Double, Double, Toil and Trouble...

So, time to squeeze two days into one blog post while I try not to blather on!

We drove the half-hour from Boston to Salem. We checked in to the Hawthorne Hotel, a rather swanky place to lay your head. It is furnished in a classic style, evoking a late 19th/early 20th century hotel decor. The room though was small, especially since my family of four was sharing it. The bathroom was even smaller. I like historic things, but not if they make me feel claustrophobic. Those who like staying in such hotels and don't mind small rooms will love it though it is a bit pricey.

We mostly focused on Salem's maritime history on Friday, a time that's greatly overshadowed by the Witch Trials. Salem's maritime area was one of the first national historic parks, still staffed by park rangers. One took us to the Narbonne and Derby houses. The Narbonne house had been lived in until the 1960s and the rangers decided not to restore it. So you have radiators next to fireplaces or a smoke detector in a low-ceiling, 17th century room. It's a great study in contrasts and best illustrates the passage of time. The Derby House was built by one of America's first millionaire, a man who owned the ships who went to sea to get the goods. His ceilings were higher since he could afford to hit such rooms. And his family had an affinity for the color green. In the visitor's center, there was brief video on the history of Salem's maritime might. It lasted from the middle of American Revolution, when many of Salem's ships were used as privateers, to around 1807 when Jefferson ordered an embargo on American exports. Even still, America hoped that Salem's trade would come back so they built a new, shiny Customs House, which we toured next. One of the surveyors was Nathaniel Hawthorne and his job was slow, so he ended up writing The Scarlet Letter. Upstairs, we saw the original eagle that sat atop the house--a replica sits there now.

That night, after a great dinner at Victoria Station (if I were more knowledgable on food, I'd compliment but I don't think you want to read another food comment of "delicious"), we went on a haunted Salem tour. Others in Salem told us we were going on a good tour and they were right. Our guide took us around many places of Salem (the town hall, Joshua Ward house, old jail, etc) and told us the history of the place as well as the ghost story. I would definitely recommend it. It's not something where they stick you in a haunted place for some time nor is it just ghost stories, but history. For instance, we learned about the sheriff who arrested most of the people in the Salem Witch Trials, Jonathan Corwin. Of course, it is believed he still haunts where his house stood (the Joshua Ward house) and he is not a friendly ghost like Casper. We took pictures, but it was raining so we can't tell if they are ghost orbs or the rain. Paging Grant or Jason!

The next day we went to the Salem Witch Museum. We were herded into a small auditorium where they used wax figures to tell the story of 1692, mostly focusing on victims Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor (probably most well known from Arthur Miller's The Crucible). After that, we were sent into another room. We were told the history of the pagan midwife who was morphed by Christians into a witch, told by the stereotypical witch (think Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch of the West in "The Wizard of Oz"). Next we were told about modern day Wiccans. Along the wall was a timeline regarding witchcraft, including the trials and Macbeth (which was written due to the Gunpowder Plot). Strangely, Harry Potter was left off. From there, we went to the Salem Witch Trial memorial, where you walk in a park next to a cemetary. Stone seats appear to line the walls, but when you get close you realize each bears the name of the 19 victims. Rebecca Nurse's stone still had candles and George Burroughs' had flowers.

We walked back to the waterfront to the famous House of Seven Gables. We toured the house, which was built by sea captain, whose grandson lost the house so it was purchased by another sea captain. This one was a relative of Nathaniel Hawthorne, who became close with the captain's daughter. It was she who told Hawthorne of the house's past (and of it's seven gables. It only had three when Hawthorne was alive) and encouraged him to write. When the house was purchased by a woman hoping to start a settlement house, she knew the draw would be for tourists to feel as if they were in the novel. She put the other four gables back on and built the secret staircase Cliff may have used. We climbed up the narrow stairway and stood in the small room. Next door, they had relocated the house Nathaniel Hawthorne had been born in so we went on a tour. It's an average 18th/19th century house, filled with stories about Hawthorne. Apparently, he didn't take criticism well and if any story received negative reviews, he burned it.

That afternoon, we saw "Cry Innocent," a re-enactment of the trial of Bridget Bishop. The show started by a fountain, where the town crier tells us that a warrant has been issued for Bishop. She appears and the constable arrests her. He drags her to town hall while she tries to resist. We follow along to be the grand jury of her trial. We sat in the town hall and various witnesses were called forth to bear witness against Bishop. She wasn't a pleasant woman and often quarreled with her neighbors, as well as been widowed twice--her second husband falling off a roof! We were able to ask questions in between two blocks of testimony before voting. We voted to free her, though in real life, it was decided there was enough to go to trial. She was later found guilty and became the first to hang. The actors were young but very good, particularly the actress who played Bridget Bishop. She conveyed while these neighbors might be afraid or hold a grudge against her. Because of how aflicted the girls were, no actress portrayed them--they were represented by chalkboards with their names written on it. The actress often stared at this wall, as if watching the girls' strange sight, pausing when addressing them and showed great talent to act to something that wasn't there. I suggest anyone who goes to Salem tries to get a ticket to see this.

And thus our vacation ended. We drove back to Salem, arriving at 11:30 PM back here Saturday night. Tomorrow I should post the pictures I toook. I'm the genius who has owned her camera for two years and finally figured out how to use flash just this past vacation.