The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the beaches of Gloucester, Ipswich and Revere.

Danvers is a local center of commerce, hosting many car dealerships and the Liberty Tree Mall.

In the historic period, the Massachusett, a tribe of the Pequot language family, dominated the area.

Around 1630, English colonists improved an existing Naumkeag trail as the Old Spanish Road, creating a connection to the main cities of Salem and Boston.

The historical event for which Danvers is best-known is the Salem witch trials of 1692, which began in the home of Rev.

Resident Rebecca Nurse was convicted in a trial for witchcraft and executed, along with 19 other innocent victims.

Noteworthy Revolutionary figures who stayed in Danvers include Royal Governor General Thomas Gage and Benedict Arnold.

Danvers was the birthplace of Israel Putnam, one of the most colorful figures of the colonial period and American Revolution.

He went into the den's narrow passage with a torch in one hand, a musket in the other, and a rope tied to his feet leading to his friends outside so they could pull him out if things went wrong.

[8] When the first shots of the American Revolution were fired at the Battle of Lexington and Concord, word reached Putnam on his farm.

Without bothering to change his clothes, he mounted his horse and rode the 25 miles to the scene in 18 hours.

[9] He was known for his courage, and demonstrated it at the Battle of Bunker Hill, where he is credited with giving the command "Don't fire until you can see the whites of their eyes.

Movies filmed in Danvers, Massachusetts include: On November 22, 2006, around 2:46 a.m., a major chemical explosion occurred at a facility housing Arnel Company (a manufacturer of industrial-use paint products) and CAI Inc. (a manufacturer of solvents and inks).

The blast shook several North Shore towns, knocking homes off foundations and damaging buildings up to half a mile away.

Glass windows shattered at least 3 miles (5 km) away, in neighboring Peabody and even in downtown Salem.

Residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed in the blast were taken to Danvers High School, where the Red Cross established a relief shelter.

A May 13, 2008, report from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board attributed the explosion to unintentional overnight heating of an ink-mixing tank containing flammable solvents.

Danvers has numerous villages dating back to the late 1800s, when the town had a bustling railroad.

These include Burley's Corner, Danvers Center, Danversport, Downtown, Ferncroft, Hathorne (which still has its own post office and ZIP code of 01937), Putnamville and Tapleyville.

It is bordered by Topsfield to the north, Wenham to the northeast, Beverly to the east, a small portion of Salem to the southeast, Peabody to the south and southwest, and Middleton to the northwest.

[17] The nearest regularly scheduled commercial flights are located at Boston's Logan International Airport.

According to the town's 2018 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[30] the top ten employers in the town are: Danvers has seen major growth in the food truck revolution: and this has led to some of the food truck[31] owners moving toward more permanent cafes.

On April 2, 1990, the natural gas lines serving homes were accidentally over-pressurized by a Boston Gas worker, resulting in fires and explosions along Lafayette St., Maple St., Venice St. and Beaver Park Av.

Plumfield Academy is a small school for grades one through eight, with a philosophy of education based on that of Charlotte Mason.

St. Mary's is part of the Archdiocese of Boston and Saint John's or commonly known as "the Prep" is a Xaverian Brothers-sponsored school.