King William's War (war in the America colonies against the French) ended with many people having to be relocated so there were many strangers moving into town. Three Salem Women: The Stories of Alice Parker, Ann Pudeator and Bridget Bishop, Salem Witch Trials Weekly, produced by the Salem Witch Museum, Bewitchment in Salem, produced by the Salem Witch Museum in conjunction with SATV, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siegeby Marilynne K. Roach (Jul 22, 2004), Cry Innocent: The People vs. Bridget Bishop, The Salem Witch Trials: Reckoning and Reclaiming at the Peabody Essex Museum. A child pointed to a dog and said it bewitched me and shot the dog immediately. In mid-September, Corey was tortured this way for three days in a field near Howard Street until he finally died on September 19. what was the ratio of men to women. There the accused were questioned by a judge in front of a jury, which decided whether or not to indict the accused on charges of witchcraft. By entering your details, you are agreeing to our terms and conditions and privacy policy. A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials. Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian Institute, 23 Oct. 2007, www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/. All of the accused were finally pardoned in 1711. Tried and found guilty within the course of a single day, Bishop was hanged a week later on 10 June, the first execution of the trials. It's also important to remember that there is no evidence, other than spectral evidence and coerced confessions, that any of the accused actually did practice witchcraft. I find the Salem Witch trails to be the most interesting event in the colonization of whats now US. Presided over by William Stoughton . It went all the way back to the Salem Witch trials. The accused was thrown into a river and if they made it out alive, it was because they were a witch. 14 (in the history 201 course-pack compiled by S. McSheffrey & T. McCormick), Trans. By the way, thank you so much for this wonderful website; its really thorough and cool. Thank for the site it is so helpful for my project! Id really like to see period sources for your assertion here. Massachusetts Archives, Vol. Shortly after, two of the girls named the women they believed were bewitching them. Are there any other theories as to what may have caused the girls strange behavior? More than 200 people were a.. Read the article free on Booksie. Church was all powerful in those days. Wow. When Salem Villages new pastor,Reverend Samuel Parris, came to town, he denounced the secular behavior of the innkeepers and blacksmiths and others. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Bridget Bishop was the first person brought to trial. Other victims include two dogs who were shot or killed after being suspected of witchcraft. Here's what we know about the original witch hunt: 1. The bibliography at the bottom of this article list a number of secondary sources. thank u. The trials are believed to have been the reason why the US constitution recognizes witchcraft as a legal religion. Planting, cultivating, the care of houses, barns, roads, fences, were all forgotten. Corey was accused of witchcraft in April during his wifes examination. That darn Satan fooled them good. Bridget was accused by five of the afflicted girls, Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam Jr., Mercy Lewis, Mary Walcott and Elizabeth Hubbard, who stated she had physically hurt them and tried to make them sign a pact with the devil. The clergy later held a meeting, on August 1, to discuss the trials but were not able to help Proctor before his execution. this helped me sooo much. I was wondering if there was a written document or agreement signed that ended the trials. Another five were executed exactly a month later on 19 August, four of whom were men. Ergot is a fungus found in bread, and has the same effect as hallucinogenic drugs. Just pay for a month and go nuts adding records to a tree. As in complaints upon witchcrafts, there may be matters of inquiry which do not amount unto matters of presumption, and there may be matters of presumption which yet may not be matters of conviction, so it is necessary, that all proceedings thereabout be managed with an exceeding tenderness towards those that may be complained of, especially if they have been persons formerly of an unblemished reputation. We know not whether some remarkable affronts given to the Devils by our disbelieving those testimonies whose whole force and strength is from them alone, may not put a period unto the progress of the dreadful calamity begun upon us, in the accusations of so many persons, whereof some, we hope, are yet clear from the great transgression laid unto their charge. The political instability and threat to their religion created a feeling of uneasiness and discontent in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Most of the accusers were Puritans who lived on the farms. All rights reserved. As sleet and snow heaped higher outside their door, Betty Parris and. Other diagnoses have focused more on the mental wellbeing of the Salem girls. In June of 1692, the special Court of Oyer (to hear) and Terminer (to decide) sat in Salem to hear the cases of witchcraft. Europe's favorite test was the swimming test. An Account of the Life, Character, & C., of the Rev. They hanged the poor souls instead. According to USLegal.com, Spectral evidence refers to a witness testimony that the accused person's spirit or spectral shape appeared to him/her witness in a dream at the time the accused person's physical body was at another location. The afflicted state of our poor neighbours, that are now suffering by molestations from the invisible world, we apprehend so deplorable, that we think their condition calls for the utmost help of all persons in their several capacities. There is actually a compilation of all of the primary sources on the Salem Witch Trials. The eight-point response, penned by Cotton Mather, advised prudence when it came to procedure, cautioning that hastiness shouldnt overwhelm lawfulness. Legal Legacy of the Salem Witch Trials. I guarantee Im not related to any putnum. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/facts-about-the-salem-trials-2562897. These sources include official court records as well as several books, diaries and letters written by the various people involved in the trials. Thanks so much for this! Native Americans and other religions represented threats by the Devil. Arrest warrants were issued for George Jacobs Jr. and Daniel Andrews but they evaded arrest. it was extremely helpful thank you so much! I know that the accusers, at least some of them were aligned with the Putnam family who was known to have land disputes with several of the villagers. Bishop had been accused of witchcraft years before but was cleared of the crime. Learn Religions, Sep. 9, 2021, learnreligions.com/facts-about-the-salem-trials-2562897. 135, no. Awesome Article. As sleet and snow heaped higher outside their door, Betty Parris and her cousin Abigail began to twitch and twist their bodies into strange shapes, speaking in words that made no sense. The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. Some (incredibly mean) people devoted their time to making a science out of witchcraft. The indictments then came thick and fast. One freezing day in January of 1692, something strange happened inside the Parris household of Salem Village, Massachusetts. A secondary source would be a book, journal or article written long after the event by someone who didnt experience it first hand. There are many theories that explain why the witch trials began in Medieval Europe. Im going to put a note at the bottom of the article that says when it was last updated to make it easier for anyone doing reports and assignments. Theres always a lot of discussion in the Pagan community about theso-called Burning Times, which is the term used to describe the witch hunts of early modern Europe. The exact cause of the Salem Witch Trials is unknown but they were probably a number of causes. This really helped me on my essay, thank you so much. It all began in 1692 and 1693 when Salem in the United States . Only the intervention of Cotton Mather whonappeased the crowd with the observation that the devil had often been transformed into the Angel of Light ensured that the hangings continued as scheduled. Those who were found guilty were pardoned by Governor Phips. His death was gruesome and cruel and strengthened the growing opposition to the Salem Witch Trials. The other two accused and arrested at the same time were Sarah Osborne and Tituba, the Parriss black slave. In Germany alone, thousands of women died horrible deaths. Since some families of the victims did not want their family member listed, not every victim was named. 9 Men Also Died During The Trials During the trial, Tituba confessed to having seen the devil and also stated that there was a coven, or group, of witches in the Salem Village area. 2, no. Explore 17th-century Salem in the museum's 13 stage sets that bring the witch trials to life. Gareth Stevens Publishing, 2005Upham, Charles Wentworth. If people were to run away from it, theyll only be hunted down and thats worst then sitting in court. When she is not traveling, you will find her reading, drinking coffee and chatting away with her many international friends. In Salem for example, the first significant victim of the witch trials was Tituba, a slave from the Caribbean. Im just going to use Smithsonian, ARe you the editor/author of this site @Rebecca Beatrice Brooks, Hi Gigi, yes Im the editor/author of this site, thanks so much I needed that for my homework, Where can I get a copy of the Salem 1692 map that you posted? In 1711, the colony passed a bill restoring some of the names of the convicted witches and paid a total of 600 in restitution to their heirs. I need a bibliography for my class report. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were killed during the hysteria. HI there! As if the lonely and misunderstood didn't have a hard enough life on its own, they seemed the most suspicious to the crowds. They were a means of crowd control that gave way to changes in power structures. People wanted to protect themselves, so they ratted out their own friends, neighbors or anyone they didn't like. Preston, VK. No one cared about minorities or "loners" anyway. . In April, more women were accused, as well as a number of men:Sarah CloyceElizabeth ProctorJohn ProctorGiles CoreyAbigail HobbsDeliverance HobbsWilliam HobbsMary WarrenBridget BishopSarah WildesNehemiah Abbott Jr.Mary EastyEdward BishopSarah BishopMary EnglishPhillip EnglishReverend George BurroughsLydia DustinSusannah MartinDorcas HoarSarah Morey. During that time, 19 people were hanged and one person was pressed to death. Yet another crucial moment during the Salem Witch Trials was the public torture and death of Giles Corey. This court consisted of eight judges. The Salem Witch Trials Victims: Who Were They? Hi RebeccaI saw that you have a lot of knowledge about Mary EastyI was told this year at a funeral that I am a direct decendent of hersI live in Salem and My Grandfather was name William Esteydo you by any chance have any history of the family tree? Its good to see that the court system has progressed. One of the most popular theories as to what could have caused the mass hysteria of Salem is that of ergot poisoning, but recent scholars have questioned this idea. "Reproducing Witchcraft: Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live". Massachusetts Archives Collection, vol. An illustration shows a quiet street in the center of Salem, Massachusetts. Acts and Resolves, Public and Private, of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, vol. I am no more a witch than you are a wizard. Rebecca Beatrice Brooks is the author and publisher of the History of Massachusetts Blog. 1. Around the end of September, the use of spectral evidence was finally declared inadmissible, thus marking the beginning of the end of the Salem Witch Trials. In an insular society like Salem, where anyone straying from the norm was immediately criticised or condemned, accusations of witchcraft were a method of self-defence, of keeping the more undesirable elements of the local community at arms length, if not removing them completely. The following are some facts about the Salem Witch Trials: Europe, on the other hand, was super into dramatic flames. Among those detained in March 1692 were Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse, upstanding members of the local churches in Salem Village and Salem Town respectively. Salem Village began that slow decay which eventually erased its houses and walls, but never its name and memory.. It's unlikely that anyone in Salem was actually practicing witchcraftmost of the community consisted of devout and pious Christians. hope you in joy it was really helpful to my students and i, Thankyou this helpedme a lot for my 3 page essay in english 11 class. Secondary sources would be Charles Uphams book Salem Witchcraft which was published in 1867, Emerson Bakers book A Storm of Witchcraft which was published in 2014 and etc. this helped a lot on my social studies project. In the 300 years since the Salem Witch Trials, experts have gone to great lengths to offer explanations for the young Salem girls afflictions of a somewhat more rational nature than the witchcraft diagnosed at the time. In November of 1991, Salem town officials announced plans for a Salem Witch Trials Memorial in Salem. Salem Village was populated mostly by poor farmers, and Salem Town was a prosperous port full of middle-class and wealthy merchants. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the hanging deaths of 19 men and women. Anja Grar is a writer, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. 1982)]. Lines going back to Salem and Colonial New England in general are usually well documented. Im doing the Salem witch trials for my A-Level coursework, does anyone know the full names of any historians that have spoken about this topic? But the particular brand of paranoia that was rife in Salem Village fed by a rivalry with neighbouring Salem Town, ongoing family feuds and attacks by Native Americans developed into mass hysteria. Is there any credence to this theory? These unsettling facts will shed light. A newer, more anti-religious charter replaced the original one in 1691 and also combined the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth Colony and several other colonies into one. Warrants were issued by the dozen, sometimes for the arrest of the most unlikely suspects. The others were either found guilty but pardoned, found not guilty, were never indicted or simply evaded arrest or escaped from jail. How could so many people believe the afflicted girls without no real evidence. Of course, remembering the events of 1692 can still act as a brake when contemporary events take a sinister downturn. The Salem witch trials of the late 17th century were a formative episode in America's early history, and have remained at the forefront of the national consciousness ever since. Two days before the court convened, a Puritan minister from Boston named Cotton Mather wrote to one of the judges expressing his concern over the admissibility of such evidence. First, there are a number of ergot poisoning symptoms which were not reported by those who claimed to be afflicted by witchcraft. I think it is easy to underestimate the importance of James IIs creation of the Dominion of New England. Between 1647 and 1688, 12 women had been sentenced to death for making covenants with the devil. The Salem witch trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts between early 1692 and mid-1693. Or maybe it was the 1711 bill that cleared the names of the accused witches. Please be respectful of copyright. 143159, This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 02:44. While the Salem of today is a thriving metropolitan area, in 1692 it was a remote settlement on the edge of the frontier. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. This, coupled with the fact that the accused also had their estates confiscated if they were convicted has led many historians to believe that religious feuds and property disputes played a big part in the witch trials. Ever since those dark days ended, the trials have become synonymous with mass hysteria and scapegoating. ", What does that mean, in laymans terms? Giles Corey, the husband of Martha Corey, refused to enter a plea and was subjected to a particularly gruesome form of torture where the accused is crushed under heavy stones until they either respond or die a tactic known as peine forte et dure, (until he either answered or died). Did the Putnams purchase any of the land from those who were accused and killed? This belief in the power of the accused to use their invisible shapes or spectres to torture their victims had sealed the fates of those tried by the Court of Oyer and Terminer. Heinrich Kramer wrote a whole book on why witches should be all exterminated and how to do that. It has so many details that I need. Historians and sociologists have examined this most complex episode in our history so that we may understand the issues of that era and view subsequent events with heightened awareness. She was released from jail shortly after the hangings began, and was never tried or convicted. Massachusetts Only Apologized in 1957 Salem Witch Trials have haunted Salem, now known as Danvers and the entire state of Massachusetts for centuries. Find out what started the witch hunt of 1692. The Salem Witch Trials offered a salutary lesson not only to the colony of Massachusetts Bay but also to the new nation that would be forged in the following century. We cannot but, with all thankfulness, acknowledge the success which the merciful God has given unto the sedulous and assiduous endeavours of our honourable rulers, to detect the abominable witchcrafts which have been committed in the country, humbly praying, that the discovery of those mysterious and mischievous wickednesses may be perfected. If you are looking for more info on the victims themselves, you can check out the article I wrote specifically about them titled The Salem Witch Trials Victims: Who Were They? I need to make a bibliography for my English report.