- Address: Starting Point: Herbert Street, Salem, MA 01970 978-526-8687
- Website:www.thetrustees.org
- Hours: Open year-round, daily, sunrise to sunset. Allow a minimum of 1.5 hours.
- Admission: For independent arrivals by private vessel: June through Labor Day, Trustees members free; Nonmembers: adult $5, child (12 and under) $3.
- Trail: The Maritime Trail
Credit: (c) TTOR / Michael Triff
Misery Islands offer coastal views, rolling rocky terrain, diverse wildlife habitats, and interesting ruins that recall the Islands' past as an exclusive resort and summer colony. A system of trails provides access to most parts of Great Misery Island, including spectacular overlooks, stony beaches, and grassy fields. Little Misery Island is accessible from Great Misery Island by wading across a narrow, shallow channel at very low tide. On the beach of Little Misery can be seen the remains of the steamship, The City of Rockland, wrecked off the coast of Maine and scuttled here many years ago.
The Misery Island Syndicate bought the Islands in 1900. They built the Misery Island Club, which featured a pier, a club house, a saltwater swimming pool, guest cottages, a tennis court, and a nine-hole golf course. Tournaments and regattas attracted Boston and North Shore socialites, but the club fell on hard times a year after opening. Subsequent business ventures failed, but individual lots sold and a summer colony of more than twenty-five cottages took hold. In 1926, however, a devastating brush fire destroyed many homes, and summer families eventually lost interest in the islands.
Before its last three acres were acquired in 1997, several threats to Misery Islands had been fended off, including a 1935 plan for a twelve-million-gallon oil storage facility and a 1988 plan for a secondary sewage treatment plant. The name Misery Islands arose from the ordeal of shipbuilder Robert Moulton. Harvesting timber on the islands in the 1620s, Moulton became stranded for three miserable days during a December storm.
Nearby Area Sites
- Derby Street Historic District
Map
An area of Salem prominent in foreign commerce during the late 1700's and early 1800's. - House of the Seven Gables
Map
The house, built in 1668, was made famous by Salem author Nathaniel Hawthorne. - McIntire Historic District
Features a walking tour that takes visitors past several of architect Samuel McIntire's significant houses. - Misery Islands
Misery Islands offer coastal views, rolling rocky terrain, diverse wildlife habitats, and interesting ruins that recall the Islands' past as an exclusive resort and summer colony. - National Park Service Regional Visitor Center
Located in the old Salem Armory building, the ENHC Visitor Center offers information on Salem and the surrounding area and also features maps, exhibits, dioramas, movies and a gift shop. - Peabody Essex Museum
A museum of international art and culture, the PEM is America's oldest continually operated museum. - Phillips House
A historic house museum with a unique collection from five generations of the Phillips family. - Witch House
The only house still standing in Salem with direct ties to the Witch Trails of 1692. - Salem 1630: Pioneer Village
This living history museum is a re-creation of the English colony established by Samuel Conant. - Salem Maritime National Historic Site Map
This was the first National Historic Site in the National Park System and it preserves and interprets the maritime history of New England and the U.S.
- Salem Witch Museum
- Washington Square Salem, Massachusetts 01970 (978)744-1692
The Salem Witch Museum brings visitors back to Salem in 1692. Visitors are given a dramatic history lesson using stage sets with life-size figures, lighting and a narration - an overview of the Witch Trials of 1692. Their new exhibit, Witches: Evolving Perceptions, examines the stereotypical witch, aspects of witchcraft in the 17th century, modern witchcraft and the phenomenon of witch hunts.
- Schooner Fame of Salem
- Pickering Wharf Marina, Salem, MA 01970 978-729-7600
The full-scale replica of the 1812 privateer Fame sails three times daily from Pickering Wharf in Salem. Fame is also available for private charter and hosts summer camps for children. -
Places to Stay in Salem
- Hawthorne Hotel
18 Washington Square West Salem MA 01970 978-744-4080 - Elegantly restored full service hotel located in the heart of historic Salem. The Hawthorne Hotel offers 89 individually appointed rooms and 7,000 square feet of meeting function space. Walking distance to all museums, cultural sites and waterfront makes it an ideal location. Proud member of the Historic Hotels of America, a designation of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
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