“Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house, with seven acutely peaked gables, facing towards various points of the compass, and a huge, clustered chimney in the midst. The street is Pyncheon Street; the house is the old Pyncheon House; and an elm-tree, of wide circumference, rooted […]
A historic home in Salem finds its way into Lovecraft’s fiction
“I lied when I said she had gone away. I killed her. I had to. It was sudden, but we were alone and I was in my right body. I saw a candlestick and smashed her head in. She would have got me for good at Hallowmass. I buried her in the farther cellar storeroom under […]
Prithee WGN’s Salem, forgive me, for I confess I was wrong
In which the author issues a rare apology When I heard that WGN was making a series based on the Salem witch hysteria, I was skeptical. Then I saw the previews. I decided on the spot I’d rather eat my own swill than watch it. The events that happened at Salem were horrifying. The more […]
Top 5 Haunted Massachusetts hotels and bed and breakfasts
Ghost stories are a traditional part of New England evenings, and have been since before the founding of our country. So what can be better than spending an evening in a haunted Massachusetts hotel, inn or bed and breakfast? Let’s be honest … you’re not likely to be disturbed by either the dead or undead in a […]
The Witches’ Field in Salem Village, Where the Wicked Gathered When George Burrough blew his horn
From the Salem Witchcraft Papers, Boyer and Nissenbaum, 1977 1st June 1692 Abigaile Hobbs then confessed before John Hathorn & Jonathan Corwin Esq’rs That the generall meeting of the Witches in the feild near Mr Parrisse’s house she saw Mr George Burroughs, Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne Bridgett Bishop als. Olliver & Giles Cory, two or […]
A Salem Walking Tour in Three Miles
Salem is a walking town, with Essex Street acting as the main pedestrian artery. If you’re spending the night in Salem, haunted hotels are the way to go. This walking tour assumes you’re staying at either the Hawthorne Hotel, or the Salem Inn, which lie at opposites ends of this walk. Both are historic, with […]