1. Danvers, Massachusetts - As a less crowded and more historically accurate alternative, consider visiting Danvers, as opposed to Salem, Massachusetts. It's a neighboring city to Salem, and is the true site of "The Crucible". You can visit the parsonage of Reverend Samuel Parris, where the whole witchcraft hysteria actually began. Unfortunately, the actual house no longer stands, but the stone foundation of the house exists behind a small trail on Centre Street and is a historically protected location.
The Rebecca Nurse Homestead is located in Danvers. Goody Nurse was one of the accused. It's located at 149 Pine Street and can be reached by phone by calling (978) 774-8799 for further details. The Danvers Historical Society is an excellent source for learning true historical facts on the witchcraft hysteria. If you visit City Hall, you can read about the origins of Danvers, which changed it's name from Salem (Olde Salem Village), due to the shame of the whole witchcraft incident.
2. Danvers State Hospital Grounds - Additionally, some original but altered buildings still stand on the grounds of "Danvers State Hosptial", the home of the first "successful" frontal lobotomy. Apartment buildings are present on most of the grounds, but you can drive up behind the site and see some of the maintenace and old farm buildings that still exist on the grounds.
3. Witchcraft Judge Hathorne's Purported Gallows - Also, located adjacent to these grounds is the former site of the home of Judge Hathorne, who sentenced many accused practitioners of witchcraft to death. It's believed by some that the grounds where Danvers State Hospital once stood, which is of course, basically in Judge Hathorne's former back yard, was the true site of Salem's "Gallows' Hill".
4. Griswold, Connecticut "Vampire Graves" - In a Jewett City, Connecticut, a borough of Griswold, a cemetery rests an ensemble of purported "vampire graves" circa the mid 1800's. The graves were believed to host vampires due to a family being knocked off one by one by a perplexing condition that killed many of them for which no cause was found. Henry, the family's father and three of his boys began to diminish into skin and bones as if something was sucking the life out of them.
The remaining family members were under the impression that their loved ones were the victims of a vampire or vampires. The family exhumed the remains of their dead kin in fear that they would rise from the dead and get them, too! The bodies were burned, attracted an audience, and were featured in the local Jewett news! The true cause of the boys' demise was tuberculosis.
This is a prime location to snap pix if you're the super morbid type or even to catch some killer grave rubbings to hang on your wall and incorporate in your art if you feel so inclined. The Ray family plot is located toward the northern end of the Jewett City Cemetery, located at the very end of Anthony Street.
And...the most coveted location, for me, on this list is #5....
Exhibiting wet specimens of Victorian disease and medical specimens from even before that, I can enjoy checking that out among horrific, antique medical instruments, an extensive collection of trepanned skulls, skeletons of conjoined twins, deformed fetuses in jars, brain surgery tools, and other medical wonders, conveniently located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Best of all, in a single day's drive, I can expect to part with the cost of gas, cheap lodging, and admission to the Mutter for just $16. If you have a military ID, you can get in for $13, but I don't, sigh...Weirdos who are 65 and over get in for 14. If you've got a student ID, admission is $11. Kids 6-17 get in for $11, but they have to be accompanied by an adult. You can bring the kiddies 5 and under for free! I'd totes make it a family vacation if I had little ones, but I don't any longer. I'm old!
You can visit both the The Mütter Museum and the Penn Museum with dual admission if you buy admission tickets at the front desk of either The Mutter or the Penn Museum. If you're a nerd like me, this is a good deal. Tickets for adults are $26; for seniors, $22; and for students and kids 6-17, $16. Keep in mind that you will need valid ID as a senior or student to get the deal for both museums. for sale only at the front desk of both museums.
Though I enjoy doing things at night, the Mutter is open from 10-5 this summer, so I guess I can make a concession to live the dream!
If you're on a budget, check out deals for Philly lodging, parking, and that sorta shite by clicking here...
If you're on a budget, check out deals for Philly lodging, parking, and that sorta shite by clicking here...
