Category: Industrial Era

Derby Wharf Light Station, Salem, MA. Photo by Historic American Building Survey.

Derby Wharf Light Station in Salem, Massachusetts

Built in 1871, Derby Wharf Light Station is a historic lighthouse in Salem, Massachusetts. The lighthouse is a 12-foot-tall square white brick tower with a glossy black iron lantern. It… Read more »

Did Queen Elizabeth II have the authority to clear the Salem witches?

John Beresford Hatch’s Crusade to Clear the Salem Witches

In 1950, Salem resident John Beresford Hatch began a crusade to convince the British government to clear the names of the convicted Salem Witch Trials victims. Hatch first became interested… Read more »

Postcard of the Salem Witch House, with the plumbing shop, laundromat and shoe shop next door, Salem, Mass, in 1910

The Witch House Fires: The Fiery Saga of Salem’s Historic Home

The historic Witch House in Salem, Massachusetts, has actually caught fire and nearly burned down at least twice in its long history. The first time was on March 27, 1924,… Read more »

The Murder of Captain Joseph White

Captain Joseph White was an East India merchant who lived in the Gardner-Pingree House in Salem, Massachusetts. On April 6, 1830, Captain White was brutally murdered in his bed at… Read more »

Gardiner-Pingree House, Essex Street, Salem, Mass. Photo by A Crump, 1979, courtesy Secretary of the Commonwealth William Francis Galvin, Chairman, Massachusetts Historical Commission.

Gardner-Pingree House in Salem, Massachusetts

The Gardner-Pingree House is a historic house on Essex Street in Salem, Massachusetts. Built in 1804 for local merchant John Gardner, the house is a three-story, brick Federal-style townhouse designed… Read more »