Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, situated on the coast of Massachusetts Bay. It had a population of 41,340 at the 2010 census. Until 1999, it was one of the county seats for Essex County, the other being Lawrence.
Salem is known as one of the most historic cities in America. It is among the oldest communities in Massachusetts, founded in 1626, and was an important New England seaport throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, serving as the hub for many fishing, whaling, and overseas trading operations. It has also been recognized as the birthplace of the National Guard. However, it is most famous for the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, in which an outbreak of mass hysteria led to dozens of people being imprisoned, tried, and in some cases executed on charges of witchcraft.
History
Salem was founded in 1626 by Roger Conant, who led a group of English fishermen from Cape Ann to a spot near the mouth of the Naumkeag river, on the northern shore of Massachusetts Bay. Their settlement was initially named for the river. Two years later, Puritan immigrants under the leadership of John Endicott, part of the Massachusetts Bay Company, arrived; Conant agreed to step aside in favor of Endicott and was given a large land grant in reward. In honor of this gracious transfer of power, the community's name was changed to Salem, from the Hebrew word for peace. Salem was chartered in 1629, officially granted the rights of autonomy and self-rule by King Charles I. Thanks to its position on the coast, it prospered thanks to fishing, shipbuilding, and oceanic trade. Salem ships were trading with the West Indies as early as 1636, and the Custom House (which still stands today) was built in 1649. Many of the town's oldest surviving houses, dating back to the 1660s, were constructed by merchants who had become wealthy from this trade (including the "House of the Seven Gables").
In 1692, Salem fell victim to a major panic after several local girls began accusing other townspeople of practicing witchcraft. These accusations began to snowball and led to the convening of a special court, on whose authority twenty men and women were put to death, and many others imprisoned. The new colonial governor eventually stepped in and put an end to the trials, after which those still imprisoned were freed, and families of the victims were later compensated. This is the only series of witch-trials to be held in the future United States. (See also: Salem Witch Trials)
Though it was not a notable center of political activity in the years before the American Revolution, Salem was, like many Massachusetts towns, strongly Patriot in sentiment (though some of the merchants did have Loyalist sympathies). Following his arrival with a British garrison in 1774, General Thomas Gage briefly transferred the General Court there from Boston. A tense confrontation occurred at Salem on February 26, 1775, when a British regiment marched into town in search of weapons and ammunition held by the Patriots. Most of the population turned out to block their advance, and the regiment eventually agreed to return to Boston. After war broke out later that year, local seafarers turned to privateering in large numbers; Salem vessels are credited with the capture of between 400 and 600 British merchant ships during the conflict.
The period following the Revolutionary War saw Salem near the peak of its national importance. At the 1790 census, it was the sixth-largest city in America, and had the highest per-capita income; local ships carried on trade with Africa, China, the Caribbean, and other areas. The numerous Federal-style mansions that still stand in the historic Chestnut Street district were the fruit of the profits many Salem merchants and businessmen made during this time. By the mid-19th century, though, Salem's importance was starting to decline; not only had Boston and New York City become more important for long-distance trade, but the accumulation of silt in the harbor had begun to impair its usefulness as a port. The city turned more and more to manufacturing, producing leather, shoes, and textiles, among other goods. The opening of the first railroad line, to Boston, in 1838, assisted in this process.
What became known as "The Great Salem Fire" broke out on June 25, 1914, in the leather manufacturing district. It raged for two days, destroying over 1,300 buildings and leaving nearly half the city's population homeless.
In recent decades, the memory of the 17th-century witch trials (sustained by, among other things, the works of author Nathaniel Hawthorne, a Salem native and a descendant of one of the judges involved) has contributed to local prosperity and formed a significant part of the town's modern identity. Tourism, including but not limited to historic scenes of the witch craze, is now a major sector of the economy, and a sizable community of neo-pagans and self-described "witches" and "wiccans" live in and around Salem.
