House of the Seven Gables
The basics
The site includes five historic houses, including the Nathaniel Hawthorne Birthplace. Besides the House of the Seven Gables, also known as the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, they have all been moved to the site. Visitors can explore the site and grounds on a guided tour covering multiple levels of several houses, as well as the grounds and gardens. See some of the earliest Georgian architecture in the country and a secret staircase. Inside the Nathaniel Hawthorne Birthplace, learn about the life and works of the famous author.
Visit independently, or as part of a day tour from Boston, particularly around Halloween. Admission to the site is also included as part of the Go Boston Pass.
Things to know before you go
- The admission fee includes a guided tour and an audio tour app.
- Written translations of the tour are available in Brazilian Portuguese, Cantonese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin, and Spanish.
- The house museums are not wheelchair accessible; the visitor center, grounds, gardens, restrooms, and parts of the museum store are.
How to get there
The museum site is located near Salem Harbor, at the intersection of Derby Street and Turner Street. There’s a small parking lot on site. From Boston, Salem can easily be reached by taking the high-speed Salem Ferry, the bus (number 450 or 455 from Haymarket), or the Commuter Rail (Ipswich or Rockport trains from North Station).
Trip ideas
When to get there
The site has different opening hours throughout the year, with holiday closures for Thanksgiving (the last Thursday in November) and Christmas Day (December 25), and limited hours on Independence Day (July 4), Christmas Eve (December 24), and New Year’s Eve (December 31). The site is also typically closed for the first two weeks of January. Guided tours are available throughout the day, and usually last around 45 minutes.
Hawthorne Collections in Salem
Fans of Nathaniel Hawthorne will want to make several additional stops while in Salem. Find over 3,000 individual volumes by Hawthorne, as well as portraits and paintings of the noted author, at the Peabody Essex Museum. See where Hawthorne worked, and wrote about, at the Salem Maritime National Historic Site. The Salem Maritime National Historic Site also offers information on different Nathaniel Hawthorne walking tours of Salem.
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