Ropes Mansion and Garden

An extraordinarily beautiful house and garden estate is free to all visitors. As part of Salem it also has a ghost story behind it. It was built in the early 1700s by Samuel Bernard who married four times. The manner in which his wives died was suspect, but that wasn't the only scandal. Bernard was also a Loyalist which got him into big trouble with the colonists in his community. As his estate was mobbed by colonists, he was dying of smallpox. Surely, there was not much grieving when he passed a couple days after the riot. While the house is often closed to the public, the gardens are open year-round. Try to plan for springtime when the gardens are lush with colorful blooms. (Submitted by Omar Medina)