May 10th, Thursday – Off We Went

Off We Went!  We made a commitment to go this morning and so we did.  Up early out to the kitchen for breakfast.  In addition, Barbara prepared a crock pot full of chili for when we returned home in the evening.  Yes, it was delicious!

On the road by 8 am and guess what we found?  You guessed right, rush hour traffic.

Thirty minutes of stop and go traffic that seemed to have no end.  How does anyone put up with this day after day just to get a pay check?  Sure glad I don’t have to anymore.

In due time we did arrive at Salem and began our day of discovery.  We did three things:

• We went to the Visitor Center for an overview of Essex County and Salem
• We took the Salem Trolley Tour to get an overview of Salem itself
• We visited a couple of exhibits that depicted the Salem Witch Trials

What we discovered first and foremost is that Salem is much more than just the story of the witch trials.  As one of our guides emphasized, the witch trials in 1692 were only 14 months in the 400 year history of Salem.  So, let’s get started with what we learned.

Let’s begin with the Visitor Center which is run by the National Park Service.  What is

that you may ask on our knapsack?  That is Benny the Bison a gift from Amanda and our new traveling companion when we go sight-seeing.

Inside, the first thing that caught my eye, was this exhibit depicting maritime life in the early days of Essex County and Salem itself.  Quite a model if I may say so myself.

The founders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony were not interested,at first, in developing a maritime community.  They were farmers first and foremost but the rocky soil which made farming impossible forced them to turn to the sea instead.  Fishing came first, then as merchants sought a market for their goods maritime commerce grew.

In 1800, Salem was the sixth largest community in the United States and a leader in America’s foreign trade.  Salem merchants sought goods from around the world and reshipped them to various ports in the United States and around the world.

As the subscript states Friendship is typical of Salem’s East Indiamen merchant ships built not for speed, but to carry diverse cargoes from ports all over the world.

Here is a model of the Leander which was built in the shipyard of Benjamin Hawkes next to the Derby Wharf in Salem.  She made 26 voyages to Europe, India, South America, Africa, and 3 profitable voyages to China.  In 1826, the Leander was the first vessel in Salem to pay over $90,000 in custom duties on a cargo of tea, silks, porcelain, and fireworks from China.

Finally, on display was this mural depicting life on the wharf in early Salem.

That was the Visitor Center in a nutshell.  There was also a movie which gave an overview of the development of commerce in Massachusetts itself which was fascinating.

From the Visitor Center we moved on to the Salem Trolley Tour for an overview of the town of Salem.  Here is Barbara, ready to board, but as usual, waiting for me.

And here’s me protecting Benny the Bison from what I do not know!

Here is one of our tour guides for the narrated hour long tour of Salem,

There is so, so much covered on the tour but, unfortunately, I was not able to get pictures of everything that we saw.  Let me share with you first of all a few facts and pictures regarding Salem itself.

• the town was founded in 1626 by Roger Conant and a group of immigrants from Cape Ann.   This is a statue of him on display adjacent to Washington Square

• At first the settlement was named Naumkeag, but the settlers preferred to call it Salem, derived from the Hebrew word for peace.
• During the  War of Independence and the War of 1812, Salem was a sanctuary for privateers
• At the center of Salem is Washington Square, an eight-acre common surrounded by magnificent 18th-century homes. The commons was used as a playground for the children of the wealthy inhabitants that lived along the park’s boundary

• Salem also has its own Waikiki Beach.  Located at Winter Island, Waikiki Beach is known as a great place to go swimming, walking, or sightseeing with family, friends, or a special loved one.

• Then there is this beach which has its own unusual history.

• In the 1850s, this beach was referred to as Dead Horse Beach by residents downtown who nicknamed it because this beach, being far enough away from residences, was a good place to bury dead horses. While originally it was just referred to as Horse Beach, that nickname eventually changed to its current official name of Dead Horse Beach.
• this is the Fort Pickering Light.  Fort Pickering Light was established in 1871, the same year as Derby Wharf Light in Salem Harbor and Hospital Point Light in nearby Beverly. For many years before, Baker’s Island’s twin lights had served as the only guides to the harbor. With the addition of the new lights, mariners would line up Fort Pickering and Derby Wharf Lights after passing Baker’s Island on their way into Salem Harbor.

• The events for which Salem is best remembered began in 1692. A local physician diagnosed several teenage girls as bewitched, which resulted in the hanging of 19 persons and one being crushed to death.

 

And this is where we are going to leave it for tonight.  It’s getting late and there is much more to cover.  So rather than rush and maybe miss something important I’m going to call it for tonight.  Tomorrow we’ll go into the witch trials in-depth.

We had a fantastic day, a day spent together doing what we only dreamed of for many years, that being said, seeing places we never thought we’d get to see.  Hand in hand we’ll continue this journey one day at a time visiting states we’ve never been in before, seeing sights we’ll probably never see again.  How great is that!  I encourage each of us, continue to dream, believe that one day they will be, and one day they will.  In closing, a thought now for each of us:

So that’s it for now.  As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.  Thanks again for sharing our day with us.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before