Derby Wharf (Salem, Massachusetts)

 place with historical importance, wharf

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1762 from here sailed many a ship to the orient. Derby Wharf dates back to pre-Revolutionary War days. The original portion was constructed by the Derby family in 1762 and the wharf was extended to its present length in 1806. Derby Wharf became part of the Salem Maritime National Historic Site after the latter was established in 1938.

While noted as a privateering and East India trade center, Derby Wharf also had some interesting tenants in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. In addition to the sailmakers, coopers, carting services and stores one would expect to find on a wharf, there were also, at the turn of the century, a junkyard, A.C. Pettingell's wholesale fish dealership, and the Boston and Northern Street Railway Company. Pettingell's sold processed fish under eight different names including the ever-popular "Witch City" brand. The railway company used its Derby Wharf facility for streetcar storage and repair. It is here that the Friendship a reconstruction of a 171-foot three-masted sailing vessel can be seen.