Salem Witch Trials Kasaysayan Misteryo at Pag-aaral sa Paranormal

With October just around the corner, Halloween and Salem Massachusetts often comes to mind. The city of Salem Massachusetts has a global perception for being a town of Halloween and witch related festivities. Part of this perception is tied to the Salem Haunted Happenings celebration that takes place here in Salem Massachusetts every October. This year will be the 40th anniversary of the fun and festive celebration. These celebrations are full of joy and togetherness, but it is also important to understand the history that comes along with the discussion of the Witch Trials and the October season. Take a moment to read the brief history below to deepen your understanding of Salem Massachusetts and what happened here in 1692.

In January of 1692, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris of Salem Village became ill. William Griggs, the village doctor, was called in when they failed to improve. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the hanging deaths of 19 men and women. In addition one man was pressed to death; several others died in prison, and the lives of many were irrevocably changed.

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To understand the events of the Salem Witch Trials, it is necessary to examine the times in which accusations of witchcraft occurred. There were the ordinary stresses of 17th-century life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. A strong belief in the devil, factions among Salem Village families and rivalry with nearby Salem Town combined with a recent smallpox epidemic and the threat of attack by warring tribes created a fertile ground for fear and suspicion. Soon, prisons were filled with more than 150 men and women from towns surrounding Salem; their names had been “cried out” by tormented young girls as the cause of their pain. All would await trial for a crime punishable by death in 17th-century New England – the practice of witchcraft.

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In June of 1692, the special Court of Oyer (to hear) and Terminer (to decide) sat in Salem to hear the cases of witchcraft. Presided over by Chief Justice William Stoughton, the court was made up of magistrates and jurors. The first to be tried was Bridget Bishop of Salem who was found guilty and was hanged on June 10. Thirteen women and five men from all stations of life followed her to the gallows on three successive hanging days before the court was disbanded by Governor William Phipps in October of that year. The Superior Court of Judicature, formed to replace the “witchcraft” court, did not allow spectral evidence. 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. The new court released those awaiting trial and pardoned those awaiting execution. In effect, the Salem Witch Trials were over.

As years passed, apologies were offered and restitution was made to the victims’ families. 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. The parallels between the Salem Witch Trials and more modern examples of “witch hunting” like the McCarthy hearings of the 1950’s, are remarkable.

Salem Massachusetts to this day is still filled with a plethora of resources surrounding the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Guests and residents alike can engage with local organizations that have put time and hard work into compiling resources surrounding the events that took place. The Salem Witch Museum has a wonderful timeline inside of their museum that lists out the history of what it means to be a witch, from its origins to current time. For visual learners, History Alive offers their Cry Innocent show which puts the audience in the seat of the jury during the trial of Bridget Bishop in 1692. The Peabody Essex Museum is another wonderful institution here in Salem Massachusetts that houses primary documents from the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. There are many more businesses and organizations around town that give background on the Salem Witch Trials that can be found listed on our Museums & Attractions tab here on our Haunted Happenings site. We hope that this knowledge helps you to engage with our historic city in a meaningful way connecting you to our past, and allowing you to better understand and appreciate the current day Salem Massachusetts. One freezing day in January of 1692, something strange happened inside the Parris household of Salem Village, Massachusetts. 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. Betty’s alarmed father, the Reverend Parris, immediately called on a doctor to examine the girls. The doctor’s diagnosis? The pair had been bewitched.

The Salem Witch Trials 1692

At the time, Salem Village was a small New England town populated mostly by Puritans, or religious individuals with a belief in the devil. The Puritan way of life was strict, and even small differences in behavior made people suspicious. Upon hearing about the Parris girls’ behavior, much of the Puritan community agreed that the duo had been victims of witchcraft.

When asked who had done this to them, Betty and Abigail blamed three townswomen, including Tituba, a Native American slave who worked in the Parris household. Tituba was known to have played fortune-telling games, which were strictly forbidden by the Puritans. The other two accused women, Sarah Good and Sarah Osbourne, weren’t well liked by the community either.

The three women were thrown in jail to await trial for practicing witchcraft. 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. Good and Osbourne insisted they were innocent. The court didn’t believe them, and found all three women guilty of practicing witchcraft. The punishment was hanging.

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As the weeks passed, other young girls claimed to have been infected by witchcraft too. They accused other townspeople of torturing them, and a few of the so-called witches on trial even named others as witches.

Women were not the only ones believed to be witches—men and children were accused too. By the end of the trials in 1693, 24 people had died, some in jail but most by hanging.

George Burroughs, a minister, was one of the few men accused of witchcraft during the trials. This illustration shows him speaking at Witches Hill, the site of his execution.

The Salem Witch Trials

Eventually, after seeming to realize how unfair the trials were to the accused, the court refused to hear any more charges of witchcraft. All of the accused were finally pardoned in 1711.

No one’s really sure why the witch craze spread the way it did, but it brought lasting changes to the United States legal system and the way evidence and witnesses were treated. The Salem Village hangings were the last executions of accused witches in the United States.

Women's History Month Every March, people in the United States celebrate the achievements and history of women as part of Women’s History Month.

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As the weeks passed, other young girls claimed to have been infected by witchcraft too. They accused other townspeople of torturing them, and a few of the so-called witches on trial even named others as witches.

Women were not the only ones believed to be witches—men and children were accused too. By the end of the trials in 1693, 24 people had died, some in jail but most by hanging.

George Burroughs, a minister, was one of the few men accused of witchcraft during the trials. This illustration shows him speaking at Witches Hill, the site of his execution.

The Salem Witch Trials

Eventually, after seeming to realize how unfair the trials were to the accused, the court refused to hear any more charges of witchcraft. All of the accused were finally pardoned in 1711.

No one’s really sure why the witch craze spread the way it did, but it brought lasting changes to the United States legal system and the way evidence and witnesses were treated. The Salem Village hangings were the last executions of accused witches in the United States.

Women's History Month Every March, people in the United States celebrate the achievements and history of women as part of Women’s History Month.

Reading List Ni Mygzzenidog19