with a decision to make regarding the situation at hand. In the end, he chose an economic option: the Embargo Act of 1807 and Thomas Jefferson basically closed all the ports overnight, putting a little damper on the seaport town of Salem. The embargo of 1807 was the starting point on the path to the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
with Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
Salem was incorporated as a city on March 23, 1836, Salem adopted a city seal in 1839 with the motto "Divitis Indiae usque ad ultimum sinum", Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
for "To the farthest port of the rich Indies." Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, a judge during the Salem Witch Trials...
was overseer of the port from 1846 until 1849. He worked in the Customs House http://www.salemweb.com/guide/tour/attract5.shtml near Pickering Wharf, his setting for the beginning of The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter is an 1850 romantic work of fiction in a historical setting, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is considered to be his magnum opus. Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an...
. In 1858, an amusement park
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
was established at Salem Willows
Salem Willows
Salem Willows is an oceanfront neighborhood and amusement park in Salem, Massachusetts. It is named for the European white willow trees planted there in 1801 to form a shaded walk for patients convalescing at a nearby smallpox hospital...
, a peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
jutting into the harbor. It should be noted that up until the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, the port of Salem was a major center of trade in America.
The book "The Salem-India Story" written by Vanita Shastri narrates the adventures of the Salem seamen who connected the far corners of the globe through trade. This period (1788–1845) marks the beginning of US-India relations, long before the 21st century wave of globalization. It reveals the global trade connections that Salem had established with faraway lands, which were a source of livelihood and prosperity for many.
But shipping declined throughout the 19th century. Salem and its silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
ing harbor were increasingly eclipsed by Boston and New York. Consequently, the city turned to manufacturing. Industries included tanneries
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
, shoe factories and the Naumkeag Steam Cotton Company. More than 400 homes burned in the Great Salem Fire of 1914
Great Salem Fire of 1914
The Great Salem Fire of June 25, 1914, destroyed 1,376 buildings in Salem, Massachusetts.-Before the fire:Franklin H. Wentworth agitated for more fire protection. In an article in the Salem Evening News , he called "Salem in Danger of Destruction by Fire". He felt that the main fire danger was to...
, leaving 3,500 families homeless from a blaze that began in the Korn Leather Factory. The historic concentration of Federal architecture
Federal architecture
Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design...
on Chestnut Street were spared.
Air Station Salem & The National Guard
On 15 February 1935 the U.S. Coast Guard established a new seaplaneSeaplane
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water. Seaplanes that can also take off and land on airfields are a subclass called amphibian aircraft...
facility at Salem because there was no space to expand the Gloucester Air Station at Ten Pound Island
Coast Guard Air Station Gloucester
United States Coast Guard Air Station Gloucester was a United States Coast Guard air station located in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was replaced by Coast Guard Air Station Salem in 1935. Today, the site is home to Coast Guard Station Gloucester....
. Coast Guard Air Station Salem
Coast Guard Air Station Salem
Coast Guard Air Station Salem was a United States Coast Guard air station located in Salem, Massachusetts. It operated from New York City to the Canadian Border.-Mission:...
was located at Winter Island
Winter Island
Winter Island is an island connected by a causeway to Salem Neck in Salem, Massachusetts. It consists of about and is surrounded by: Smith Pool , Cat Cove , Salem Channel and Juniper Cove ....
, an extension of Salem Neck
Salem Neck (Massachusetts)
Salem Neck is a peninsula in northeastern Salem, Massachusetts, in the United States. It stretches from Salem's powerplant on Salem Harbor to Juniper Point on Salem Neck. The peninsula is populated primarily by residential and recreational areas. Winter Island is an adjoining peninsula to its...
which juts out into Salem Harbor
Salem Harbor
Salem Harbor is a harbor in northeastern Massachusetts spanning an area north and south of Salem. Historically the Salem Harbor was the site of one of the major international ports in the colonies...
. Search and rescue
Search and rescue
Search and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
, hunting for derelicts and medical evacuations were the Station's primary areas of responsibility. During the first year of operation, Salem crews performed 26 med-evac missions. They flew in all kinds of weather and the radio direction capabilities of the aircraft were of significant value in locating vessels in distress.
During World War II, air crews from Salem flew neutrality patrol
Neutrality Patrol
At the beginning of World War II, when Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 started the hostilities in Europe, President Franklin D...
s along the coast and the Air Station roster grew to 37 aircraft. Anti-submarine patrols were flown on a regular basis. In October 1944, Air Station Salem was officially designated as the first Air-Sea Rescue
Air-sea rescue
Air-sea rescue is the coordinated search and rescue of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people who have survived the loss of their sea-going vessel. ASR can involve a wide variety of resources including seaplanes, helicopters, submarines, rescue boats and ships...
station on the eastern seaboard. The Martin PBM Mariner, a hold-over from the war, became the primary rescue aircraft. In the mid 1950s helicopters came as did Grumman HU-16 Albatross amphibious flying boats (UFs). Salem Harbor was deep enough to host a seadrome with three sea lanes, offering a variety of take-off headings irrespective of wind direction unless there was a strong steady wind from the east. This produced large waves that swept into the mouth of the harbor making water operations difficult. When the seadrome was too rough, returning amphibian aircraft would use Naval Auxiliary Air Facility Beverly. Salem Air Station moved to Cape Cod
Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod
Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod is a United States Coast Guard air station located on Otis Air National Guard Base in Sandwich, Massachusetts. It operates from New York City to the Canadian Border...
in 1970.
In 2011 The City of Salem made it official the plans for the tip of the 30-acre Winter Island Park http://salem.patch.com/articles/benefits-concerns-discussed-at-wind-turbine-hearing and squared off against residents who are against bringing two power generating windmills to the tip of Winter Island. http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/news/lifestyle/columnists/x1145375982/John-Goff-Salem-windmills-revisited The Renewable Energy Task Force, along with Energy and Sustainability Manager Paul Marquis, have recommended the construction of a 1.5-megawatt power turbine at the tip of Winter Island, http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/features/x1260731137/Wind-turbine-project-moves-forward-in-Salem?img=2#axzz1UlBIsVsO which is the furthest point from residences and where the winds are the strongest. The results of the City of Salem wind tests can be viewed http://www.salem.com/Pages/SalemMA_BComm/metdata.
The nearly 30-acre park has been open to the public since the early 1970´s. In 2011 a master plan was developed with help from the planning and design firm The Cecil Group of Boston and Bioengineering Group of Salem and the City of Salem paid $45,000 in federal money. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x194733685/Plan-calls-for-amphitheater-other-fixes-at-Winter-Island
In the long term the projected cost to rehabilitate just the barracks is $1.5 million. But in the short term, there are multiple lower-cost items like a proposed $15,000 for a kayak dock or $50,000 to relocate and improve the bathhouse. This is a very important project since Fort Pickering guarded Salem Harbor as far back as the 17th century.
Salem's is designated as National Guard Birthplace
In 1637 the first muster on Salem Common where for the first time, a regiment of militia drilled for the common defense of a multi-community area http://www.ng.mil/news/archives/2010/04/041310-salem.aspx, thus laying the foundation for what became the Army National GuardArmy National Guard
Established under Title 10 and Title 32 of the U.S. Code, the Army National Guard is part of the National Guard and is divided up into subordinate units stationed in each of the 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia operating under their respective governors...
.http://www.armedforces.com/salem-designated-as-national-guard-birthplace/ Each April, the Second Corps of Cadets gather in front of St. Peter's Episcopal Church, where their founder, Stephen Abbott, is buried. They lay a wreath, play Taps
Taps
"Taps" is a musical piece sounded by the U.S. military nightly to indicate that it is "lights out". The tune is also sometimes known as "Butterfields Lullaby", or by the lyrics of its second verse, "Day is Done". It is also played during flag ceremonies and funerals, generally on bugle or trumpet...
and fire a 21-gun salute
21-gun salute
Gun salutes are the firing of cannons or firearms as a military or naval honor.The custom stems from naval tradition, where a warship would fire its cannons harmlessly out to sea, until all ammunition was spent, to show that it was disarmed, signifying the lack of hostile intent...
. In another annual commemoration, soldiers gather at Old Salem Armory to honor soldiers who were killed in the Battles of Lexington and Concord
Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. They were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy , and Cambridge, near Boston...
.
World Record for Federal Furniture
In 2011, a mahogany side chair with carving done by Samuel McIntireSamuel McIntire
Samuel McIntyre was an American architect and craftsman, Chestnut Street District, a legacy to one of the earliest architects in the United States, Samuel McIntyre is a primary example of Federal style architecture....
sold at auction for $662,500.http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=5401630 The price set a world record for Federal furniture
Federal furniture
Federal furniture refers to American furniture produced in the federal style, which lasted from approximately 1789 to 1823. Notable furniture makers who worked in this style included Duncan Phyfe and Charles-Honoré Lannuier...
. McIntyre was one of the first architects in the United States and his work represents a prime example of early Federal-style architecture. Elias Hasket Derby
Elias Hasket Derby
Elias Hasket Derby was among the wealthiest and most celebrated of post-Revolutionary merchants in Salem, Massachusetts, and owner of the Grand Turk, the first New England vessel to trade directly with China....
, Salem's wealthiest merchant and thought to be America's first millionaire, and his wife, Elizabeth Crowninshield
Crowninshield family
The Crowninshield family is an American family that has been prominent in seafaring, political and military leadership, and the literary world. The founder of the American family immigrated in the late 17th century from what is now Germany...
, purchased the set of eight chairs http://antiquesandartireland.com/2011/01/antique-furniture-record/ from McIntire.
The Samuel McIntire Historic District represents the greatest concentration of 17th and 18th century domestic structures anywhere in America. It includes McIntyre commissions such as the Peirce-Nichols House
Peirce-Nichols House
The Peirce-Nichols House is a historic home located at 80 Federal Street, built in 1782, and residing in the Chestnut Street District, Salem, Massachusetts and owned by the Peabody Essex Museum....
and Hamilton Hall
Hamilton Hall (Salem, Massachusetts)
Hamilton Hall is a National Historic Landmark at 9 Chestnut Street in Salem, Massachusetts in the Chestnut Street District in Salem, Massachusetts. Hamilton Hall is over 200 years old and is still used by many for events, private functions, wedding and is also home to a series of lectures that...
. The Witch House
The Witch House
The Witch House , was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin and is the only structure still standing in Salem, Massachusetts with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The house was bought by Judge Corwin, in 1675, when he was 24 years old and he lived there for more than forty years. Corwin...
or Jonathan Corwin House (circa 1642) is also located in the District. Samuel McIntyre's house and workshop were located at 31 Summer Street in what is now the Samuel McIntyre Historic District.
Film & Television in Salem
In June 1970, BewitchedBewitched
Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Dick Sargent , Agnes Moorehead, and David White. The show is about a witch who marries a mortal and tries to lead the life of a typical suburban...
filmed on location in Salem. In 2008, Bride Wars
Bride Wars
Bride Wars is a 2009 American romantic comedy film directed by Gary Winick and written by Greg DePaul, June Diane Raphael and Casey Wilson....
was filmed http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/fun/entertainment/x2118742612/Bride-Wars-takes-Salem-by-storm
in Salem and in September 2011, Rob Zombie
Rob Zombie
Rob Zombie is an American musician, film director, screenwriter and film producer. He founded the heavy metal band White Zombie and has been nominated three times as a solo artist for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.Zombie has also established a career as a film director, creating the...
, musician and movie director,
http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1078452797/A-real-Zombie-visits-Salem was visiting and scouting locations for his latest horror movie, "The Lords of Salem."
Geography and transportation
Salem is located at 42°31′1"N 70°53′55"W (42.516845, -70.898503). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 18.1 square miles (46.9 km²), of which, 8.1 square miles (21 km²) of it is land and 9.9 square miles (25.6 km²) of it (55.09%) is water. Salem lies on Massachusetts Bay
Massachusetts Bay
The Massachusetts Bay, also called Mass Bay, is one of the largest bays of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the distinctive shape of the coastline of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Its waters extend 65 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. Massachusetts Bay includes the Boston Harbor, Dorchester Bay,...
between Salem Harbor, which divides the city from much of neighboring Marblehead
Marblehead, Massachusetts
Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...
to the southeast, and Beverly Harbor, which divides the city from Beverly
Beverly, Massachusetts
Beverly is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 39,343 on , which differs by no more than several hundred from the 39,862 obtained in the 2000 census. A resort, residential and manufacturing community on the North Shore, Beverly includes Beverly Farms and Prides...
along with the Danvers River, which feeds into the harbor. Between the two harbors lies Salem Neck and Winter Island, which are divded from each other by Cat Cove, Smith Pool (located between the two land causeways to Winter Island) and Juniper Cove. The city is further divided by Collins Cove, and the inlet to the North River. The Forest River flows through the south end of town as well, along with Strong Water Brook, which feeds Spring Pond at the town's southwest corner. The town has several parks, as well as conservation land along the Forest River and Camp Lion, which lies east of Spring Pond
Spring Pond
'Spring Pond, United States abuts the three cities of Lynn, Peabody and Salem. In the center of these townships "is a beautiful pond". It is a secluded lake known by residents of the three cities and visitors who come to enjoy the camps, trails and natural environment of the woods...
.
The city is divided by its natural features into several small neighborhoods. The Salem Neck neighborhood lies northeast of downtown, and North Salem lies to the west of it, on the other side of the North River. South Salem is south of the South River, lying mostly along the banks of Salem Harbor southward. Downtown Salem lies fifteen miles (24 km) northeast of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, sixteen miles southwest of Gloucester
Gloucester, Massachusetts
Gloucester is a city on Cape Ann in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is part of Massachusetts' North Shore. The population was 28,789 at the 2010 U.S. Census...
and Cape Ann
Cape Ann
Cape Ann is a rocky cape in northeastern Massachusetts on the Atlantic Ocean. The cape is located approximately 30 miles northeast of Boston and forms the northern edge of Massachusetts Bay. Cape Ann includes the city of Gloucester, and the towns of Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea, and...
, and nineteen miles (30 km) southeast of Lawrence
Lawrence, Massachusetts
Lawrence is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States on the Merrimack River. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a total population of 76,377. Surrounding communities include Methuen to the north, Andover to the southwest, and North Andover to the southeast. It and Salem are...
, the other county seat of Essex County. Salem is bordered by Beverly to the north, Danvers
Danvers, Massachusetts
Danvers is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts, Danvers is most widely known for its association with the 1692 Salem witch trials, and for its famous asylum, the Danvers State Hospital.-17th century:The land...
to the northwest, Peabody
Peabody, Massachusetts
Peabody is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population is about 53,000. Peabody is located in Boston's North Shore suburban area.- History :...
to the west, Lynn
Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 89,050 at the 2000 census. An old industrial center, Lynn is home to Lynn Beach and Lynn Heritage State Park and is about north of downtown Boston.-17th century:...
to the southeast, Swampscott
Swampscott, Massachusetts
Swampscott is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States located 15 miles up the coast from Boston in an area known as the North Shore. The population is 13,787...
to the south, and Marblehead
Marblehead, Massachusetts
Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...
to the southeast. The town's water rights extend along a channel into Massachusetts Bay between the water rights of Marblehead and Beverly.
The connection between Salem and Beverly is made across the Danvers River and Beverly Harbor by three bridges, the Kernwood Bridge to the west, and a railroad bridge and the Essex Bridge, from the land between Collins Cove and the North River, to the east. The Veterans Memorial Bridge
Veterans Memorial Bridge (Essex County, Massachusetts)
Veterans Memorial Bridge is a fixed-span roadway crossing of the Danvers River carrying U.S. Route 1A between Salem, Massachusetts and Beverly, Massachusetts. It opened in 1997 replacing a previous historic steel bridge at the same location.-History:...
carries Route 1A
Massachusetts Route 1A
Route 1A is a south–north state highway in Massachusetts. It is an alternate route to U.S. 1 with three signed sections and two unsigned sections where the highway is concurrent with its parent...
across the river. Route 1A passes through the eastern side of the city, through South Salem towards Swampscott. For much of its length in the city, it is coextensive with Route 114, which goes north from Marblehead before merging with Route 1A, and then heading northwest from downtown towards Lawrence. Route 107
Massachusetts Route 107
Route 107 is a north–south Massachusetts state route located along the North Shore of Massachusetts. Route 107 runs from Route 16 in Revere to Route 1A at the Essex Bridge in Salem.-Route description:...
also passes through town, entering from Lynn in the southwest corner of the city before heading towards its intersection with Route 114 and terminating at Route 1A. There is no highway access within the city; the nearest highway access to Route 128 is along Route 114 in neighboring Peabody.
Several lines of the MBTA Bus
MBTA Bus
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority operates a large number of bus lines in the greater Boston area. Some routes are for transport within the city; others bring passengers from surrounding areas to stops on the rail lines of the MBTA.The MBTA also operates bus rapid transit service; see...
service pass through the city. Salem has a station
Salem (MBTA station)
Salem is a passenger rail station on MBTA Commuter Rail's Newburyport/Rockport Line located in Salem, Massachusetts. Salem station is located at 252 Bridge Street, near the intersection of Massachusetts Route 107 and Route 114. In MBTA Commuter Rail's zone-based fare system, Salem is located...
on the Newburyport/Rockport Line
Newburyport/Rockport Line
The Newburyport/Rockport Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running northeast from downtown Boston, Massachusetts towards Cape Ann and the Merrimack Valley, serving the North Shore. The first leg serves Chelsea, Lynn, Swampscott, Salem, and Beverly. From there, a northern branch of...
of the MBTA Commuter Rail
MBTA Commuter Rail
The MBTA Commuter Rail serves as the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in the United States. It is operated under contract by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company a joint partnership of Veolia Transportation, Bombardier Transportation and Alternate...
. The railroad lines are also connected to an abandoned portion of the Springfield Terminal lines which lead into Peabody, and a former line into Marblehead has been converted into a bike path.
The nearest small airport is Beverly Municipal Airport
Beverly Municipal Airport
Beverly Municipal Airport is a public-use airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Beverly, a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States...
, and the nearest national and international service can be reached at Boston's Logan International Airport
Logan International Airport
General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport is located in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts . It covers , has six runways, and employs an estimated 16,000 people. It is the 19th busiest airport in the United States.Boston serves as a focus city for JetBlue Airways...
.
Salem Waterfront, Cruise Ship & Ferry Landing & the Blaney Street pier
Launched in 2006 with ridership climbing every year, and operated from late spring through early fall, the 92 foot Salem Ferry provides ferry service between Salem and Boston, taking less than an hour's ride. In 2010, was a great success and The Salem Ferry Service between Boston's Long Wharf North and Salem's Blaney Street ran from May 28, 2010 and taking the final voyage on the 1st of November 1, 2010. The trip is 55 minutes. The ferry is enclosed, has rest rooms and a snack bar. For the 2011 season, The Salem Ferry began the 2011 season on June 11. On September 14, The Salem Ferry announced it was cutting back service and taking out the commuter service Monday to Friday because of the rise in the cost of fuel. This is the 6th year of the Salem Ferry and service will be on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with the last day of service in 2011 to be on Halloween, October 31. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1095948107/Salem-ferry-cuts-back-to-three-days-a-weekIn October 2010, Mayor Kimberley Driscoll announced that the City will formally acquire the Blaney Street http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dominion-to-sell-blaney-street-property-to-city-of-salem-95773339.html parcel from Dominion Energy, paving the way for the Salem Wharf project. The City of Salem secured $1.25 million from the Massachusetts Seaport Advisory Council and $2.5 million in federal grant dollars to move forward with the construction of the project. The City acquired the parcel with the help of a $1.7 million grant received from the Seaport Advisory Council. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x962027262/Salem-is-focusing-its-sights-on-shore/
The City of Salem's plans call for a total build-out of the current Blaney Street pier, known as the Salem Wharf project. When finished, The Blaney Street pier will be home to small to medium sized cruise ships, commercial vessels and The Salem Ferry.. This project is fully engineered and permitted.
http://www.salem.com/Pages/SalemMA_PressReleases/I02CF1FBC. In 2010,
Examples of work to be finished in this early phase that will be complete for the 2011 Season, a contractor is running underground utility cables and erecting an interim terminal building that will be used by the Salem Ferry, replacing the current trailer. The building will have an indoor bathroom — a first at the ferry landing — along with a waiting room and possibly an outdoor area with awnings. Also new for 2011 is a paved lot with about 140 parking spaces replacing the existing dirt parking lot.
Also in 2011, A Construction crews have been building a long seawall at the Blaney Street landing, which runs from the edge of the ferry dock back toward Derby Street and along an inner harbor. This is one of the early and key pieces of the Salem Pier, which the city hopes to have completed by 2014 and is the key to eventually bring cruise ships to Salem. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x300778348/Salem-pier-work-under-way.
http://boston.cbslocal.com/2011/05/11/salem-harbor-power-station-to-close-in-2014/
At the end of the 2011 season of the Salem Ferry, In the late fall of 2011, after the ferry season ends, contractors will start building the first section of the T-shaped, 350-foot pier. Work on that phase is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2012. As of April 2011, The City Of Salem has secured half of the $20 million and still needs to secure about $10 million in state and federal funds to complete this waterfront pier. http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1324603491/Grant-of-2-5M-to-aid-wharf-makeover
Closing of the Salem Coal Plant & the 62 Acre Site.
In May 2011 and after years of legal battles, protests and one recent fatal accident has led the owner of the Salem Harbor Power Station to announce it will close down the facility permanently.http://www.necn.com/05/12/11/Salem-Mass-power-plant-to-close/landing_business.html?blockID=521746&feedID=4209 Dominion of Virginia says that with the approval of ISO New England, the 60-year-old coal and oil-fired plant will close for good in June 2014.http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/salem/2011/05/dominion_salem_harbor_will_clo.html
The City of Salem was awarded a $200,000 grant from the Clean Energy Center prior to the closure of the plant and with the closure scheduled for June 2014, this grant money is being used to plan for the eventual re-use of this property. http://www.wickedlocal.com/salem/features/x1539858512/Countdown-to-closure-Part-of-Salem-power-plant-may-still-be-needed-after-2014#axzz1V3hia1Hh That study is underway and we are working with engineers and land use planners on re-use options. The City of Salem has been reaching out to state and federal officials to ask for their cooperation and assistance in planning for the future and money to clean up The Salem Harbor Power Plant 60 Acre Site.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2010, there were 41,340 people, 19,130 households, and 9,708 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,986.0 people per square mile (1,926.1/km²). There were 18,175 housing units at an average density of 2,242.7 per square mile (866.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.9% White, 4.9% African American, 0.22% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 6.74% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.6% of the population.
There were 17,492 households out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.5% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,033, and the median income for a family was $55,635. Males had a median income of $38,563 versus $31,374 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $23,857. About 6.3% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Salem State University is the largest of the nine schools comprising the state university system in Massachusetts (the five University of MassachusettsUniversity of Massachusetts
This article relates to the statewide university system. For the flagship campus often referred to as "UMass", see University of Massachusetts Amherst...
campuses are a separate system), with 7,500 undergraduates and 2,500 graduate students; its five campuses encompass 115 acre (0.4653889 km²) and include 33 buildings. The Salem State Foundation hosts an annual lecture series, featuring high-profile speakers from around the world.
The university was founded in 1854 as the Salem Normal School (for teacher training) based on the educational principles espoused by Horace Mann
Horace Mann
Horace Mann was an American education reformer, and a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1827 to 1833. He served in the Massachusetts Senate from 1834 to 1837. In 1848, after serving as Secretary of the Massachusetts State Board of Education since its creation, he was...
, considered to be the "Father of American Public Education."
Salem State University enrolls over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students representing 27 states and 57 foreign countries, and is one of the largest state universities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university also offers Continuing Education courses for credit or non-credit. Situated on five campuses totaling 115 acre (0.4653889 km²). Currently, the university houses 2,000 students in its five residence facilities.
Public elementary schools include the Bates, Bentley, Carlton, Horace Mann, Nathaniel Bowditch, Saltonstall and Witchcraft Heights schools. Collins Middle School, Nathaniel Bowditch School, and Salem High School are located on Highland Avenue. Private schools are also located in the city, including two independent, alternative schools, The Phoenix School and the Greenhouse, as well as the Salem Academy Charter School.
Salem also once had a very strong Roman Catholic school system. Once home to almost a dozen schools, the last school in the city, St. Joseph School, closed in July 2009 after over 100 years of providing Catholic Education. St. James High School, St. Chretienne Academy, St. Chretienne Grammar School and St. Mary's School closed in 1971, St. James Grammar School closed in 1972, St. Thomas the Apostle School closed in 1973, St. Anne School closed in 1976, St. John the Baptist School closed in 1977 and St. Joseph High School closed in 1980.
In late 2007 and early 2008, the city's public school system garnered regional and even national attention after officials announced a $4.7 million budget shortfall that threatened the jobs of teachers and other staff members. The Massachusetts General Court passed legislation, and residents raised enough money, that averted teacher layoffs. Several dozen support workers were still laid off. Police were investigating what happened to the money in a search for criminal violations of the law.
Historic Homes
The Pickman HousePickman House
The Pickman House, located in Salem, Massachusetts on Charter Street behind the Peabody Essex Museum, is the oldest continually operated museum in America...
, built circa 1664, abuts the Witch Memorial and Burying Point Cemetery, the second oldest burying ground in the United States.
The Gedney House
Gedney House
The Gedney House is a historic Colonial American house, estimated to have been constructed circa 1665. It is located at 21 High Street, near the intersection of Summer Street in the Chestnut Street District Salem, Massachusetts and operated as a non-profit museum by Historic New England...
is a historic house museum built circa 1665 and is the 2nd oldest house in Salem.
One of the most popular houses in Salem is The Witch House
The Witch House
The Witch House , was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin and is the only structure still standing in Salem, Massachusetts with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The house was bought by Judge Corwin, in 1675, when he was 24 years old and he lived there for more than forty years. Corwin...
, the only structure in Salem with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials
Salem witch trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
of 1692. The Witch House is owned and operated by the City of Salem as a historic house museum.http://www.salemweb.com/witchhouse/
Hamilton Hall (Salem, Massachusetts)
Hamilton Hall (Salem, Massachusetts)
Hamilton Hall is a National Historic Landmark at 9 Chestnut Street in Salem, Massachusetts in the Chestnut Street District in Salem, Massachusetts. Hamilton Hall is over 200 years old and is still used by many for events, private functions, wedding and is also home to a series of lectures that...
is located on Chestnut Street in Salem, where many grand mansions can be traced to the roots of the Old China Trade
Old China Trade
The Old China Trade was the name given to the early commerce between the Qing Empire and the United States under the Canton System, spanning from shortly after the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1783 to the Treaty of Wanghsia in 1844...
. Hamilton Hall was built in 1805 by Samuel McIntire and is considered one of McIntire best pieces. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
by the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
in 1970.
Witch Related Tourism
Tourism is the backbone of Salem's economy, followed by Salem State University with over 10,000 students. Tourism based on the 1692 witch trialsSalem witch trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
dates back to at least the first half of the 20th century, when dry goods merchant Daniel Low sold souvenir spoons with witch images. Such tourism expanded significantly in the 1970s, when the television situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Bewitched
Bewitched
Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Dick Sargent , Agnes Moorehead, and David White. The show is about a witch who marries a mortal and tries to lead the life of a typical suburban...
filmed several episodes here. Witch-related tourism expanded significantly in the 1990s, and the city added an official "Haunted Happenings" celebration during the October tourist season.
In 2007, the city launched the Haunted Passport program which offers visitors discounts and benefits from local tourist attractions and retailers from October to April. The goal of the program is to get visitors to come back to Salem after Halloween and experience businesses that may not be directly tied to Halloween. Thousands watched in 2007 as Mayor Kim Driscoll started a new trend with a massive fireworks display that kicked off at 10:00 pm on Halloween.
In recent years, tourism has been an occasional source of debate in the city, with some residents arguing the city should downplay witch tourism and market itself as a more upscale cultural center. In 2005, the conflict came to a head over plans by the cable television network TV Land
TV Land
TV Land is an American cable television network launched on April 29, 1996. It is owned by MTV Networks, a division of Viacom, which also owns Paramount Pictures, and networks such as MTV and Nickelodeon...
to erect a bronze statue of Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery was an American film and television actress whose career spanned five decades. She is perhaps best remembered for her roles as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched, as Ellen Harrod in A Case of Rape and as Lizzie Borden in The Legend of Lizzie Borden.-Early life:Born in Los...
, who played the comic witch "Samantha" in the 1960s series Bewitched. A few special episodes of the series were actually filmed in Salem, and TV Land said that the statue commemorated the 35th anniversary of those episodes. The statue was sculpted by StudioEIS
StudioEIS
StudioEIS is a sculpture and design studio in Brooklyn, New York, USA. It specializes in "visual storytelling" — the production of figurative sculpture in bronze, stone, and resin for narrative exhibitions at cultural institutions, museums, and corporations worldwide.- History :StudioEIS was...
under the direction of brothers Elliott and Ivan Schwartz. Many felt the statue was good fun and appropriate to a city that promotes itself as "The Witch City", and contains a street named "Witch Way". Others objected to the use of public property for what was transparently commercial promotion.
Other tourist attractions
In 2000, the replica tall ship Friendship of SalemFriendship of Salem
The Friendship of Salem is a 171-foot replica of a 1797 East Indiaman, built in the Scarano Brothers Shipyard in Albany, New York, in 2000...
was finished and sailed to Salem Harbor, where she sits today. The Friendship of Salem is a reconstruction of a 171 feet (52.1 m) three-masted East Indiaman trading ship, originally built in 1797, which traveled the world over a dozen times and returned to Salem after each voyage with goods from all over the world. The original was taken by the British during the War of 1812, then stripped and sold in pieces.
In 2006, with the assistance of a 1.6 million dollar grant and additional funds provided by the City of Salem, Mayor Driscoll launched The Nathaniel Bowditch, a 92-foot catamaran with a top speed of 30 knots which makes the trip between Salem and Boston in just under an hour. Bowditch
Nathaniel Bowditch
Nathaniel Bowditch was an early American mathematician remembered for his work on ocean navigation. He is often credited as the founder of modern maritime navigation; his book The New American Practical Navigator, first published in 1802, is still carried on board every commissioned U.S...
, who was born in Salem and had a home on North Street, is considered the founder of modern maritime navigation. His book, Bowditch's American Practical Navigator
Bowditch's American Practical Navigator
The American Practical Navigator , originally written by Nathaniel Bowditch, is an encyclopedia of navigation. It serves as a valuable handbook on oceanography and meteorology, and contains useful tables and a maritime glossary...
, first published in 1802, is still carried on board every commissioned U.S. Naval vessel.
The original Fame was a fast Chebacco fishing schooner that was reborn as a privateer when war broke out in the summer of 1812. She was arguably the first American privateer to bring home a prize, and she made 20 more captures before being wrecked in the Bay of Fundy in 1814.
The new Fame is a full-scale replica of this famous schooner. Framed and planked of white oak and trunnel-fastened in the traditional manner, the replica of Fame was launched in 2003. She is now based at Salem's Pickering Wharf Marina, where she takes the paying public for cruises on historic Salem Sound. http://www.schoonerfame.com/main.html
Salem Harborwalk opened in July 2010 to celebrate the rebirth of the Salem Waterfront as a source of recreation for visitors as well as the local community. The 1,100 foot walkway from the area of the Salem Fire Station to the Salem Waterfront Hotel.
The Peabody Essex Museum
Peabody Essex Museum
The Peabody Essex Museum , originally the Peabody Museum of Salem and the Essex Institute, in Salem, Massachusetts is the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States, and holds one of the major collections of Asian art in the US; its total holdings include about 1.3 million pieces, as...
is a leading museum of Asian art and culture and early American maritime trade and whaling; its collections of Indian, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese art, and in particular Chinese export porcelain, are among the finest in the country. Founded in 1799, it is the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States. The museum owns and exhibits a number of historic houses in downtown Salem. In 2003, it completed a massive $100 million dollar renovation and expansion, designed by architect Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie, CC, FAIA is an architect, urban designer, educator, theorist, and author. Born in the city of Haifa, then Palestine and now Israel, he moved with his family to Montreal, Canada, when he was 15 years old.-Career:...
, and moved a 200-year-old 16-room Chinese home from Xiuning County
Xiuning County
Xiuning County is a county in Anhui Province, People's Republic of China, under the jurisdiction of Huangshan City. It has a population of 270,000 and an area of...
in southeastern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
to the grounds of the museum.
The Old Salem Jail, an active correctional facility until 1991, once housed captured British soldiers from the War of 1812. It contains the main jail building (built in 1813, renovated in 1884), the jail keeper's house (1813) and a barn (also about 1813). The jail was shuttered in 1991 when Essex County opened its new facility in Middleton. In 2010, a $12 million renovation was completed. One feature of the reconstruction is the jail keeper's house, a three-story brick, Federal-period building originally built in 1813. The project went into a long phase of stagnation when in 1999 the county government was dissolved, resulting in the sale of Salem Jail by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to the City of Salem for $1. The Old Salem Jail complex was renamed 50 Saint Peter Street and is now private property, with private residences.
Points of interest
- Nathaniel Bowditch HouseNathaniel Bowditch HouseThe Nathaniel Bowditch House , sometimes called by Bowditch-Osgood House or Nathaniel Bowditch Home, is a historic house located at 9 North Street, Salem, Massachusetts. It was once the home of Nathaniel Bowditch, the founder of modern navigation, and is now a National Historic Landmark and listed...
(c. 1805) Founder of modern navigation - Crowninshield-Bentley HouseCrowninshield-Bentley HouseThe Crowninshield-Bentley House is a Colonial house in the Georgian style, located at 126 Essex Street, Salem, Massachusetts. It is now owned by the Peabody Essex Museum and open for public tours from June to October....
(c. 1727–30) - John Tucker Daland HouseJohn Tucker Daland HouseThe John Tucker Daland House is an imposing, Italianate house designed by architect Gridley James Fox Bryant. It is located at 132 Essex Street, Salem, Massachusetts, United States, and now owned by the Peabody Essex Museum as home for the Essex Institute...
(1851) - Gedney HouseGedney HouseThe Gedney House is a historic Colonial American house, estimated to have been constructed circa 1665. It is located at 21 High Street, near the intersection of Summer Street in the Chestnut Street District Salem, Massachusetts and operated as a non-profit museum by Historic New England...
One of the oldest homes in Salem, open for tours! Located on High Street and Summer Street Salem (c. 1665) - Nathaniel Hawthorne BirthplaceNathaniel Hawthorne BirthplaceThe Nathaniel Hawthorne Birthplace is the birthplace of American author Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is located at 27 Hardy Street but accessible through 54 Turner Street, Salem, Massachusetts...
(c. 1730–45) - House of the Seven Gables (1668)
- The Witch HouseThe Witch HouseThe Witch House , was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin and is the only structure still standing in Salem, Massachusetts with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The house was bought by Judge Corwin, in 1675, when he was 24 years old and he lived there for more than forty years. Corwin...
, the home of Salem Witch TrialsSalem witch trialsThe Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
investigator Jonathan CorwinJonathan CorwinJonathan Corwin was a wealthy New England merchant, and a judge in the Salem, Massachusetts area who was involved in the Salem Witch Trials....
, and the only building still standing in Salem with direct ties to the Witch Trials - Salem Common
- Misery Islands
- Peabody Essex MuseumPeabody Essex MuseumThe Peabody Essex Museum , originally the Peabody Museum of Salem and the Essex Institute, in Salem, Massachusetts is the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States, and holds one of the major collections of Asian art in the US; its total holdings include about 1.3 million pieces, as...
(1799) Oldest continually operated museum in America. - Derby Square Tours Founded in 1983 by Jim McAllister, Night Tour, Witch Trial Trail & Terror Trail the longest running walking tour company in Salem.
- Winter IslandWinter IslandWinter Island is an island connected by a causeway to Salem Neck in Salem, Massachusetts. It consists of about and is surrounded by: Smith Pool , Cat Cove , Salem Channel and Juniper Cove ....
Maritime Park, RV camping seasonally. - Phillips Library
- Salem WillowsSalem WillowsSalem Willows is an oceanfront neighborhood and amusement park in Salem, Massachusetts. It is named for the European white willow trees planted there in 1801 to form a shaded walk for patients convalescing at a nearby smallpox hospital...
Motor home and RV parking . - Stephen Phillips Memorial Trust House (1800 & 1821)
- Pickering HousePickering HouseThe Pickering House is a Colonial located on Broad Street, Salem in the Chestnut Street District. The house, owned and occupied by ten successive generations of the Pickering family including Colonel Timothy Pickering. This house is believed to be the oldest house in the United States...
, Broad Street (c. 1651) - Salem Architecture from the 17th and 18th Centuries
- Ropes MansionRopes MansionThe Ropes Mansion , also called Ropes Memorial, is a Georgian Colonial mansion located at 318 Essex Street, Salem, Massachusetts. It is now operated by the Peabody Essex Museum and open to the public....
(late 1720s) - McIntire Historic District, greatest concentration of 17th and 18th century domestic structures in the U.S.
- Salem Maritime National Historic SiteSalem Maritime National Historic SiteThe Salem Maritime National Historic Site consists of 12 historic structures and about 9 acres of land along the waterfront in Salem, Massachusetts, plus a Visitor Center in downtown Salem...
, the only remaining intact waterfront from the U.S. age of sail - Pioneer Village, Forest River Park (c. 1930)
- Salem WillowsSalem WillowsSalem Willows is an oceanfront neighborhood and amusement park in Salem, Massachusetts. It is named for the European white willow trees planted there in 1801 to form a shaded walk for patients convalescing at a nearby smallpox hospital...
Park (1858), a small oceanfront amusement park. - Joseph Story HouseJoseph Story HouseThe Joseph Story House is a National Historic Landmark at 26 Winter Street in Salem, Massachusetts.The house was built in 1811 for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973....
- Winter IslandWinter IslandWinter Island is an island connected by a causeway to Salem Neck in Salem, Massachusetts. It consists of about and is surrounded by: Smith Pool , Cat Cove , Salem Channel and Juniper Cove ....
, park and historic point of the U.S. Coast Guard in WW2 for U-boatU-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
patrol - Salem AthenaeumSalem AthenaeumThe Salem Athenaeum, founded in 1810, is one of the oldest private library organizations in the United States. The Athenaeum is located at 337 Essex Street in Salem, Massachusetts.-History:...
Notable residents
- Nehemiah AdamsNehemiah AdamsReverend Nehemiah Adams was an American clergyman and writer.-Biography:He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1806 to Nehemiah Adams and Mehitabel Torrey Adams. He graduated from Harvard University in 1826, and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1829...
(1806–1878), clergyman and author - Brunonia Barry, author of The Lace ReaderThe Lace ReaderThe Lace Reader is a novel by Brunonia Barry. The novel is set in Salem, Massachusetts, the American town famous for the Salem witch trials.The novel came to be well known for its unusual route to mainstream publishing...
- Frank Weston BensonFrank Weston BensonFrank Weston Benson, frequently referred to as Frank W. Benson, was an American artist from Salem, Massachusetts known for his Realistic portraits, American Impressionist paintings, watercolors and etchings. He began his career painting portraits of distinguished families and murals for the...
(1862–1951), impressionist artist - John Prentiss BensonJohn Prentiss BensonJohn Prentiss Benson was an American architect and artist noted for his maritime paintings.-Early life:...
(1865–1947), architect and maritime artist - William BentleyWilliam BentleyWilliam Bentley was an American Unitarian minister, scholar, columnist, and diarist....
(1759–1819), Unitarian Minister, Salem diarist - Samuel Bowden, Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient for gallantry in Indian WarsIndian WarsAmerican Indian Wars is the name used in the United States to describe a series of conflicts between American settlers or the federal government and the native peoples of North America before and after the American Revolutionary War. The wars resulted from the arrival of European colonizers who...
at Wichita River, TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, 5 October 1870. - Nathaniel BowditchNathaniel BowditchNathaniel Bowditch was an early American mathematician remembered for his work on ocean navigation. He is often credited as the founder of modern maritime navigation; his book The New American Practical Navigator, first published in 1802, is still carried on board every commissioned U.S...
(1773–1838), mathematician and navigator - Rick BrunsonRick BrunsonEric Daniel Brunson , is a retired American professional basketball player, who is currently an assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls.-Professional playing career:...
, former NBA player - Timothy Burgess, veterinarian and zoologist
- Laurie CabotLaurie CabotLaurie Cabot is an American Witchcraft high priestess, and was one of the first people to popularize Witchcraft in the United States. She is the author of such books as The Power of the Witch, The Witch in Every Woman, Celebrate the Earth, while also founding the Cabot Tradition of the Science of...
, WitchcraftWitchcraftWitchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
high priestess - Christian Day WitchcraftWitchcraftWitchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
high priest and owner of two local stores. - Robert Ellis CahillRobert Ellis CahillRobert Ellis Cahill was a folklorist and author. He was the author of more than three dozen books on New England history and folklore, as well as on scuba diving, shipwrecks and pirates....
(1934–2005), sheriff, historian and author - Roger Conant (c.1592–1679), founder of Salem
- Crowninshield familyCrowninshield familyThe Crowninshield family is an American family that has been prominent in seafaring, political and military leadership, and the literary world. The founder of the American family immigrated in the late 17th century from what is now Germany...
, Boston BrahminBoston BrahminBoston Brahmins are wealthy Yankee families characterized by a highly discreet and inconspicuous life style. Based in and around Boston, they form an integral part of the historic core of the East Coast establishment...
s who later helped settle Salem - Elias Hasket DerbyElias Hasket DerbyElias Hasket Derby was among the wealthiest and most celebrated of post-Revolutionary merchants in Salem, Massachusetts, and owner of the Grand Turk, the first New England vessel to trade directly with China....
(1739–1799), merchant, first millionaire - Joseph Horace EatonJoseph Horace EatonJoseph Horace Eaton was an American artist and Army officer.-Early life:Eaton was born in Salem, Massachusetts. He graduated from West Point in 1835. During the Mexican-American War he was an aide to Gen. Zachary Taylor and was twice promoted and cited for gallantry, first at the Battle of...
(1815–1896), artist and military officer - John EndecottJohn EndecottJohn Endecott was an English colonial magistrate, soldier and the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. During all of his years in the colony but one, he held some form of civil, judicial, or military high office...
(1588–1665), governor - Thomas Gardner (planter)Thomas Gardner (planter)Thomas Gardner was an Overseer of the "old planters" party of the Dorchester Company who landed, in 1624 at Cape Ann, to form a colony at what is now known as Gloucester...
(c.1592–1674), co-founder of Salem - John HathorneJohn HathorneJohn Hathorne was an executor in the Salem witch trials, and the only one who never repented of his actions. He was also a merchant in Salem, Massachusetts....
(1641–1717), the "Hanging Judge" in Salem witch trials - William HathorneWilliam HathorneWilliam Hathorne was one of the most able, energetic and widely influential men in early New England.Hathorne is also the first American ancestor of the distinguished author, Nathaniel Hawthorne .-Biography:Hathorne was the son of a plain English yeoman, came to America in 1630, and rose to...
(c. 1576–1650), early businessman and political leader - Nathaniel HawthorneNathaniel HawthorneNathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, a judge during the Salem Witch Trials...
(1804–1864), writer - Jeff JudenJeff JudenJeffrey Daniel Juden is a former Major League Baseball player. He is 6'8" and weighs 270 lbs...
, major league baseball pitcher - Frederick W. LanderFrederick W. LanderFrederick West Lander was a transcontinental United States explorer, general in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and a prolific poet.-Birth and early years:...
(1821–1862), Civil War General, wagon trail and railroad surveyor, poet - John LarchJohn LarchJohn Larch was an American film and television actor.After his lead role in the radio serial Captain Starr of Space , John Larch entered films in 1954. He usually appeared in westerns and action films, including Miracle of the White Stallions as General George S. Patton Jr...
, actor (1914–2005), - Dudley LeavittDudley Leavitt (minister)Rev. Dudley Leavitt was a Congregational minister born in New Hampshire, educated at Harvard College, who led a splinter group from the First Church in Salem, Massachusetts, during a wave of religious ferment nearly a decade before the Great Awakening. Following Leavitt's death at age 42, his...
(1720–1762), early Harvard-educated Congregational minister, New HampshireNew HampshireNew Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
native, married to Mary Pickering, Salem's Leavitt Street named for him - Mary Lou LordMary Lou LordMary Lou Lord is an indie folk musician, busker and recording artist.-Biography:Mary Lou Lord first gained notice playing acoustic guitar and singing in and around Boston's subway stations Lord became friends with...
singer/songwriter grew up in Salem - Samuel McIntireSamuel McIntireSamuel McIntyre was an American architect and craftsman, Chestnut Street District, a legacy to one of the earliest architects in the United States, Samuel McIntyre is a primary example of Federal style architecture....
(1757–1811), architect & woodcarver. - Rob OppenheimRob OppenheimRob Oppenheim is an American professional golfer.-Education and amateur career:Born in Salem, Massachusetts, Oppenheim played for the Andover High School golf team, where he made the all-scholastic team. He went on to play for Rollins College. In 1999, he finished in the round of 16 at the U.S....
, professional golfer - Charles Grafton PageCharles Grafton PageCharles Grafton Page was an American electrical experimenter and inventor, physician, patent examiner, patent advocate, and professor of chemistry....
(1812–1868), electrical inventor. - George Swinnerton ParkerGeorge Swinnerton ParkerGeorge Swinnerton Parker was an American board game inventor and industrialist who founded Geo. S. Parker Co...
(1866–1952), founder of Parker BrothersParker BrothersParker Brothers is a toy and game manufacturer and brand. Since 1883, the company has published more than 1,800 games; among their best known products are Monopoly, Cluedo , Sorry, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Ouija, Aggravation, and Probe... - Samuel ParrisSamuel ParrisSamuel Parris was the Puritan minister in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem witch trials; he was also the father of one of the afflicted girls, and the uncle of another.-Life:...
(1653–1720), minister - Timothy PickeringTimothy PickeringTimothy Pickering was a politician from Massachusetts who served in a variety of roles, most notably as the third United States Secretary of State, serving in that office from 1795 to 1800 under Presidents George Washington and John Adams.-Early years:Pickering was born in Salem, Massachusetts to...
(1745–1829), secretary of state - Benjamin Pickman (1763–1843), early Salem merchant for whom Salem's Pickman Street is named
- Dudley Leavitt PickmanDudley Leavitt PickmanDudley Leavitt Pickman was a Salem, Massachusetts, merchant who built one of the great Salem trading firms during the seaport's ascendancy as a trading power in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Pickman was a partner in the firm Devereux, Pickman & Silsbee and a state senator...
, (1779–1846), state legislator, Salem merchant, partner, Devereux, Pickman & Silsbee, wealthiest Salem merchant of his day - Sarah Parker RemondSarah Parker RemondSarah Parker Remond was an American physician, lecturer, abolitionist, and agent of the American Anti-Slavery Society. She worked giving speeches throughout the United States over the horrors of slavery...
(1826–1894), abolitionist - Aaron RichmondAaron RichmondAaron Richmond was an American performing arts manager, pianist, impresario, and educator, based in Boston, Massachusetts, who managed the careers of numerous classical musicians and founded Celebrity Series of Boston, a performing arts presenting organization that still operates today.-Early...
(1895–1965), impresario and artist manager - Brian St. PierreBrian St. PierreBrian St. Pierre is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fifth round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at Boston College....
, quarterback for the Carolina PanthersCarolina PanthersThe Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion... - Samuel SewallSamuel SewallSamuel Sewall was a Massachusetts judge, best known for his involvement in the Salem witch trials, for which he later apologized, and his essay The Selling of Joseph , which criticized slavery.-Biography:...
(1652–1730), magistrate - Samuel SkeltonSamuel SkeltonSamuel Skelton was the first pastor of the First Church of Salem, MA, which is the original Puritan church in North America.Rev. Skelton was probably born in Yorkshire, England. He graduated from Cambridge in 1611 and earned a master's degree there in 1615...
(c. 1584–1634), first pastor of the First Church in Salem, MA, the original Puritan church in North America - Steve ThomasSteve Thomas (television)Steve Thomas is the professional name of Stephen Thomas, an author and television personality from the United States. He is currently the host of Renovation Nation on Discovery's Planet Green channel...
, former host of PBS's "This Old House" - Bob VilaBob VilaRobert Joseph "Bob" Vila is an American home improvement television show host known for This Old House , Bob Vila's Home Again , and Bob Vila .-Early life:...
, craftsman - Jack WelchJack WelchJohn Francis "Jack" Welch, Jr. is an American chemical engineer, business executive, and author. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric between 1981 and 2001...
, former chairman and CEO of General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
grew up in Salem and attended Salem High School - Roger WilliamsRoger Williams (theologian)Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
(1603–1683), theologian
Further reading
- Richard J. Morris. Redefining the Economic Elite in Salem, Massachusetts, 1759-1799: A Tale of Evolution, Not Revolution. The New England Quarterly, Vol. 73, No. 4 (Dec., 2000), pp. 603–624.
- In the Devil's Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692, Mary Beth Norton, Knopf, 2002, hardcover, 432 pages, ISBN 0-375-40709-X
External links
- City of Salem
- City of Salem Facebook Page
- A multimedia walking tour of Salem
- Salem Public Library
- The First Church in Salem
- SalemWeb
- Salem Police Department
- Stephen Phillips Memorial Trust House
- This Week in Salem History
- History of the Salem Common
- The Bewitched Statue of Salem MA
- Salem Old Town Hall
- Salem Pioneer Village
- Salem Patch