Salem, Massachusetts

Salem (, ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one of the most significant seaports for trading commodities in early American history. Prior to the dissolution of county governments in Massachusetts in 1999, it served as one of two county seats for Essex County, alongside Lawrence.

Today, Salem is a residential and tourist area that is home to the House of Seven Gables, Salem State University, Pioneer Village, the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, Salem Willows Park, and the Peabody Essex Museum. It features historic residential neighborhoods in the Federal Street District and the Charter Street Historic District. The city's population was 44,480 at the 2020 census.

Salem is most well-known for the Salem witch trials of 1692, which strongly informs the city's cultural identity into the present. Some of Salem's police cars are adorned with witch logos, a public elementary school is known as Witchcraft Heights, and the Salem High School athletic teams are named the Witches. The top of Gallows Hill was believed to be the site of the executions during the Witch Trials, but in 2016 a site near the foot of the hill, called Proctor's Ledge, was identified as the site for the public hangings. Gallows Hill now serves as a city park and the Ledge was made a memorial. Salem is also the birthplace of the National Guard, which first mustered at the Salem Common in 1636. In the 19th century, the Salem area became the subject of American Literature, particularly in the writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne.