Event Calendar

Salem, Massachusetts is a city built on layers of history. Its reputation as a destination is built around the Salem Witch Trials; however, to come for just the witches is merely scratching the surface of Salem. As you peel back the layers you quickly realize that Salem’s history reaches far beyond the witch trials.

Being a sailing port Salem once enjoyed a healthy economy entrenched in the trades including our beloved spices. When Captain Jonathan Carnes returned to Salem from a secret mission to procure black pepper an era of Salem being known as the world’s pepper capital commenced which extended into the 1840s and helped this seaport rise to prosperity. With this kind of history we are bound for Salem.

You can’t talk about Salem without mentioning Nathaniel Hawthorne. Think back to school and likely you’ll recall having read The Scarlet Letter, The House of the Seven Gables, or one of his other masterpieces. Hawthorne was born in Salem at the height of its prosperity. As he grew up the city started to decline due to the 1807 trade embargo. Hawthorne experienced both the success and failure of Salem, death and sadness, tales of the sea, and of witch-hunts all of which must have made a deep impression on Hawthorne and served as the source of his deeply moral and dark tales.

Join your fellow Herb Society of America members as we look beyond Salem’s witch history and let this historic city set the stage for our 2018 District Gathering. During your visit you’ll stroll through the colonial revival garden of the Ropes Mansion continuing on to enjoy a handful of private gardens offering diverse styles. There will be time to mingle with friends and make a few new acquaintances while enjoying dinner at the historic Hawthorne Hotel. We’ll spend the day at the House of the Seven Gables where we’ll receive news from headquarters, participate in the district meeting, shop the marketplace, be tempted by our sensational raffle baskets, and learn more about a much loved but sometimes overlooked aspect of our useful plants…the simple but valuable spice.