New videos featuring The Gables!

Here is a great TV spot recently done for The House of the Seven Gables:

And another video that features more about the mission of The Gables and what we do:

Let us know what you think!

New Photos and the Antique Boat Show!

The Director of Photography for 2011's Bachelor and Bachelorette television series (among many, many others) and camera operator for The Voice last year, Andre Martinez III, was here at The House of the Seven Gables to take photographs to add to our archives.

He spent quite a bit of time here photographing the site and also taking interior shots of The House itself. Martinez reported that he has recently relocated to the East Coast from Los Angeles and is currently reconnecting with a New Hampshire television station, WBIN.

Martinez is also currently working on the upcoming season of The X-Factor.

We are excited to have such a seasoned professional create some images for us to use and please stay tuned for some of the images he took!

In local news, the 30th Annual Antique and Classic Boat Festival is slated to take place this weekend, August 25th and 26th at the Brewer Hawthorne Cove Marina in Salem. They are hosting the event, open to the public, which will feature sailboats, power boats, hand-powered crafts and reproductions. In addition to the boats, there will be judging, exhibits, music and a landside crafts market. You will see ship modelers, artists, photographers and much more.

For information, please call 617-666-8530.

Settlement House garden bursts with life!

We are in the midst of August already and before you know it, school will be back in session and the Settlement House will be welcoming back the students from Salem Prep. Salem Prep Program is part of the Salem Public School system. They offer classes to students who have difficulty learning in traditional classrooms - perhaps they aren't proficient in English, or have learning disabilities. For every two students in any given classroom, there is one teacher, so the students get extra attention and care.

In the spring, a few of the Gables' staff assisted the students from Salem Prep in putting in a garden - primarily potatoes, onions, carrots and squash. Well, the garden has flourished, to say the very least!

Here is the "before" picture taken in May shortly after the garden was planted:

Well after a long, very hot, very humid summer, the garden is bursting with life! Here it is, in all its glory as of August 27th!

The garden on site at The Gables is also in its full summer glory. We hope you'll visit us soon and take advantage of these beautiful summer days we're still enjoying.

Upcoming Gables Goings-on!

Last week saw the end of Heritage Days in Salem, and we'd like to thank all of the visitors who came and enjoyed our free activities - from story-telling to lawn games to slide shows, we had something for people of all ages.

Looking forward, The Gables is gearing up for the busy fall season in Salem. The next lecture in our 7 Lectures at 7 Gables lecture series is slated for 2pm, Saturday, September 22nd during the Trails and Sails event coordinated by the Essex National Heritage Commission.

Our Museum Store is also already looking to the fall with fun Halloween and harvest-inspired items:

Since October is not that far away, we also want to invite everyone to take part in our special October offerings here at The Gables. Daily tours continue with extended hours from 10:00am to 7:00 pm, and we also have very special theatrical performances all through October:

Legacy of the Hanging Judge

In 1692 the Salem Witch Trials wrought havoc on a small New England Community. Relive these event – in their own words! Enter the Nathaniel Hawthorne House, where you will be interrogated by magistrate, John Hathorne, Hawthorne’s great-great grandfather, who is infamous for his role in the condemnation and deaths of so many people. From there, encounter the tormented, the accused and the accusers in this theatrical experience. Beware, you may find yourself being accused of “writing in the devil’s book!”

Spirits of The Gables

Guilt! Greed! Revenge! Enter the world of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s burdened characters from his classic, The House of the Seven Gables, as they haunt the hallways of their eerie mansion. Witness two families entangled in a curse as Matthew Maule condemns Colonel Pyncheon with the very words destined to become his fate and follow his family for nearly 150 years; “God will give you blood to drink!” Travel through this house at your own risk, for as long as there is a Pyncheon descendent inside, only darkness and death will fill its walls.

Spirits and Legacy will both run on:

October 5, 6, 7 from 7:30pm-9:30pm

October 12, 13, 19, 20, 26, 27 from 7:15pm-11:00pm

October 31 from 7:15pm-10:00pm.

Shows run continuously and are each 35 minutes long.

Reservations highly recommended. Space is limited. Please Call 978-744-0991, ext 104.

For more information please visit our website HERE.

Heritage Days continue at The Gables

For subscribers of The Salem News or if you'd like to pick up today's edition, The House of the Seven Gables' free Heritage Days activity of 17th Century Lawn Games was featured on the front page! The great photo showed children playing the 400 year old game of frog & squirrel!

Today's free activity is a demonstration of the ancient art of lace-making! Visitors of all ages are coming in to see the live demonstration and ask questions on this fascinating process:

Just a reminder, too, that during Heritage Days, which run through August 12th, all Salem families (with children under 18) and Salem seniors (over 65) are entitled to a 20% off discount on admission to The Gables.

Aside from the tours and activities here on site, don't forget your opportunity to peruse our gardens, the Museum Store and breathtaking views of Salem Harbor. Here's the view from the entrance of the Nathaniel Hawthorne Birth Home at The Gables:

We hope you'll visit us this summer and again this fall when we feature our special October "Spirits of the Gables" and "Legacy of the Hanging Judge"  programs! Don't forget to reserve your space - we're already taking reservations and encourage you to reserve well in advance. For reservations, please call us at 978-744-0991 ext. 104.

We're in the paper and a Gables' guest blogs about us!

Executive Director, Anita Blackaby is in the Salem News today - this time a quick photo and caption about the recent visit of Lorna Luft, daughter of Judy Garland, who is in town performing at The North Shore Music Theater.

We would like to thank the blogger at Chill Air and Perfume for her recent visit and positive review of The House of the Seven Gables.

To read her post, just click HERE!

We would also like to thank the very willing participants at The Gables' Heritage Days  story time and old-fashioned lawn game free activities! There were a lot of smiling faces from both participants and staffers at these fun events. Heritage Days events extend through August 12th, so be sure to stop in to take advantage of the free activities still to come:

Friday, Aug. 3 from 1pm-4pm, Come watch the lost art of lace-making in Hooper Hathaway Great Room.

Saturday, Aug. 4 from 1pm-4pm, Free exhibit of five ship models, past and present, with a demonstration of re-rigging a brig of the 19th century in the Hooper Hathaway Great Room.

Sunday, Aug. 5 from 1pm-4pm, Free exhibit of five ship models, past and present, with a demonstration of re-rigging a brig of the 19th century in the Hooper Hathaway Great Room.

Wednesday, Aug. 8 from 1pm-4pm, Take a break from the summer heat. Enjoy free story time at The Gables (children 7 and under). We have an assortment of new and classical stories.

Thursday, Aug. 9  from 1pm-4pm, Experience 17th Century games on our beautiful seaside lawn.

Friday, Aug. 10 from 1pm-4pm, Come watch the lost art of lace-making in Hooper Hathaway Great Room.

Saturday, Aug. 11 from 1pm-4pm, A short slide show of sailing ships abandoned in the Falkland Islands 150 years ago and still intact. Show runs continuously.

Sunday, Aug. 12 from 1pm-4pm, A short slide show of sailing ships abandoned in the Falkland Islands 150 years ago and still intact. Show runs continuously.

For more information on the activities or any upcoming events at The Gables, call us at 978-744-0991.