Central Wharf

Central Wharf was built in 1784 and purchased in 1791 by ship owner Simon Forrester, who extended it to 795 feet, making it the fourth longest wharf in Salem, and built a fine brick warehouse on the foundation there. In the late 1700’s and early 1800s, trade goods from around the world were loaded, unloaded, and stored at this busy commercial wharf, where Forrester could look from his home across the street and survey the ships and warehouses that lined it. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, flour, grain, and coal were loaded there, and from 1947 to 1973 the U.S. Navy operated a Reserve Training Center on the site. Today the historic remains of Central Wharf are preserved within Salem Maritime National Historic Site.

Salem, Massachusetts · United States