I rely on Salem, Ma historian to explain much to me. This previous (1881) Yellow Day was explained by forest fires and a volcano (???) in Canada, as well as a kind of natural grief and mourning for the dying President Garfield.

The Bryant Homestead This past weekend I drove out west to the lovely little town of Cummington, Massachusetts to see the summer home of journalist and poet William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878).... https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/07/13/the-bryant-homestead/

What I Want Now: to return to these perspectives I haven't written a What I Want Now post for a long while: this one is another expression of earnest materialism but also of a desire to return to a world and a… https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/07/07/what-i-want-now-to-return-to-these-perspectives/

As the #fourthofjuly in #salemma had been celebrated by big barrel bonfires for decades, the 1926 fire had to be particularly impressive, as it also marked the beginning of the city's 300th anniversary celebration. And it was: inspiring headlines across the nation.

Salem 250: Revolutionary Residences So many towns around us have had house and walking tours featuring houses connected to prominent patriots for this big anniversary year, but not Salem.... https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/06/29/salem-250-revolutionary-residences/

Monmouth Memorials I was down in New Jersey for a celebration of life event for a cherished member of my husband's family over the weekend, and as the region where he grew up, Monmouth County in the central part of the state, is a… https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/06/23/monmouth-memorials/

The Art of Privateering So my title is a bit lofty and deceptive. There are beautiful miniatures of privateersmen and of course maritime paintings of great sea battles, but most of my post is going to be focused on a pen-and-ink… https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/06/16/the-art-of-privateering/

Three Irish Takeaways How to summarize a long trip all around Ireland? I've got lots of photos---and thoughts---but I always think it's better to focus when presenting anything, any way, so I've narrowed much of it down to three… https://streetsofsalem.com/2026/06/08/three-irish-takeaways/

My colleague and co-editor Brad Austin and I are at the State Library of Massachusetts next week for an overview of our new book, Salem's Centuries: New Perspectives on the History of an Old American City. (Salem shares a birthday--its 400th--with the US). @templeunivpress.bsky.social

Preservation by the People I always like to have a preservation post for preservation month so here it is: a little populist spin on Salem's experience of urban renewal in the 1960s and 1970s. This is a long and rather complicated story that I've written about here before, several times, and…

Philly Love We were in Pennsylvania for the last leg of our spring road trip, principally, but not exclusively, in Philadelphia. I've been to Philadelphia many times for different reasons, but this was definitely my favorite visit. It certainly wasn't the weather---it was as unseasonably cold as…

The Wilton House Virginia was the second leg of our southern road trip: we visited family in Richmond, toured historic gardens, and saw several Lost Cause and revolutionary exhibitions. I am enjoying the regional America 250 interpretations. For example, the Virginia Museum of History and Culture…

Greetings from Annapolis I'm on the first leg of what has become my annual spring southern tour, stopping in at Annapolis for a few days. I love Annapolis, so I visit here every other year or so, but generally during my spring break in March when the historic houses I want to see are not open yet.…

I'm still mad at Timothy Pickering's slow-walking the Salem Militia, rendering it a no-show at Lexington and Concord. Plus TWO tavern stops. streetsofsalem.com/2025/04/14/s...

I’d Rather Read Poetry Over the past few weeks Salem residents have learned that our city will become the site of yet another dark attraction, styled a museum of course, an establishment that seems even worse than the last arrival in terms of tackiness, kitschiness, darkness, and removal from…

Excited to be giving this talk on our book Salem's Centuries at the State Library of Massachusetts during its 200th anniversary year and Salem's 400th.

Naval History is so Competitive On either side of Salem, Beverly and Marblehead have a longstanding rivalry as to which is the birthplace of the U.S. Navy: the Hannah, owned by John Glover of Marblehead and the first ship to be commissioned for warfare by General George Washington, set sail from…

Personal Declarations I would love to hear about Revolutionary exhibitions, programs and events sheduled for your area in this 250th anniversary year: 1776 is certainly alive and well in the Boston area! Since I'm on sabbatical, I've been able to attend quite a few happenings, and my favorite…

Remembering the Ladies: Two Talks in Salem A promotional post today: I've got to events coming up at the end of this week and the beginning of next on women's history in Salem for the close of Women's History Month. Both are free and all are welcome. The first is on Saturday at Old Town Hall, and…

Camilla Days Nineteenth-century monied New Englanders loved camillas and living embodiments of their desire exist at the Lyman Estate greenhouses of Historic New England, which hosts "Camilla Days" in February and March when these old trees are in bloom. Somehow I miss this event every year, but…

Trolley Goals I came across this book entitled The Trolley and the Lady (1908) and thought, wow, great, this is going to be a great exploration of turn-of-the-century "transportation liberation" from the perspective of a liberated woman! But I should have known, as it was written by a man (William…

The Last Week in February Well, it's been quite a winter here in eastern Massachusetts, and last week was quite a week, so I think I'm going to take a break from topical posting and just present the week that was. It started with a blizzard, and even though it is now March 1, as I am typing I see…

A Major Revolutionary Engraver So many untold revolutionary stories in Salem's history. SO MANY. I started thinking about Joseph Hiller, a soldier (Major, in fact), watchmaker, engraver, and Collector of the Port of Salem and Beverly, last week and put together a little visual sketch of his life,…

Perfect!

Was Andrew Jackson a Welcome Guest in Salem in 1833? Here I am with another Presidents' Day post which I shall begin with my usual rant about Presidents' Day: if you merge them all (or Washington and Lincoln) into one day of remembrance you're going to forget some singular details. Not a fan of…

Oh my goodness, so creepy.

Knox Sunday I know, there was a big football game yesterday, and I watched half of it at an actual party but the day was reserved for Col. Henry Knox. I've been watching online as commemorations of Knox's Noble Train of Artillery moved across large swaths of New York and Massachusetts on its way…

Thank you, @genbird8.bsky.social!

The Problem with Sugar I have either written, edited, or read all of the essays that make up Salem's Centuries many times over these past three years as they have taken shape but now that they're all together in a published book I read them again last week, as I wanted to see how the book held up,…

I got to write about Hugh Peter in our new book Salem's Centuries---a rather dramatic bio because of his connection to King Charles' execution #otd. Salem's fourth pastor became "Salem's Regicide" (the news that the King hadn't been executed didn't reach New England until June).

Frosty Salem So I was going to bring you some photographs of Salem during yesterday's snowstorm today, but that would have necessitated actually going out and walking around, and just a few steps from my backyard out onto Chestnut Street at midday were enough to convince me that I didn't want to…

What lying fucks they all are.

Salem Ladies 1876 I think I've previewed the "anniversary year" for quite a few years on this blog in Januarys past, but this particular year is going to be so dominated by the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution (nationally) and Salem's 400th anniversary (locally) that I decided not to.…

Here's an overview of our new book out from @templeunivpress.bsky.social: Salem's Centuries: New Perspectives on the History of an Old American City. 2026 is the 400th anniversary of Salem's European settlement, and its history is more than "witches": templepress.wordpress.com/2026/01/14/4...

Minority Report Provocative title, yes? It's not mine. A very different presentation for me today: a very short post, with no pictures and very little analysis on my part. Basically I just want to offer you a link, to the Minority Report of the two historians appointed to the City Seal Task Force,…

The director of the Kennedy Center. I can’t imagine why nobody wants to perform there.

Salem’s Centuries Yesterday I received three copies of Salem's Centuries. New Perspectives on the History of an Old American City, and Tuesday is publication day, so I thought I'd provide an introductory post. The crucible of this book is definitely this blog, so I want to thank all of its…

Thanks for the heads up! One of five 17th century valuables cabinets made by the Symonds shop of Salem, MA: the Peabody Essex Museum has one from a couple of years later owned by the Pope family. Maybe a Salem to New Salem story?

Finishing my 2025 Books I'm still working on the fall version of my 2025 reading list even as the year draws to a close. I certainly won't finish it by the end of the year, but I have a LONG break ahead of me as I have a sabbatical for the spring semester! Lots of great books coming out next year…

The Woman Who Invented Christmas Decorating? Everyone has their favorite Christmas movies, and most of mine are classics from the mid-twentieth century: there is the Barbara Stanwyck double feature of Christmas in Connecticut and Remember the Night followed by the Bing Crosby double feature…

Christmas Tipples I was researching the enforcement of the famous (or infamous) 1659 Massachusetts statutory "ban" on Christmas in the records of the Essex County quarterly courts the other day and soon realized that no one got fined for "keeping Christmas" but rather for excessive "tippling" on…

Christmas in Salem 2025: Close to Home Christmas in Salem, a holiday house tour held hosted every year by Historic Salem, Inc. as its largest fundraiser, has always been one of my favorite events. It represents every thing I love about Salem: architecture, creativity, community, preservation,…

Old Salem Settings One of the chapters I wrote for the forthcoming (on January 6!) Salem's Centuries was on the Colonial Revival, and in it I  explored Salem's experience of that cultural movement as well as Salem's influence in that cultural movement. I am no art historian, so my purview is very…

Facts, Feelings, and Erasure I really didn't want to publish any more about the Salem City Seal saga here, but the closing meeting of the Task Force which has recommended its replacement was concerning in so many ways that I simply had to write about it (it was keeping me up at night). For those…

The Revolution in Color I decided to celebrate the debut of Ken Burns' new series on the American Revolution by getting out two old books which I always enjoy browsing through, and which I now realize were quite foundational in how I look (and I do mean look) at American history in particular and…

My Shaker Family I am very excited about The Testament of Ann Lee, the new film about the Shaker founder, because its sounds like quite the experience and I am descended from a Shaker family. I know that sounds like an odd thing to say, because one of the most conspicuous characteristics of the…

A Sampler of Salem Folk Art Salem is not particularly known for its folk art, I think. The standard for craftsmanship during the later eighteenth and early nineteenth century was so high, and production so prolific, that the curatorial and collecting emphasis always seems to be on the best and the…

“Salem is not a Theme Park” You hear my title phrase all the time in Salem now, with increasing frequency. It's a way to acknowledge the fact that residents of Salem have to (or want to): go to work, drive to their appointments, take their kids to school, walk along the sidewalk or sit on their…

The demolition of the East Wing of the White House. If I want to paint my 1827 house in Salem, Massachusetts the exact same color it is now, I have to get approval from our city's Historical Commission.

Limning the Local I've engaged in lots of different history here: a lot of public, some world, American and European, but above all, local. I'm always looking for new ways to delve into and present local history. I follow the sources, I chase down new perspectives and approaches whenever I catch a…