Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials Alice Parker was a woman accused of witchcraft during the infamous Salem Witch Trials in 1692. The Trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. Alice Parker was one of over 200 people accused during this time. Little is known about Alice Parker's life before the trials, but she was likely a resident of Salem Village, which is now known as Danvers, Massachusetts. The Trials started when a group of young girls in Salem Village began exhibiting strange behavior, including fits, screaming, and contortions. The girls claimed that they were being bewitched, and this led to a mass hysteria that resulted in the arrest and execution of many innocent people.

The Witchcraft Trial of Alice Parker

Alice Parker was a woman from Salem who was accused of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials.

Parker was married to a fisherman named John Parker at the time of the Salem Witch Trials. The couple lived in a rented house, owned by Mary English, on English street in Salem town.

Some sources believe that Alice Parker may have been the daughter or stepdaughter of Giles Corey, because Corey had a daughter who was married to a man named John Parker, according to Elizabeth Reis in her book Spellbound: Women and Witchcraft in America:

“The Alice Parker who was executed in 1692 may or may not have been Giles Corey’s daughter. Both a Mary Parker of Andover and an Alice Parker, wife of John Parker, of Salem, were hanged as witches that year. Giles (and his former wife Mary) had a daughter who was married to John Parker of Salem, but her name was usually given as Mary. Names like Mary and Alice were sometimes used interchangeably in early New England, and I suspect that the Alice Parker who was executed was in fact Giles Corey’s daughter” (Reis 22).

Yet, Historian Marilynne K. Roach states in her book, Six Women of Salem, that Corey’s son-in-law was a different John Parker who worked as a farmer, not a fisherman.

The girls claimed that they were being bewitched, and this led to a mass hysteria that resulted in the arrest and execution of many innocent people. On September 16, 1692, Alice Parker was arrested and charged with witchcraft. The evidence against her was based on the testimonies of the afflicted girls, who claimed that she had tormented them with her witchcraft.

Alice Parker & the Salem Witch Trials:

Alice Parker was accused of witchcraft by Mary Warren during Warren’s examination on May 12, 1692.

During the examination, Warren stated that Alice Parker and Ann Pudeator were both witches and had actively hurt people, according to the court records:

“Goody Parker told me she had been a witch these 12 years & more; & Pudeator told me that she had done damage, & told me that she had hurt James Coyes child taking it out of the mothers hand” (SWP No. 135.4).

Warren said that Parker also brought her a poppet of Mercy Lewis and taught her how to afflict Lewis with it and that her specter appeared to her in jail and told her she was coming there soon.

As a result of Warren’s accusations, Parker and Pudeator were arrested that same day and examined in court.

At the examination, Parker pled not guilty to all of the accusations and charges and denied even knowing Warren, according to the court records:

“Q: Mary Warren charges you with several acts of witchcraft, what say you to it guilty or not?

A: I am not guilty.

Q: You told her this day you cast away Thomas Westgate.

A: I know nothing of it.

Q: You told her John Lapthorn was lost in [illegible]

A: I never spoke a word to her in my life.

Q: You told her also you bewitched her sister, because her father would not mow your grass.

A: I never saw her.”

(SWP No. 97.1)

When Mary Warren asked the judges if she could strike Alice Parker, which they permitted, Warren approached Parker she fell backwards into a fit.

Margaret Jacobs also testified at the examination and stated that she saw Parker’s specter in the north field last Friday night.

Marshal Herrick testified that when he arrested Parker, she told him that there were “threescore witches of the company.” Another person, John Louder, had overheard this exchange and confirmed it for the court. Parker didn’t deny making this statement but stated that she couldn’t remember how many she said there were.

Mary Warren testified that her father had once promised Alice Parker that he would mow her grass for her (meaning harvest her crop of hay) but failed to do so, after which Parker came to her house and demanded that he do it. After this exchange, Mary’s mother and sister became ill and her mother later died.

Warren then stated that Parker had also brought her a poppet and instructed her to stick it with a needle and also stated that Parker told her she attended a bloody sacrament in Reverend Samuel Parris’s pasture with 30 other witches.

Another noteworthy piece of testimony came from Reverend Noyes who suggested that Parker might be a heretic, according to Charles W. Upham in his book Salem Witchcraft:

“There is one item in reference to Alice Parker, which indicates that the zeal of the prosecutors in her case, as in that of Mr. Burroughs, and perhaps others, was aggravated by a suspicion that she was heretical on some points of the prevalent creed of the day. Parris says that ‘Mr. Noyes, at the time of her examination, affirmed to her face, that, he being with her at a time of sickness, discoursing with her about witchcraft, whether she were not guilty, she answered, ‘if she was as free from other sins as from witchcraft, she would not ask of the Lord mercy.’ The manner of expression in this passage shows that it was thought that there was something very shocking in her answer. Mr. Noyes ‘affirmed to her face.’ No doubt it was thought that she denied the doctrine of original and transmitted, or imputed sin” (Upham 185).

At this point of the examination, Warren’s seizures became so severe that her tongue stretched out of her mouth and turned black, to which Parker stated that the girl’s tongue would become blacker before she died.

After the examination was over, Alice Parker was indicted on two charges of witchcraft for afflicting Mary Walcott and Mary Warren and brought back to the Salem jail.

On May 13, Alice Parker was transferred to the Boston jail, along with Ann Pudeator, Mary English, Nathaniel Putnam’s slave Mary, Sarah Wildes, Bridget Bishop, Sarah Bishop, Edward Bishop, William Hobbs, Giles Corey and George Jacobs Sr.

For reasons that are unclear, Parker was examined for a second time on September 6, 1692. Historian Marilynne K. Roach suggests, in her book Six Women of Salem, that a possible reason for this is that Parker may have been released from jail and then arrested again, much like Ann Pudeator and Mary Easty had been.

The record of the second examination has been lost but the testimony of the afflicted girls and others from the following day still exists.

Numerous people testified against Alice Parker on September 7, including Martha Dutch, Thomas Putnam, William Murray, John Westgate, John Bullock as well as the afflicted girls Sarah Bibber, Mary Walcott, Elizabeth Hubbard, Ann Putnam Jr, Mary Warren and Abigail Hobbs.

Martha Dutch testified that during a conversation with Parker two years ago Parker told Dutch that her husband, who was a mariner, would not return home from sea, according to the court records:

“This deponent did say unto the said Parker that I did hope he would come home this voyage well also & the said Parker made answer unto me & said no no never more in this world the which came to pass as she then told me for he died abroad as I certainly hear” (SWP No. 97.4).

A man named John Westgate testified that eight years ago he was drinking with John Parker at Beadle’s Tavern when Alice Parker stormed in and chided her husband for being there. When Westgate criticized her for her behavior, she called Westgate a rogue and told him to mind his own business.

Westgate said that shortly after the incident, he was walking home when he suddenly saw a black hog running towards him which startled him so much he fell down and his knife stabbed him in the hip. Westgate said he crawled all the way home, with the black hog following him the whole way, and when he got home he saw that his knife had shattered and his stocking and shoe was full of blood, all of which made him determined that the hog was “either the Devil or some evil thing not a real hog, and did then really judge or determine in my mind that it was either Goody Parker or by her means, and procuring that she is a witch” (SWP No. 97.7).

John Bullock testified that in the middle of January last year he found Alice Parker unconscious and laying in the snow and after some neighbors carried her home she suddenly woke up and laughed in their faces.

Martha Dutch confirmed Bullock’s story by saying she had seen Parker in that condition several times, which suggests that Parker may have suffered from some sort of chronic medical condition.

The afflicted girls testified that Alice Parker attacked Mary Warren, Ann Putnam Jr and Mary Walcott last night in the courtroom during her examination by choking and squeezing them and by grabbing Mary Warren around the waist.

Mary Warren also testified that Alice Parker tried to get her to sign the Devil’s book, brought her a poppet and threatened to stab her if she didn’t stick the poppet with a needle.

Warren also accused Parker of drowning several people at sea, including Thomas Westgate and his crew, as well as the son of Goody Ornes and a man named Michael Chapman, who drowned in Boston harbor. Warren said Parker also caused the death of John Searles’s son and her mother and caused her sister to go deaf.

Thomas Putnam and William Murray also testified that they had witnessed Mary Walcott and Mary Warren and others being afflicted during Parker’s examination last night and observed that upon several glances from Parker the girls were stuck down and that after Parker laid her hand upon them, during a “touch test,” they recovered, thus convincing them “that Alice Parker the prisoner at the bar has often hurt the said persons by acts of witchcraft” (SWP No. 97.6).

According to Roach, from looking at the original court documents, after all of the testimony was heard it appears that the court clerk crossed out the original May 12 date on Alice Parker’s two indictments and changed the date to September 6 instead:

“When the grand jury indicted Alice Parker on September 7 for tormenting Mary Walcott and Mary Warren, the latest spectral attacks counted for more than the similar assaults in May, so the clerk adjusted the date on the documents from May 12 to September 6.”

On September 9, 1692, the court of Oyer and Terminer met again, at the Salem courthouse on what is now Washington Street, and heard Alice Parker’s case as well as many others.

After hearing all of the testimony for Parker’s case, the jury found Alice Parker guilty of witchcraft and sentenced her to death.

Like many accused during the Trials, Alice Parker vehemently denied the charges against her. During her trial, Alice Parker maintained her innocence, but she was convicted of witchcraft and sentenced to death. She was hanged on September 22, 1692, along with several others accused of witchcraft. The trials finally came to an end in the following months, as the hysteria began to subside and skepticism grew about the legitimacy of the accusations. The Salem Witch Trials remain a dark period in American history, marked by the unjust persecution of innocent people. Alice Parker and others like her were victims of fear, paranoia, and mass hysteria. They were caught up in a wave of accusations and condemned without a fair trial. In the years following the Trials, there was a growing recognition of the injustice that had occurred. Efforts were made to make amends for the wrongful convictions, and in 1711, a bill was passed that restored the rights and good names of those accused. However, it was too late for Alice Parker and the others who had already lost their lives. The story of Alice Parker serves as a reminder of the dangers of mass hysteria and the importance of due process. It is a somber chapter in American history that should never be forgotten or repeated. The memory of the innocent lives lost during the Salem Witch Trials should serve as a lesson for future generations to uphold justice and protect the innocent..

Reviews for "The Role of Gender in Alice Parker's Accusation during the Salem Witch Trials"

1. John M. - 1 star

I was extremely disappointed with "Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials". The story felt incredibly repetitive and lacked any real depth. The characters were one-dimensional and I couldn't connect with any of them. The writing style was also very dry and monotonous, making it a struggle to read through till the end. Overall, I found this book to be a tedious and uninspiring take on the Salem Witch Trials.

2. Sarah D. - 2 stars

While "Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials" had an interesting premise, I felt let down by the execution. The plot was slow-paced and predictable, leaving little room for suspense or surprises. The characters lacked development and their motivations were difficult to understand. Additionally, the writing style felt disjointed and confusing at times. Overall, I found this book to be underwhelming and couldn't fully immerse myself in the story.

3. Alex P. - 2 stars

I had high hopes for "Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials" but was left disappointed. The pacing was incredibly slow, and it felt like the plot was dragged out unnecessarily. The characters lacked depth and their interactions felt forced. The historical aspect of the Salem Witch Trials was underutilized, and I was hoping for a more engaging exploration of the time period. Unfortunately, this book failed to deliver on its promising premise.

4. Emily B. - 1 star

I didn't enjoy "Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials" at all. The writing was amateurish and filled with grammatical errors, which made it difficult to read. The characters were poorly developed, and their dialogue felt stilted and unrealistic. The historical accuracy was also questionable, and it was frustrating to see important details overlooked. Overall, I found this book to be a disappointing and poorly executed attempt at capturing the intrigue of the Salem Witch Trials.

5. Michael G. - 2 stars

I had high expectations for "Alice Parker Salem Witch Trials" but found it to be a lackluster read. The story lacked depth and failed to provide any fresh insights into the Salem Witch Trials. The characters were forgettable and their actions felt contrived. Additionally, the writing style was bland and failed to draw me in. Overall, I was disappointed by the overall execution of this book and would not recommend it to others.

Alice Parker and the Salem Witch Hysteria: Examining the Evidence and Seeking Justice