Salem Witch Museum – Salem Happenings

Free Salem Scavenger Hunt

Are you an art fan planning to be in the Salem area this weekend? Well, if you are, you may want to check out the Salem Art Festival. The Salem Art Festival is a three-day celebration of art in all its forms, including the culinary arts, dance, film, music, painting, performance art, photography, poetry, sculpture, writing, theatre, and a whole lot more. In fact, the festival, which runs from today (June 5, 2015) until Sunday (June 7, 2015) has been giving local artists an opportunity to show off their work for seven years now, so there will be no shortage of things to see and people trying to see him.

However, if you’re concerned that your children may be a little too young for a large amount of family-friendly art, or in other words, will be bored out of their skulls by the time you’ve reached the second painting, you may be looking for something to keep them busy. If this is indeed the case, you’re in luck because this free scavenger hunt designed for children under the age of 12 will have you children looking for all of the famous (and not so-famous) landmarks around downtown Salem while you’re moving from one art location to the next (just so you know, the last location will have your kids looking for ice cream. You have been warned.)

Clue 1:
A very large bird after a long day in the sky,
Would return to his home on these sticks up high.

Clue 2:
Just as water flows down the side of a great mountain,
So too will it flow over you as it leaps from the…

Clue 3:
I have two hands upon my face.
You check my time to keep your pace.

Clue 4:
I ride on this right out of the room,
I’m magically powered with a crescent moon.

Clue 5:
During life, the falsely accused did their best,
But now their memorials all do rest,
By the side of the men who believed them unblessed.

Clue 6:
This museum is dedicated to people who were simply misunderstood
Because sometimes those who seem wicked are actually quite good.

Clue 7:
The first part of this place’s name is a person who uses a broom but has never swept the floor,
The second part of this place’s name is somewhere you live with your very own door.

Clue 8:
Looking for something oh so sweet?
Maria’s has something cold that is sure to help you beat the heat.

Answers: 1. The Stickwork Project’s Giant Bird Nests; 2. Fountain; 3. Almy’s Clock; 4. Bewitched Statue; 5. The Burying Point; 6. Witch Museum or Witch History Museum; 7. Witch House; 8. Maria’s Sweet Somethings.

Where Is All This Stuff? (All Locations are in Downtown Salem, MA):
1. The giant bird nests are part of the Stickwork art exhibit sculpted by Patrick Doherty, and these nest-like sculptures can be found in front of the Crowinshield-Bentley House at 126 Essex Street.
2. There are actually two fountains located on the pedestrian walkway on Essex Street, so you can look for one or both of them if you so choose. The first fountain (if you’re walking from the Crowinshield-Bentley House) is located in front of the Museum Place Mall and the second fountain is located across from Rockafellas at 231 Essex Street
3. The Almy’s Clock, which is the only thing left of the Almy’s, Bigelow, & Washburn Department Store that stood on the site until 1982, is located in front of the Commonwealth Financial Offices at 192 Essex Street.
4. The Bewitched Statue, which is a tribute to the fictional character Samantha Stephens from the famous TV series Bewitched, is located in Lappin Park at the intersection of Essex and Washington Street right in front of the Gulu Gulu Cafe.
5. The Burying Point, which was first established in 1637, is the oldest cemetery in Salem and the site of both John Hathorne, one of the judges that presided over the witch trials, and the site of the memorial to the victims of the trials. The Burying Point is located on Charter Street behind the Peabody Essex Museum.
6. The Salem Witch Museum and the Salem Witch History Museum, which are run by two completely different organizations, are both dedicated to teaching people about the events of the Salem witch trials and the innocent individuals who became victims of the witch hysteria. The Salem Witch Museum is located at 19 1/2 North Washington Square diagonally across from Salem Common and the Witch History Museum is located on the pedestrian walkway at 197 Essex Street.
7. The Witch House, which was the home of Jonathan Corwin, is located at 310 Essex Street. Jonathan Corwin was one of the judges that presided over the witch trials, and his home is one of the only structures from the period with a direct link to the trials that is still standing.
8. Maria’s Sweet Somethings is a souvenir, sweets, and ice cream shop located at 26 Front Street right around corner from most of the art festival’s exhibits.

Photo credit: openroads.com / Foter / CC BY

Haunted Happenings Has Begun!

Now that the parade has come and gone,
the Halloween season in Salem has officially begun.
And, even though the bands and floats are done,
there’s certainly no shortage of fun.
In fact, with an entire booklet of events to choose from,
there’s really no way that you could be glum.
As a result, if you’re looking for a way to enjoy the season from the start,
here are some events this weekend that will surely play the part.

First, if you’re a Salem resident, you may want to check out the Mayor’s Night Out in Salem. The Mayor’s Night Out is the city’s way of thanking all of the residents of the city for resisting the urge to revolt against the oncoming tide of tourists. This event allows Salem Residents with an appropriate ID to enjoy a number of the city’s attractions and museums at no cost or at a significantly reduced rate. Some of the attractions that are free this year include the Gallows Hill Museum & Theatre, the New England Pirate Museum, the Salem Wax Museum, the Witch Dungeon Museum, the Witch History Museum, and the Witch House. The Peabody Essex Museum, the Salem Museum, and the Salem Witch Museum are also free to Salem Residents, but these museums are actually free to residents year-round. For more information on the Mayor’ Night in Salem, which runs from 3:00 P.M. to 10 P.M. today (October 3, 2014), please visit the Official Salem website.

Secondly, if you’re not a Salem resident or you’re more interested in shopping than museums, the Bizarre Bazaar may be more what you’re looking for. The Bizarre Bazaar, which is also known as the Haunted Biz Baz Street Fair, will feature over 90 vendors selling everything from apparel to zombie-themed accessories. The Haunted Biz Baz Street Fair will also feature a number of street performers and musicians that will be sure to keep you and your family entertained while you shop. For more information on the Haunted Biz Baz Street Fair, which runs from 10:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. on Saturday and 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. on Sunday, please visit the Salem Chamber of Commerce website.

Finally, if you don’t have a great deal of interest in driving into Salem or you would just prefer to play with some LEGOs, the LEGOLAND Discovery Center Boston may have the perfect Halloween event for you. This is because the LEGOLAND Discover Center is hosting a Brick-O-Treat Event from now until Halloween. This event will allow you and/or your kids to build spooky creations out of LEGOs, search for Monster Minifigures in their Monster Mash Scavenger Hunt, search for LEGO pumpkins, and take part in a custome contest for some awesome prizes. For more information on Brick-O-Treat, please visit the LEGOLAND Discovery Center Boston website.

Photo credit: kennymatic / Foter / CC BY

Friday Fun: The Salem Witch Trials

In a momentary fit of sanity, our elected officials in Washington decided that shutting down the Federal government and risking a historic default that would most certainly be followed by a historic economic collapse may have not been the best idea. As a result, the federal government is now open once more, all of the furloughed workers are back at work, and life is finally beginning to return to normal (at least until our elected officials decide to do it all over again.) However, with less than two weeks till Halloween, most people would rather focus on all of the spooky activities going on this weekend than what our leaders are planning to mess up next. Fortunately, if you are among the people who would really like to think about something else, there are a number of activities, especially in the Salem area, that will keep you busy this weekend.

First, if you have always wanted to learn more about the history of Salem and the witch trials, you may want to check out the Salem Witch Museum or the Witch House. The Salem Witch Museum, which is located in Washington Square across from Salem Common, is an auditorium-style museum that features a 30-minute presentation on the events that occurred during the witch trials and a 30-minute tour that explains how society’s perceptions of witches and witchcraft have changed over the years. This museum is a great way to get an overview of the events that happened in Salem during the Witch Trials and to learn a little more about the differences between real and imagined witches. The Witch House, on the other hand, is actually the original home of the judge that presided over the Salem Witch Trials, Judge Jonathan Corwin. This historic landmark will allow you to get a better idea of what life was like in 1692. For more information on these museums, please visit the Salem Witch Museum website or the Witch House website.

Secondly, if you’re already familiar with the history of the witch trials and/or you’ve seen these exhibits before, you may want to check out Cry Innocent. Cry Innocent is actually a reenactment of the trial of Bridget Bishop performed by Gordon College’s History Alive! This show, unlike some of the other attractions in Salem, will not only tell you about the witch trials but will actually show you what they were like. In fact, if you get to the show with your tickets in hand early enough, you will get to see an accused witch arrested in the street, participate in the trial, and ultimately help to decide the fate of the accused. For more information on History Alive’s Cry Innocent, please visit the Cry Innocent website.

Photo credit: Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism / Foter / CC BY-ND