Pioneer Village
About
Pioneer Village in Salem is a living history museum designed to represent Salem in the year 1630. It was built in 1930 to mark the tercentennial of Massachusetts, and it bills itself as America’s first and oldest living history museum. The village sits on three acres and contains examples of early colonial architecture, including dugouts, wigwams, thatched-roof cottages and the Governor’s Faire House.
Beyond the buildings, the village interprets early 17th-century colonial life through culinary and medicinal gardens and a blacksmith shop, pointing to how settlers fed themselves, treated illness and made what they needed. Its 1630 setting predates the Salem witch trials of 1692 by more than six decades, giving visitors a look at an earlier chapter of the city’s history than the one most associated with Salem.
What to Know
- The village is open seasonally on weekends, from early June to early November.
- Tickets can be purchased at the gate or online.
- It is listed with Destination Salem under museums and attractions.
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