Salem, MA

By: Abigail Murphy '32

Salem's History

I'm sure you know about the famous Hocus Pocus movie. And you may know that it was set in Salem, Massachusetts. But in reality, there were no sisters accused and they certainly did not wear hats or capes. So today we will not only be diving into the chaos of the witch trials in 1692 but those 40 years leading up to it and the years after.

Let's go back to 1626, when Salem was first founded by Roger Conant. There were tunnels running underneath the town. Some believe they were originally made for trade or the underground railroad. But a common theory is it was used for piracy all throughout the revolutionary war. 

In 1630 about 1,000 pilgrims settled in Salem. The Puritan religion was harsh at this time. They believed that humankind is evil and they need to “purify” it. This was the main cause of the witch trials.

There are many other things that contributed to the witch trials such as smallpox and wars. The puritan belief that the devil is lurking around every corner was only heightened because of this.

As paranoia and fear rose, trouble brewed in the Parris house. Reverend Samual Parris’s daughter and niece fall suddenly and violently ill. 

In February Reverend Parris becamesincreasingly worried and had a physician  examine the girls. The physician comes up with only one answer: witchcraft. 

Under increasing pressure, the girls accused three women of witchcraft; Tibuta, their slave,  Sarah Good, a pregnant and  homeless beggar, and Sarah Osburne a older woman who didn't go to church. These women were easy to accuse because they were general outsiders. 

Although these women were the first to be accused, the first executed was Bridget Bishop. No, she was not burned at the stake. In fact no witches were burned at the stake in America.

You might be wondering - how would you prosecute a “witch”? I really hope you aren't asking that because you want to prosecute a “witch”. Back in the day judges would prosecute on spectral evidence. Spectral evidence is when someone says they saw something. If the accuser gives strong spectral evidence then the accused is a witch. To better explain, let's say that someone robbed a bank. A nine year old girl says, “She did it” and points to a random person. That person is suddenly on death row. That's how it was in Salem. The sudden revoking of spectral evidence is what put an end to these life taking trials. 

But what about after the trials? One word: awkward. In fact, it became socially taboo to discuss the trials until 1697 when the town finally acknowledged the trials. 

Although The Salem Witch Trials were one of the biggest shames in history, now it is a lesson to us all.

Thank you so much to Mrs. Hanna and the amazing social studies teachers of 8th grade for helping me with this article!