The Salem Village Parsonage archaeological site is the location of the Salem Village parsonage during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692.
The parsonage is where Reverend Samuel Parris, his wife Elizabeth Parris, their three children, including daughter Betty Parris, their niece Abigail Williams and their slaves, Tituba and John Indian, lived during the Salem Witch Trials.
The parsonage was originally built in 1681 on what was then called Andover Street (now Centre Street) in Danvers on a five-and-a-half acre plot of land donated by Joseph Houlton.
The house was built 42 feet long, 20 feet wide, 13 feet stud and sat well back from the road. It had two floors, with two main rooms on the first floor, two bed chambers on the second floor, a brick fireplace in each of the four rooms and a stone-walled half-cellar under the parlor.
A number of ministers lived in the parsonage during its lifetime, including George Burroughs (1681-83), Deodat Lawson (1684-88), Samuel Parris (1689-96), Joseph Green (1698-1715), Peter Clark (1717-68), and Benjamin Wadsworth (1772-1784).
In December of 1681, the villagers voted to specify that the parsonage was owned by the village and was intended only for the use of the resident minister at the time.
In January of 1691, the villagers held another meeting during which they argued about who actually owned the land the parsonage sat on. The results of the meeting were not noted in the records.
The argument was due to the fact that Reverend Parris claimed he had previously struck a deal with the parish that he would own the land the parsonage was built on and he was angry to find out after the fact that it was not true. (Upham 295.)
By 1692, a “saltbox” leanto was added to the rear of the house which was used as a kitchen.
After the Salem Witch Trials ended, Reverend Parris was an unpopular figure in the community, due to his role in the trials, and he was ultimately forced out of his position in 1697. He moved away from Salem Village and a new minister was appointed shortly after.
In 1734, the leanto was torn down and replaced by an addition that was two and a half stories high and had a side door that faced west. The resident minister at the time, Reverend Clark used the addition as a study.
By 1784, the parsonage was in poor condition so it was torn down by Reverend Benjamin Wadsworth and the land was used as a pasture.
The addition was sold and relocated to the new parsonage on Sylvan Street but, according to Nathaniel Hawthorne, the workers had difficulty moving it and were informed by an old resident that the house was under the influence of the devil and would remain so until the roof was removed. The workers removed the roof and successfully moved the addition to Sylvan Street where it remained until the 1870s.
During the 19th century and most of the 20th century, the exact location of the old parsonage was marked only by a small granite marker.
In 1970, the land was owned by Alfred and Edie Anne Hutchinson. That year, local historian and archivist Richard B. Trask asked the Hutchinsons if he could excavate the site in the hopes of finding evidence of the old parsonage.
The Hutchinsons agreed and the site was excavated with the help of archaeologist Roland Robbins, who is known for excavating the site of Henry David Thoreau’s cabin at Walden Pond.
A dozen volunteers helped excavate the site during which more than 30,000 artifacts were discovered, such as cutlery, 17th and 18th century coins, pipe bowls from the 1660s, and a metal plate with the initials of Samuel and Elizabeth Parris on them.
A historical marker was erected at the site by the Danvers Historical Commission in 1974. Another historical marker was also erected for the 1734 addition.
The site is now a part of the Salem Village Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 31, 1975.
In 1988, the Town of Danvers purchased the site and opened it to visitors as a historic landmark.
Sources:
Upham, Charles Wentworth. Salem Witchcraft With an Account of Salem Village, and a History of Opinions on Witchcraft and Kindred Subjects, Volume 1. Wiggin and Lunt, 1867.
Roach, Marilynne. The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege. Taylor Trade Publishing, 2004.
Trask, Richard B. Danvers. Arcadia Publishing, 2002.
“Salem Village Parsonage 1681.” Historical Marker Database, hmdb.org/m.asp?m=48720
“The 1681 Salem Village Parsonage.” Historical Marker Database, hmdb.org/m.asp?m=48721
“Historical Sites of Danvers.” Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, University of Virginia, salem.lib.virginia.edu/Danvers.html