‘Witches Gone Wild’: Salem’s Macabre History Fuels a Tourism Boom as Town Turns 400

Last weekend, more than 2,700 "witches" gathered in Salem, MA in a world record attempt for the most witch hats worn at once.While the official jury is still out from the Guinness Book of World Records, there was no doubt that throngs of witches showed up for the charity event commemorating the area's 400th anniversary.But while Salem's history is notoriously a bit macabre, the vibe there today is anything but somber. And in spite of an uptick in visitors this time of year, full-time residents say it's the vibrant community that lured them in and keeps them entranced.Massive crowds in spooky attire are nothing new for Salem's residents. In fact, if history repeats, this October there will be around a million more Halloween fun-hunters descending upon "Witch City" (Salem's nicknamed nod to the infamous witch trials of 1692)."Life in Salem is magical and I personally enjoy the influx of crowds during Halloween because I was among them 25 years ago," says Luisa Cornish, who first visited Salem on vacation and immediately knew she wanted to live there someday. "We dropped by Salem because I was a huge 'Bewitched' fan, but the town was so warm and welcoming I didn’t want to leave!"Loadi...