As usual, tourists from around the country are flocking to Salem this October to celebrate Halloween and get a first-hand look at some of the city's historic sites – especially those connected to the infamous witch trials of 1692. Did you know, however, that the events of that dark chapter of history first began in Danvers? Sorry Salem. The initial accusations spread from a group of local girls in Salem Village (present-day Danvers) against other residents of that parish and most of the examinations during which the victims were publicly condemned as witches took place in the church …

While Lexington and Concord have the distinction of being the starting point of the American Revolution, a couple of sites in Danvers played important roles in the early days of the struggle for independence. One old Danvers story says a bullet hole was once fired by a local patriot into the front door of the house where Gen. Thomas Gage stayed in 1774. (Gage was the commander-in-chief of British forces in the colonies from 1763-1775, and in 1774, he was appointed the military governor of the Massachusetts Bay province.) Danvers archivist Richard Trask questions the local story, however, …