To the north, Salem ($5 round trip on the Rockport line) lives with the legacy of the Salem Witch trails. The Salem Witch Museum--and a flourishing industry of witch-themed gift shops and tours--commemorate the 1693 trials.

Salem later prospered in the 19th century as its harbor became one of the busiest in the United States. The restored Customs House--former workplace of Salem native Nathaniel Hawthorne--presides over Pickering Wharf, now home to numerous shops and restaurants.

Hawthorne's birthplace and the House of seven Gables, which inspired his novel of that name, sit side by side a few blocks from the Customs House.

Inland to the west of Salem, Lowell ($7 round trip on the Lowell line) was the first American city of the Industrial Revolution, and the now-restored factory buildings house a museum dedicated to the Industrial Age.

In Newport, RI (served by Greyhound), the financiers who profited from the Industrial Revolution built their summer "cottages"--giant stone mansions, most of which are now open to the public.

Shady sloping streets cover college Hill in Providence ($9.50 on the Attleboro/Stoughton line), home of Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design. Thayer Street, a downsized Haight-Ashburry, crowns College Hill.