The trials of accused witches in Salem in 1784 were a dark chapter in American history. This small town in Massachusetts became the site of mass hysteria, paranoia, and ultimately the execution of 20 people who were accused of practicing witchcraft. The trials began with the accusations made by a group of young girls who claimed to be possessed by the devil. These girls, who were experiencing fits and convulsions, pointed fingers at certain individuals in the community, claiming that they were responsible for their afflictions. Soon, the accusations spread like wildfire, with more and more people being named as witches. The trials quickly turned into a witch hunt, with people being arrested based on little to no evidence.
Generally, spectral evidence was the main reason someone would be accused of witchcraft.
Several families, such as the Putnam s, accused people of witchcraft for all kinds of reasons everything from having an unpaid loan to wanting their neighbour s land. The Devil hath been raised amongst us, Parris exclaimed in his sermon of March 27, as he publicly rebuked Mary Sibley in front of the congregation for her act of magic, after he had privately lectured her in his study.
The trials quickly turned into a witch hunt, with people being arrested based on little to no evidence. The accused witches were subjected to unfair and biased trials. The legal system at the time allowed for spectral evidence, which meant that people could be convicted based solely on the testimony of the afflicted girls.
The History of the Salem Witch Trials
Salem in Massachusetts is famous for the dark history which fell upon the city over 300 years ago when Puritans ruled the land with their strict authoritative rules. The dark tourism that surrounds The Salem Witch Trials has been an intriguing topic of conversation for more than three centuries, due to the intense wave of hysteria they caused throughout the 17 th century.
Out of a time full of despair, hardship, panic and distrust emerge a tale of devastating sadness that will remain part of Massachusetts’ history indefinitely.
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Sites to See in Salem with Salem Witch Trial History
- 1. The Witch House
- 2. The Witch Trials Memorial
- 3. The Old Bury Point Cemetery
- 4. Broad Street Cemetery
- 5. John Hathorne's Home
- 6. George Corwin House (The Merchant)
- 7. Proctor’s Ledge & Gallows Hill
- 8. The Turner-Ingersoll Mansion (The House of the Seven Gables)
- 9. The Home of Bridget Bishop
- 10. The Original Salem Jail
- 11. The Salem Witch Museum
The difficulty for the Orthodox Puritans
When the Puritans set sail for New England, it was as if they were already doomed. They made the move so they could live their lives the way God wanted, without any kings or other religions getting involved. However, they brought more than just their essential belongings with them. Unknowingly, the group was harbouring several diseases which caused many deaths before their ship even docked — and quite a few after.
Many colonialists who successfully overcame the challenges of the difficult ocean voyage without disease still perished once they arrived in Salem. This was due to what was known as a “little ice age”. At this time, more than 80% of the people who sailed to the historic coastal city died within the first three winters as a result of remarkably intense cold conditions.
The prolonged, cruel New England winters weren’t just tough for the human inhabitants. They were also terrible for crops, creating the perfect starving backdrop to the insanity which begat the Salem Witch Trials. Witches were thought to be in control of weather which was destroying crops and creating horrific industrial conditions that brought dreadful harm to communities.
What were the main causes of the Salem Witch Trials?
In 1692, two young girls from Salem, Abigail Williams and Betty Parris, started acting up. They were convulsing, barking like dogs, scratching their skin until it bled and pulling out their hair. Life during Puritan times was incredibly difficult for most people, due to their excessively strict religious beliefs which condemned dancing, singing and storytelling. Without simple pleasures like these, life was harsh and boring.
Enter Tituba, an enslaved woman brought to Salem from the Caribbean by Reverend Samuel Parris. Tituba spent her days with Betty and Abigail, telling them stories and showing them little oracle readings with eggs like the “Venus Glass.” This egg divination involved cracking an egg into a glass of hot water. The shapes created by the egg white told the profession of your future husband. It was following this that the first instances of unusual behaviour in the young girls began to be reported.
A trip to the only doctor in Salem determined that the girls must have been bewitched. Consequently, the witch hunt was on and accusations started flying throughout Salem. The first accused witches were Tituba, Sarah Good (a homeless woman) and Sarah Osborne (a poor elderly woman).
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Mass hysteria in Salem
As well as the fits and convulsions experienced by the local girls, a dreadful cold snap that had taken over Salem was also causing a great deal of stress. The crops were either doing awfully poorly or completely dying, leaving the animals and people without enough food to survive.
With all this commotion happening at once, people began to panic and anxiety grew at a very rapid pace. At the time, symptoms of stress included convulsions, hyperventilation (which causes a cramped throat), suffocation, fainting and even seizures. These physical symptoms, combined with the doctor’s witchcraft diagnosis, resulted in widespread hysteria throughout Salem.
The Court of Oyer and Terminer
After the accusations, suspected witches were arrested and interrogated. Some claimed to be innocent, while others like Tituba confessed. Tituba claimed the devil came to her and asked her to sign his book and become his servant.
Governor William Phipps appointed several judges (such as Jonathan Corwin and John Hathorne) to serve the Court of Oyer and Terminer, with the aim of determining those guilty of witchcraft.
What made you a witch in the Salem Witch Trials?
Orthodox Puritans believed they were born with original sin and must work hard to repent. They thought devils were fallen angels who whispered evil ideas into the minds of their victims and that they were allowed to roam and punish people under God’s will. The Puritans trusted in good and evil and thought some people would pledge allegiance to the devil and receive the power of evil magic.
They believed mortals were incapable of magic on their own and it was made for them by devils. They imagined witches to be terrible people who envied successful ones and revelled in the misfortunes that fell upon their neighbours. They believed the witches frequently killed livestock, established illnesses and caused sudden disasters.
Witches created mass confusion, shapeshifted, could turn invisible whenever they pleased and used the hair of their victims to cause them harm. Cotton Mather, a Boston Puritan minister and author of several books on witchcraft, believed some people cooperated with devils and spirits simply so they’d leave them alone.
In these trying times, asking friends, neighbours and strangers for handouts was a common practice. Since life was tough for everyone, few people could afford to be generous, which often resulted in the person asking for charity to lose their temper and shout at the person refusing to give what they literally couldn’t afford to. If the person who refused later found themselves with some kind of misfortune, such as a horse that became lame or a crop which failed, many assumed they were being punished by the begging person who had the power to cause such inconveniences because they were a witch.
What people reported as Witchcraft
Men testified to sick and dead livestock, bad luck and nightmares. Some even claimed to be attacked by spectral animals. Women lived in fear of their own “bewitched” children which they reportedly suffered from convulsions — an uncommon occurrence many saw as a definitive symptom of bewitchment.
If someone got sick, people would ask, “Who ails you?” and gossip uncontrollably about who caused the illness until they came to their own warped conclusion. Often the sick person was so weak and tired from their illness, they’d genuinely believe the person in question was responsible.
Some people were also just cruel and evil. Several families, such as the Putnam’s, accused people of witchcraft for all kinds of reasons — everything from having an unpaid loan to wanting their neighbour’s land. There wasn’t much required for someone to be accused of witchcraft in those days.
Generally, spectral evidence was the main reason someone would be accused of witchcraft.
When were the Salem Witch Trials?
The Salem Witch Trials took place across several months in 1692. Young girls in Salem started acting strangely in January 1692 and by March of the same year, accusations were rife. The actual court proceedings were held in Salem Town June-September 1692. The Salem Witch Trials ended when the court officially dissolved at the end of October, but the imprisoned people weren’t officially pardoned until May 1693.
Where were the Salem Witch Trials?
In the 17 th century, Salem was divided into Salem Village and Salem Town. The city of Danvers in Massachusetts is the original site of Salem Village, where the witch accusations first began. The Salem Witch Trials were held in Salem Town, which is where Salem is currently located.
Where in Salem were the witches hanged?
In 2016, New England scholars discovered the exact area the witches were hanged during the 1692 trials. Originally, they thought the hangings took place at Gallows Hill. But they actually took place just down the road in amongst a cluster of rocks and trees. This location is called Proctor’s Ledge and the accused were hanged from the branches of a tree rather than gallows. In total, 19 people died at Proctor’s Ledge and buried elsewhere.
How did they kill the witches in the Salem Witch Trials?
The Salem witches were killed by hanging. One accused man, Giles Corey, was pressed to death over the course of three days. Two dogs were also executed during the Salem Witch Trials, as they were believed to be possessed by the devil. Unlike their English and Scottish counterparts, none of the accused witches were burned at the stake in Salem.
Salem Witch Trials victims
More than 200 people were accused of witchcraft during the few short months of the Salem Witch Trials. Out of the 145 arrested, 20 were found guilty and executed by hanging or being pressed. You can see the victims’ names and how they died at the Salem Witch Trials Memorial.
Bridget Bishop
Bridget Bishop was not the first woman to be accused of being a witch, but she was the first woman to be executed. She was a widow who had several run-ins with the law and was hanged on June 10 th , 1692.
Sarah Good
Sarah Good was one of the first women accused of being a witch in Salem, along with Sarah Osbourn and Tituba. Sarah Good was very poor and would frequently go door-to-door begging her neighbours for money and goods. If someone turned her away and shortly after were misfortunate (for example, if one of their animals grew sick or a crop wilted) people would assume it was because Sarah was a witch who cursed the other woman for turning her away when she requested help. Sarah Good was hanged on July 19 th , 1692.
Reverend George Burroughs
Reverend George Burroughs was a Puritan minister accused and arrested for witchcraft. The Putnam family were his accusers, from whom he had borrowed money after failing to receive his salary for his work as a minister in Salem. George stopped repaying the Putnams after he moved to Maine, which is what caused the family to accuse him, resulting in his hanging on August 19 th , 1692.
Martha & Giles Corey
Martha and Giles Corey were both accused of witchcraft, following Martha’s criticism of the accusations. Martha was hanged on September 22 nd , 1692 and Giles was crushed to death over the course of three days, ultimately dying on September 19 th .
Rebecca Nurse
Rebecca Nurse was beloved by all…except for the Putnam family who she was at war with over land boundaries. In an attempt to get all her land, the Putnams accused her of witchcraft, and she was hanged on July 19 th , 1692.
Who was crushed to death in the Salem Witch Trials?
Giles Corey was crushed to death in the Salem Witch Trials. In Salem, executions were public events and if someone wasn’t excited to see the hangings or if they weren’t present for them, people became suspicious. Corey’s wife Martha didn’t agree with the hangings, resulting in her being accused of witchcraft. It certainly didn’t help her case when her own husband, Corey, claimed she had made his ox sick and therefore must have been a witch.
Giles ended up getting into a fight with the Putnam family. After they accused him of witchcraft, he refused to take a plea deal which would have involved saying more about his wife’s involvement in witchcraft. His refusal to speak angered sheriff George Corwin, who was a very cruel man often referred to as “The Strangler”. George was so angry he ordered a shallow grave to be dug to torture Giles.
How Giles was Pressed to Death
After being placed in the shallow grave, a wooden board was placed over Giles’ body and rocks put on top every hour. The rocks slowly crushed Giles, who simply said, “Add more weight.” After three long days of torture and 750lbs of weight, Giles’ body started to give out. His tongue was protruding from his mouth as he cursed Salem and all the sheriffs with his dying words, either: “You will all have blood to drink” or “Damn you! I curse you and Salem!” depending on who you believe.
Is Salem cursed?
The curse of Giles Corey was effective. Every subsequent sheriff of Salem for the next 300+ years died of a heart attack or heart failure-related infliction. The Salem jail was eventually closed, meaning the town had no need for sheriffs and the curse naturally came to an end…or did it? If Salem ever gets a new sheriff who dies of a heart attack, I guess we’ll know!
Was Tituba hanged?
No, Tituba wasn’t hanged. Although she was one of the first women accused of witchcraft in Salem, she was never brought to court, found guilty or hanged. She ended up being sold off to another family and her whereabouts for the rest of her life are unknown.
When was the last witch executed?
The last group of witches to be put to death in the Salem Witch Trials died on September 22 nd , 1692. However, it wasn’t until 2001 that the last person was finally cleared of witchcraft on paper.
What stopped the Salem Witch Trials?
Just as quickly as they started, the Salem Witch Trials ended in October 1692. Governor Phipps stepped in and ended them after his wife Martha was accused of witchcraft. He forbade arrests following accusations of witchcraft, dissolved the Court of Oyer and Terminer and released the accused witches.
If you’re interested in reading a very in-depth and thorough Salem Witch Trials timeline, be sure to check out the book The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege by Marilynne K. Roach.
This led to many wrongful convictions and the execution of innocent people. The trials were marked by mass hysteria and fear. The community of Salem was gripped by a belief that witchcraft was rampant and that anyone could be a witch. This fear caused a division within the community, with neighbors turning against one another and families torn apart. The trials finally came to an end when the governor of Massachusetts intervened and put an end to the witch hunt. He recognized the flaws in the legal system and ordered that spectral evidence no longer be admissible in court. The trials of accused witches in Salem in 1784 serve as a stark reminder of the dangers of mass hysteria and the consequences of an unjust legal system. They remain a dark chapter in American history that should never be forgotten..
Reviews for "The Salem Witch Trials: Examining the Legal Procedures of 1784"
1. Ethan - 2/5 stars - I found "Trials of accused witches in Salem in 1784" to be a disappointing and dull read. The author seemed more focused on providing an extensive historical background rather than delving into the actual trials themselves. The pacing was slow, and it lacked the gripping and suspenseful narrative that I was expecting. The book also failed to offer any new insights or perspectives on the events, making it feel redundant for anyone with prior knowledge of the Salem witch trials. Overall, I was left feeling bored and unsatisfied with this book.
2. Sophia - 1/5 stars - "Trials of accused witches in Salem in 1784" was a complete waste of time for me. It was incredibly dry and lacked any engaging storytelling. The author seemed more interested in reciting facts and dates rather than crafting a compelling narrative around the trials. I struggled to stay engaged throughout the book, and ultimately, it failed to leave any lasting impression on me. I would not recommend this book to anyone looking for an interesting exploration of the Salem witch trials.
3. Matthew - 2.5/5 stars - As a history enthusiast, I was excited to dive into "Trials of accused witches in Salem in 1784." However, I found the book to be overly academic and dense. The author relies heavily on primary source documents, which can be interesting for some readers but made it difficult for me to connect with the material. The lack of a clear narrative structure also made it challenging to follow the sequence of events. While I appreciate the author's dedication to historical accuracy, I would have preferred a more accessible and engaging approach to storytelling.