My favorite spooky places to visit in Salem!
It’s been on my list to visit a spooky destination during my favorite season of the year and this past weekend I went to what some consider “The Mecca” for Halloween. I descended upon the spooky, historic town of Salem, Massachusetts and it was nothing short of Spooktacular! You can feel in the air the spirit of Halloween on every street corner in that town. Between the historic Witch House, the Charter Street Cemetery, and the town’s haunted history, it’s no wonder that thousands of Halloween and spooky fanatics like myself are drawn to come here in the month of October. Let’s not forget where our favorite Halloween movie was filmed? Hint: It has three fabulous witches in it. Take a walk with me down a haunting exploration of the coolest town during Halloween. After all, it’s all just a bunch of Hocus Pocus… or is it?
As many of us know, Salem is the home of witchcraft. Who doesn’t remember learning about The Salem Witch Trials in school? Case and point, say hello to The Witch House. This house (now a museum) was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin (1640-1718) and is the only standing building in Salem with direct ties to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The house remained in the Corwin family until the mid-19th century. Corwin was the man who was called to seek out those practicing witchcraft in Salem, Danvers and the neighboring communities. He ultimately sent 19 people to the gallows during his time. Honestly, standing in front of this house felt a little eerie and although we didn’t get a chance to go inside, it was a landmark that I was happy to cross off my list. We went bright and early to get some photos in front of the home and I recommend doing the same if you plan to visit. If you go during the day, the line to take photos is long and you don’t get the same experience that you get when you’re alone. It was definitely a spooktacular sight to check out on the Salem list. Definitely a must see when visiting Salem!
The next stop on our ghostly tour of Salem is the Charter Street Cemetery. Many of us are rather skeptical of walking into cemeteries but I find it rather soothing, as strange as that sounds. Especially on a cold, crisp Autumn morning, when the wind is dancing through the trees, it is just so magical. Hence, I wanted to check out The Charter Street Cemetery. Not only is it located in the heart of Salem but there is much haunting history surrounding this graveyard. First of all, it’s the oldest cemetery in Salem (and one of the oldest in the United States), founded in 1637, and it serves as the final resting place for many of Salem’s notorious residents. One resident, Judge Hawthorne, infamous for being one of the witch trial magistrates, is buried here. Bartholomew Gedney, another witchcraft trial judge, is buried here as is Simon Bradstreet, one of the original founders of the Puritan community. Last but not least, Mary Corey, wife to Giles Corey lies there; however, she died before the witchcraft trials began. If you don’t recall, Giles was convicted of witchcraft. He met a brutal end being pressed to death by heavy stones over the span of 3 days. So crazy! His third wife, Martha Corey, was also convicted of witchcraft and executed by hanging shortly after his death. It was hauntingly beautiful to visit this cemetery but there is a lot of tragic history that goes with it. Next to this cemetery, there is a memorial for the women who died during the witch trials. Their memorials face outward, indicating they were turned away from the community.
Hands down… one of the best if not the BEST Halloween movie ever is Hocus Pocus and I know many of you will agree with me. Well, the first movie was filmed in and around Salem and one of the shooting locations was Max and Dani’s (the main characters) house. It is located on 10 Ocean Avenue and is so magical. It pretty much looks like the same as it did in the movie but to see it in person was so cool. Definitely a must visit on your trip to Salem! There are other shooting locations nearby the graveyard, located in Marblehead, but I regrettably didn’t have time to go there. If you do, however, I would highly recommend it! FaBOOlous to say the least!