Historic Overview of Salem Walking Tour

based on 39 reviews

Duration:1 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Location: Salem, Massachusetts

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The witch trials made Salem infamous, but there’s so much more. Explore Salem’s critical role in the American Revolution, how it led the great Age of Sail, and all about the many important and famous people who’ve called Salem home. Experience as much of Salem's history as possible in our 90 minute tour. We'll discuss a little bit of everything, including the 1692 Witchcraft Trials, the Great Age of Sail, revolutionary history, inventors, famous visitors, TV & Movies shot here and more.The United States just wouldn’t be the same without Salem.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

1. Salem Historical Tours & Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour
Discover why Salem is the true birthplace of the United States of America with the best history tour in the city. Explore over four centuries of Salem’s remarkable history from its illustrious founding in 1626, to its place as a thriving 21st Century city. The witch trials made Salem infamous, but there’s so much more. Explore Salem’s critical role in the American Revolution, how it led the great Age of Sail, and all about the many important and famous people who’ve called Salem home. The United States just wouldn’t be the same without Salem. The guide will go to as many locations as possible.
2.
Salem has plenty of revolutionary history. You'll visit the location where local revolutionaries met to discuss plans for a potential war with England.
3. Old Burying Point Cemetery
Visit the oldest cemetery in Salem and one of the oldest in the country. Dating back to 1637, the cemetery is the resting place of many of the Puritans, including judges John Hathorne and Bartholomew Gedney, Nathaniel Mather, Samuel McIntire, Simon Forrester, Richard Derby and more
4. Salem Witch Trials Memorial
Visit the Salem Witchcraft Trials memorial dedicated to the 20 people executed during the hysteria in 1692. THe memorial has a bench for each person that includes name, date of execution and form of execution. The memorial has a lot of symbolism.
5.
Lyceum Hall, home to Turner's Seafood, has significance to the witchcraft trials and additional history. Bridget Bishop, the first woman executed for witchcraft in 1692, lived on the grounds. In 1877, Alexander Graham Bell performed the first public demonstration of the telephone here.
6. Salem Old Town Hall
We will discuss Salem's incredible maritime history that began right after the American Revolution. From 1790-1812, Salem was the richest port in the country. Elias Haskett Derby became America's first millionaire in 1793. Portions of Hocus Pocus were filmed at the site as well. And Harry Houdini was put in the jail across the street. He wasn't under arrest, but the police chief wanted to see if Harry could break out of the new jail cell.
7.
Hear a story about George Corwin, the high sheriff of the 1692 Witchcraft Trials, who lived on the grounds where the building now sits. In addition, George Washington visited Salem and stayed in a room in the hotel that is today called the Washington Room. And Amelia Earhart taught English in the Salem Commercial School just one block away.
8.
Rockafellas is in a building that was the fourth location of the first church. The second location was there too. In addition, the Town House Square building was on that spot and that has revolutionary history. Massachusetts was basically declared a state on those grounds. A local congress of representatives met there before going to Ipswich, Concord and finally the continental congress in Philadelphia.
9.
Samantha Stevens of the TV Show Bewitched is in Lappin Park. A handful of episodes of the show were shot here in Salem. The best part is that her statue sits on land that was owned by the hanging Judge John Hathorne. How ironic that a witch sits on his former property.
10.
Before the YMCA was here, Mrs. Brown had a home here with a famous border. That was Alexander Graham Bell. He lived at the home, educated her grandson and then would take the train to Boston to teach at Boston University. He also had an attic laboratory where he worked on the telephone.
11. Witch House
The Witch House is the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin. It was built in the 1660s and Corwin bought it in 1675. No witches lived here but it is the last home in Salem with direct ties to the 1692 Witchcraft Trials.
12.
Leslie's Retreat happened here at the North Bridge as 140 redcoats led by Colonel Leslie tried to cross the river to take weapons and cannons on the other side. Several colonists stopped them by pulling up the draw bridge. No shots were fired, but the British left empty handed. This preceded Lexington and Concord by two months.

ADDITIONAL INFO

• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Service animals allowed
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels
• Comfortable walking shoes are recommended
• Parking available in garages on New Liberty, Bridge, and Congress Streets
• Parking available in lots at Church Street, Front Street, and Klopp Alley. Metered parking near us. Use Passport Smart Phone App for meters. Bus parking available on New Derby Street and Hawthorne Boulevard.
• Tour departs at 12 pm. Check in 15-20 minutes before your tour time at Salem Historical Tours office, located at 8 Central Street
• Traffic and parking in October can be very difficult. Give yourself extra time to get here and park no matter what your GPS is telling you. Check Salem.org for details on where to park.
• Our public walking tours can pose challenges for participants with mobility and accessibility concerns. Tours are 90 minutes long and about one mile in length. Each participant must be able to complete the one-mile tour within 90 minutes, providing for frequent stops to view sites and for information from the tour guide. As Salem is a historical city, there are narrow and uneven sidewalks, bricks, cobblestones, and stairs. During events and festivals (and particularly October), with crowds and street vendors, the streets can become difficult to navigate.

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Posted By : Maya_C
Very interesting tour providing a lot of the history surrounding Salem. Bob was very knowledgeable and kept the tour interesting.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-15 08:31:24

Posted By : Kitty_K
Guide was knowledgeable about the subject but presumed we were, too. She was rude to a lady who asked for directions (not with our tour)—unacceptable. Tour felt somewhat disjointed. I didn’t enjoy the tour much, and I love history.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-11 08:49:55

Posted By : Bianca_F
So much history! Bob tied everything together so well with such enthusiasm 👏 The town is incredibly interesting
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-01-29 19:05:17

Posted By : Robyn_M
Had an amazing tour of Salem and such an enjoyable experience in the town our guide was helpful and informative to that experience.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-11-11 16:53:09

Posted By : Victoria_B
Unfortunatly the day of our tour it rained in buckets. But our tour guide was so fun and knowledgeable about Salem’s history, it made the experience so much better. We got a great overview of the town and learned some great history about Salem.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-10-30 21:21:16

Posted By : Joe_F
Amber was great presenter of Salem and we really enjoyed the story of Corwin and the family history. Her knowledge of the history can answer all of questions.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-10-28 09:21:32

Posted By : Judy_G
Bob had some unique stories and makes places come alive with the telling of tales. We all learned some new things about the area.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-10-20 10:04:19

Posted By : dkeith
Took this tour as it was one of the few not focused on witches and the witch trials. Entertaining with good pacing that covered a nice bit of ground in Salem and was never boring. The topic did shift to the trials on occasion but not unduly so. Would have liked a bit more information on the seaport aspect of Salem and its very early history. So reasonable tour overall but could have been better.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-10-10 15:48:53

Posted By : Debra_G
Our tour guide was fun and informative and the sites prompted a nice mix of historical facts, narratives, and lore.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-07-30 09:30:46

Posted By : Gayle_C
Great tour. Stosha was very friendly and knowledgeable. Would recommend him to everyone. Great exercise with the walk
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-07-26 09:21:22

Retrieving available

Tickets

Historic Overview of Salem Walking Tour

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

1. Salem Historical Tours & Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour

2.

3. Old Burying Point Cemetery

4. Salem Witch Trials Memorial

5.

6. Salem Old Town Hall

7.

8.

9.

10.

11. Witch House

12.

ADDITIONAL INFO

CANCELLATION POLICY

Partner Resources

How it works

Travel

Insurance

Adventure

Contact

Retrieving available

Tickets

Historic Overview of Salem Walking Tour

WHAT'S INCLUDED ⟱

WHAT TO EXPECT ⟱

1. Salem Historical Tours & Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour

2.

3. Old Burying Point Cemetery

4. Salem Witch Trials Memorial

5.

6. Salem Old Town Hall

7.

8.

9.

10.

11. Witch House

12.

ADDITIONAL INFO ⟱

CANCELLATION POLICY ⟱

Partner Resources

How it works

Travel

Insurance

Adventure

Contact

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

ADDITIONAL INFO

CANCELLATION POLICY