Essex Heritage Presents Trails & Sails Weekend

SWAMPSCOTT, MA – Want to learn about Marine Science at Salem State University’s Cat Cove Marine Laboratory or sail on the Schooner FAME in Salem? How about taking a tour of the history and architecture of the Peabody Institute Library, visiting the historic Nahant Life Saving Station, or a tour of the historic Olmsted Subdivision in Swampscott? Or, perhaps you’d like to take in some art at a gallery walk and talk through the Marblehead Arts Association’s King Hooper Mansion, or a tour of the WPA Murals at Marblehead’s Abbott Hall? No matter what your interests are, you can find something to explore and enjoy during Trails & Sails: Two Weekends of Walks and Water coming up on September 15-17 and 22-24.

Presented by Essex Heritage, Trails & Sails features more than 150 free events over two weekends. Events celebrate the elaborate variety of historic, cultural, and natural resources in the Essex National Heritage Area: The 34 cities and towns of Essex County, a 500 square mile region just north of Boston, MA.

For Trails & Sails 2017, Essex Heritage has partnered with non-profit and for-profit recreational organizations across Essex County to offer 150+ free, fun, and family-friendly events at more than 100 sites that showcase our region’s distinctive heritage, history, culture, and natural environment. From historic tours and museums, to guided walks, hikes, paddles, lectures, and other activities, there are events happening morning, afternoon, and evening that welcome your exploration.

The line-up of Trails & Sails events in the southern Essex County communities of Lynn, Marblehead, Nahant, Peabody, Salem, Saugus, and Swampscott includes:

Lynn

• Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Museum Tour, hosted by Lynn Community Association, Inc.
• Guided tour of the Lynn Museum, hosted by Lynn Museum
• History of Pine Grove Cemetery – Part 1, hosted by Pine Grove Cemetery Commission, Lynn Historical Commission, Lynn Cultural Council, and the Lynn Community Association
• History of Pine Grove Cemetery – Part 2, hosted by Pine Grove Cemetery Commission, Lynn Historical Commission, Lynn Cultural Council, and the Lynn Community Association
• Lynn Woods Walk, hosted by Lynn Woods Reservation
• LynnArts’ Open Gallery, hosted by Lynn Museum/LynnArts
• Photography Walking Tour of Downtown Lynn, Hosted by Lynn Museum
• Tiffany Stained Glass Windows Tour, hosted by St. Stephen’s Memorial Episcopal Church
• Walking Richard Fay’s Estate, hosted by Pat Lee, Lynn Historical Commission
• Walking the National Register of Historic Places in Lynn, hosted by Pat Lee, Lynn Historical Commission

Marblehead

• 1,121 Marbleheaders in the War of 1812, hosted by social and cultural historian Judy Anderson
• 18th Century Hearth Cooking with Diana Dunlap, hosted by Marblehead Museum
• Abbot Hall – Spirit of ’76, Portraits, Maritime, and other Exhibits, hosted by Marblehead Historical Commission
• Evening Stroll: Changes in Marblehead 1700 to 1817 & Beyond, hosted by Marblehead Architecture Heritage & Tours
• Gallery Walk and Talk with the Experimental Group of Rockport Art Association, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• Historic Talk; The Women and Children of the King Hooper Mansion, 1728-1790, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• Jewelry Demonstration with Marci Rae, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• King Hooper Mansion Art Galleries, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• Marblehead’s 1755 Round Brick Powder House, hosted by Marblehead Historical Commission & Marblehead Architecture Heritage
• Tour of the Historic King Hooper Mansion, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• Tours of the WPA Murals & Abbot Hall, Marbleheads Centennial-Era Town Hall, hosted by Marblehead Historical Commission & Marblehead Architecture Heritage & Tours
• Travels and Artwork with the Willmers, hosted by Marblehead Arts Association
• Walking Tour of Marblehead Architecture & Social History 1700 to 1817 & Beyond, hosted by Marblehead Architecture Heritage & Tours

Nahant

• Buddha on the Move, and More, hosted by Nahant Historical Society & Nahant Preservation Trust
• Nahant Life Saving Station, hosted by Nahant Preservation Trust

Peabody

• History & Architectural Tour, hosted by Peabody Institute Library

Salem

• The House that John Built, hosted by the Pickering House
• Elderflower Physick, hosted by City of Salem Witch House
• Gendering Work: Mills, Homes, and Everywhere Else in the Industrial Era, hosted by The House of the Seven Gables Settlement Association
• Guided Tour of It’s Alive: Classic Horror and Sci-Fi Art from the Kirk Hammett Collection, hosted by Peabody Essex Museum
• Guided Tour of Ocean Liners: Glamour, Spped, and Style, hosted by the Peabody Essex Museum
• Lady of Salem Maritime Public Art Celebration, hosted by Salem Beautification Committee
• Marine Science Experience: What is Marine Science and Why is it Important, hosted by Cat Cove Marine Laboratory, Salem State University
• Meanings of Freedom, hosted by Salem Maritime National Historic Site
• North River Walk & Talk – Ecology, History and the Future, hosted by Salem Sound Coastwatch
• Pickerings, Pirates & Physicians: Secrets of an Old Salem Cemetery, hosted by The Pickering Foundation
• Sail on Schooner FAME, hosted by Schooner FAME of Salem
• Sailor Crafts and Activities, hosted by Salem Maritime National Historic Site
• Salem Marine Society Tour, hosted by Hawthorne Hotel
• Salem’s Black Heritage Audio Tour, hosted by Salem Award Foundation for Human Rights and Social Justice
• Slavery and Abolition in Salem, hosted by Salem Maritime National Historic Site
• Stroll with Nathaniel Bowditch, hosted by Historic Salem, Inc.
• The McIntire District in the 17th Century, hosted by Hamilton Hall & Salem Historical Society
• The Middle Passage: Experiences of the Slave Ship, hosted by Salem Maritime National Historic Site
• The Quakers of Early Salem, hosted by Salem Award Foundation for Human Rights and Social Justice
• The Remond Family, Salem’s Early Abolitionists, hosted by Salem Award Foundation for Human Rights and Social Justice
• Walking Tour of Useful Plants, hosted by Iris Weaver
• What’s Behind Those English Gothic Walls?, hosted by the First Church in Salem, Unitarian Universalist

Saugus

• Become a Citizen Scientist, hosted by Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site
• Burying Saugus History, hosted by Saugus Historical Commission and 200th Anniversary Committee
• Saugus River Estuary Walk, hosted by Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site
• The 17th Century Garden in New England, hosted by Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site

Swampscott

• Elihu Thomson's Swampscott Home Tour, hosted by SwampscottHistorical Commission
• Historic Olmsted Subdivision Walking Tour, hosted by SwampscottHistorical Commission
• Tour the Sir John Humphrey House, hosted by the SwampscottHistorical Society

Visit TrailsAndSails.org to see the complete listing of events and design a personalized itinerary. All Trails & Sails events are free and most are available on a first-come, first-serve basis with the exception of a few reservations-required events. A limited number of free hard-copy guides will be available after Labor Day (September 4, 2017) at the 13 Essex National Heritage Area Visitor Centers as well as a number of Eastern Bank branches.

Image via Shutterstock