Most Read Salem Stories in 2016

SALEM, MA – This year was a big one for Salem. There was no shortage of news – sad, scary, and exciting stories broke the top 50 most read Salem Patch stories in 2016. Here's a small selection:

Historic North Shore Gay Bar Closing Its Doors: While not technically out of Salem, the closing of Fran's Place was one of the most shared stories this year. The historic bar closed its doors in September, after crossing many milestones for the Massachusetts LGBTQ community.

Should Mass. Change Date of Halloween?: A Pembroke selectman proposed changing official Halloween celebrations to the last Saturday in October, to give municipalities more time to prepare. We're not sure he's ever seen the well-oiled machine that is Salem in October.

Rainbow Times Responds to Newspaper Box Explosion: People around the state watched the footage of a group of people in black throw a firecracker into a newspaper box for an LGBTQ publication. Then, they saw the community rise up and refuse to be silenced.

Marblehead Woman Arrested for Allegedly Biting Off Portion of Salem Police Officer's Ear: A rookie cop was injured in the line of duty in a disturbing incident.

The Sights, Sounds, and Social Media of Halloween: Salem proved this year that there is more to the city than Halloween. But what would Witch City be without the unbearable traffic in October, the fantastic parties all Halloween, and the morning of Nov. 1, when the city looks as though nothing has happened.

Happy New Year, Salem.