Salem Historical Society

Salem Historical Society Salem Historical Society, est. 2015. SHS will serve as a community reference tool that connects other organizations through digital media.

MISSION:
The Salem Historical Society is an independent organization dedicated to the study, promotion, and preservation of Salem's history for the benefit of the community and its visitors. VISION:
The Salem Historical Society initiates, develops, executes, and collaborates on projects that advance the history of the City of Salem. These projects are non-political and in no way interfere with ot

her established organizations or city run departments, committees, or councils. SHS is concerned with promoting the untold history of Salem by identifying the countless stories of Salem’s citizens and educating the community about their achievements throughout the city’s history. An important function of SHS is to be a centralized hub that collects, disseminates, and aids other established cultural and historical institutions. We strive to collaborate with recognized associations and societies on projects as well as to share information about and within the historical community. The overall purpose of SHS is to make known and give voice to the men and women throughout the centuries who have contributed to Salem’s history and character by assisting established organizations and developing unknown histories through research, educational tools, and events. A primary goal of SHS is to engage and motivate audiences of all ages to actively participate in the presentation of Salem’s history, knowing that “reflection on the past is essential to a reputable, beneficial, and satisfactory guidance of conduct in the future.” (Joseph B. Felt)


MOTTO:
Presenting Salem's spirit through history. Salem, Massachusetts 1626 ❦ Divitis Indiae usque ad ultimum sinum


Twitter: SalemMAHistory
Instagram: SalemMAHistory
http://salemhistoricalsociety.tumblr.com
[email protected]

Thank you to the Pickering House for working with us to host the Ladies Association of Revolutionary America, and to LAR...
05/18/2026

Thank you to the Pickering House for working with us to host the Ladies Association of Revolutionary America, and to LARA for a wonderful day of free interpretation for the public!

05/15/2026

“Women at War: Salem as the Home Front in 1776” is hosted by Salem Historical Society and the Pickering Foundation in partnership with the Ladies’ Association of Revolutionary America (LARA). Catch up with Pickering Exec. Director Vijay Joyce and SHS Trustee/LARA member Diana Dunlap about what they’re looking forward to on Saturday!

05/13/2026

Who are the Ladies’ Association of Revolutionary America (LARA)? LARA is a volunteer living history organization that interprets the lives of women in British America and the new United States from 1760-1785. Here in Essex County, LARA has worked with Salem Maritime NHP, Manchester-by-the-Sea Museum, and the Battle of Gloucester, as well as further afield at Minuteman NHP, Historic Deerfield, and the Museum of the American Revolution. Get ready to welcome LARA to the Pickering House on Saturday, May 16, from 11-4 for “Women at War: Salem as the Home Front in 1776!”

Did you know that Salem’s female population outnumbered men in 1776? How did women survive while men were away at war an...
05/11/2026

Did you know that Salem’s female population outnumbered men in 1776? How did women survive while men were away at war and at sea? Join us this Saturday, May 16, at the Pickering House for a glimpse into the lives of Salem’s women exactly 250 years ago.

What was it like to be a woman in a world at war? How did Salem’s women live their daily lives in the months leading up ...
05/09/2026

What was it like to be a woman in a world at war? How did Salem’s women live their daily lives in the months leading up to the Declaration of Independence? Join SHS and Ladies Association of Revolutionary America on Saturday, May 16 from 11am-4pm to encounter a history that often slipped between the pages and is finally entering center stage. Event is free and open to the public, offered in partnership with the Pickering Foundation. All photos courtesy of LARA.

womenshistory

If you get up very early or stay up very late, you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of silhouetted against the pr...
04/13/2026

If you get up very early or stay up very late, you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of silhouetted against the pre-dawn sky! Is this a red enough sky to merit a sailor’s warning? Hopefully fairer weather lies ahead.

Sunlight and shadows and a stiff January breeze. 🥶❄️ We posted some of these views during one of our first snowstorms o...
01/28/2026

Sunlight and shadows and a stiff January breeze. 🥶❄️ We posted some of these views during one of our first snowstorms of the season, but after last weekend’s storm, it’s transformed all over again. Many locals and visitors may miss the remaining evidence (and absence) of this site’s early 20th century history, when this neighborhood was the center of several Eastern European immigrant communities (swipe left to read the NPS sign!). When Salem Maritime was founded in the 1930s, this history may have been considered too recent and gritty to commemorate, but today historians realize that more recent histories are worth preserving. Let us know if you or your family have preserved any memories of East Salem’s 20th century history!

A rose-gold sky over Essex Street, the light dying into the longest night of the year.
12/21/2025

A rose-gold sky over Essex Street, the light dying into the longest night of the year.

12/14/2025

Salem is often at its most magical in the snow, and the Derby House garden is always a wonderful escape.

10/31/2025

From Georgian colonial to Colonial Revival and beyond: 250+ years of Salem architecture comes alive (or is that undead?) for Halloween. Happy Halloween, Salemites and Salem guests. Stay safe, stay sane, stay spooky.

It’s our birthday! Come celebrate our first decade with us! Our 2025 Annual Meeting is coming up on Thursday, September ...
09/16/2025

It’s our birthday! Come celebrate our first decade with us! Our 2025 Annual Meeting is coming up on Thursday, September 18th with the presentation of the 3rd Annual Salem History Award to our very own David Goss, recognizing his decades-long contribution to the field of public history in Salem. Join us for light refreshments and historical insights from David at 6:30pm, all thanks to the hospitality of - one of the many historic sites David has stewarded over the course of his career.

Address

9 North Street
Salem, MA
01970

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