This Twitter account was started to advocate for the return of @peabodyessex museum's world-renowned @PEMlibrary (aka the Phillips Library) to #SalemMA. The previous museum director limited access for years, claiming it was being renovated, improved #keephistoryinsalem

Until one day, previous @peabodyessex director Monroe was forced to admit he was moving entire @PEMLibrary collection & reading room to warehouse in #RowleyMA. Yes, better climate control & space matter to #archives but access & scholarship matter too.

#RowleyMA is nice but it's 45 minutes away from #SalemMA by car. @MBTA train stops 3 miles from @peabodyessex @PEMLibrary. Public #transportation is not an option for @SalemState students writing theses, traveling researchers w/o rental cars.

. @peabodyessex @PEMLibrary went from #SalemMA charm to a warehouse in #RowleyMA. While the #archives collection covers everything from art to zoology, at heart, it's the history of Salem & Essex county, of #mariners #authors #scientists #activists reacting to world around them

Treasures of @peabodyessex @PEMLibrary, collected since 1799 through multiple organizations that became #PEM in 1992, are finally available in #RowleyMA . But what we lost in #SalemMA was #community #identity #history & connection. It's no longer the people's #archives

#SalemMA—home to ship captains, McIntire #architecture, #author #Hawthorne, #Peabody sisters' #kindergarten, Remond #abolitionists, 1692 #witch #trials, Parker Bros.' #Monopoly games, Gibralters candy, @SalemState University—is a #tourist hotspot

#SalemMA draws people from all over the world for its #maritime #history, @peabodyessex #art, #witchcraft #history, street art & cool vibes. But #researchers & #tourists lack easy access to @PEMLibrary #archives to put the city in context w/Lyceum-like events

. @CityofSalemMA is too dependent on @DestSalem #HauntedHappenings. #SalemMA could be a year-round destination if @peabodyessex @PEMLibrary returned home & city supported the many diverse, unique interests that created the Phillips Library in the 1st place