Every Monday we’ll be featuring a unique item from our Museum Store. Our store manager and buyer, Everett Philbrook is a longtime Gables employee with a passion for picking out the perfect gifts and keepsakes for YOU to take home and remember your time at The House of the Seven Gables.
On Mondays through August, we’ll take you on a tour of our Museum Store, located on the National Historic Landmark District museum campus on Derby Street. The store is located in one of the oldest houses in Salem, the Retire Beckett House. Caroline Emmerton, our organization’s founder, moved the house to the property in 1924 after it was slated for demolition. The c.1655 house is an amazing example of First Period architecture and even if you don’t want to shop (we dare you not to!) you’ll want to just cozy up in this beautiful space.
The Museum Store is managed by Everett Philbrook who not only leads a team of talented retailers but also seeks out the treasures you can buy. While you can grab a magnet and shot glass, you can also find unique gifts such as miniature, hand-painted canvas art, hand-quilled cards, soaps and candles crafted by local makers, history and architecture books, and journals of all sizes.
Our Museum Store also features items that can only be found at The Gables. Get a postcard, magnet, or tee shirt and let your friends and family know that you “climbed the secret staircase.” Though our site is not directly linked to the Salem Witch Trials, you can find a line of apparel related to “Teaching Fine Witches since 1692.” The Staffordshire china collection that highlights the famed mansion has been sold in our Museum Store for over 100 years.
Proceeds from our Museum Store support our dual mission of preservation and education. For every gift that you buy for you or a loved one, you are in turn helping us to preserve the 350-year-old Turner-Ingersoll Mansion and our other buildings and gardens; provide educational opportunities for newly arriving immigrant families; and helping us to continue our work in sharing all of our histories and stories that make us one of the most beloved historic house museums in North America.
Stay tuned to our social media on Mondays and see what’s in store for you…and remember…you don’t need to tour to visit the store!