Colonial New Englanders were prolific imbibers, drinking roughly three times as much alcohol as modern Americans. Drinking was not only a means of physical and emotional survival but also the driving force behind the growing popularity of taverns that played …
Fox’d and Fuddled: The History of Colonial Drinking! Read More »
Daniel A. Gagnon will explore why 1692 Witch-Hunt victim George Jacobs Sr.’s grave was left unmarked, while Rebecca Nurse’s purported grave was memorialized, how Danvers (Salem Village) confronted its legacy of the witch-hunt, and why the bones of a man …
Skeletons in the Closet: The Life & Afterlife of George Jacobs Sr. Read More »
Join Historic Beverly for a remembrance event at Hale Farm as we honor the voices of resistance that transcended the injustices of the Salem witch trials. September 22nd was the largest execution day of the Salem witch trials; eight people …
Mary Estey’s story is often overshadowed by her sister, Rebecca Nurse, in the history of the 1692 Salem witch trials. This presentation will encompass Mary’s life from her humble beginnings in Great Yarmouth, her family life, border disputes, through to …
Mary Estey: Her Life, Execution, and Her Historic Legacy Read More »
The tyranny of Charles I, royal prerogative and decrees, arbitrary taxation, entrenched inequality - all this and more the Puritans tossed overboard as their ships set sail not just for what was for them a new world, but a new …
What They Left Behind: The English Politics the Puritans Rejected Read More »
Fiction has portrayed witch-suspects jailed in buildings ranging from castle-like prisons of dressed stone to flimsy chicken coops, but what was the reality for over 160 people accused of witchcraft and crowded into four jails in three counties during 1692? …
Suburbs of Hell: Jail Conditions During the 1692 Salem Witch Trials Read More »
What better time than twilight in October to grab a flashlight and join us for a walk through this historic First Parish Burying Ground, final resting place of some of Old Newbury's first European settlers? To add to the intimacy …
Twilight Amongst the Tombstones: Night Walk in First Parish Burying Ground Read More »
Have you heard the expression, “one person’s trash is another person’s treasure”? Become an archaeologist at the historic John Balch house with this program focusing on excavations performed at the house in 1998. Examine a selection of objects found during …
An amazing number of the plants at Pioneer Village are nutritious food, or good medicine, and/or useful in other ways. Some are native and were already here when the settlers came, others were introduced. In this fun and informative walk …
Useful Plants of Pioneer Village—Food, Medicine, and More Read More »
The Salem witch trials are filled with strange and tragic stories. But few are as strange or as tragic as that of Roger and Mary Toothaker and their family. Experience a live broadcast of The Salem Witch Trials Podcast from …
Have you ever found an old shoe in the walls of a house? Chances are it was put there to ward off evil influences such as demons, ghosts, witches, and familiars. Witchcraft and folklore traditions are rich and diverse cultural practices that …
Friday, October 4 Explore the Massachusetts State Archives with John Warner, Archivist of the Commonwealth. Learning from Historic Maps by Staff of the Norman B. Leventhal Map and Education Center. Networking Dinner: Fox’d and Fuddled: The History of Colonial Drinking. …
Join PEM after hours for a special curator-led tour of The Salem Witch Trials 1692. Explore the extraordinary series of events between June 1692 and March 1693 that led to the deaths of 25 innocent women, men and children who …
Dates: October 5, 12, 19, 26; November 2; Saturdays at 10 am Salem is where people visit to learn about the 1692 witchcraft trials, but Salem Village (present-day Danvers) is where it first began, and where many of the leading …
It's a safe bet that most people in the region have heard of the 1692 Salem Witchcraft Trials. They may not realize that they were named as such because Salem is where the court was located and those who were …
Join the congregation as Reverend Samuel Parris will lead a Puritan plain style morning service and preach the sermon that he delivered on March 27, 1692, soon after the outbreak of the witchcraft episode throughout Essex County. Donald Friary, a Salem …