When I was first told that we were going on a tour of the House of the Seven Gables in Salem, MA my first thought was “big whoop.” My feelings soon changed after laying my eyes on the structure. The house was built in the 1600’s, which is super cool since America wasn’t even a country when this place was first inhabited. The garden on the premises of the house is also very beautiful, it’s subtle and old in style which adds to the charm. It’s also the inspiration for the novel The House of the Seven Gables, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The house is situated right next to the Salem Harbor, making it easy to imagine yourself back in time watching the ships roll in with goods from around the world while sitting on your back porch. One of the reasons I was so impressed by this house is because out here in Oklahoma we don’t get structures this old. As a result, it can be more difficult to connect with and visualize America’s early history. Being able to walk through a house from before our nations birth made me feel very patriotic and proud to be from America. While there are more extravagant buildings from that time, this one just feels comfortable and more of an accurate depiction of life in Colonial America. 

Photo from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:House_of_the_Seven_Gables_(front_angle)_-_Salem,_Massachusetts.jpg