The Salem Witch Trials Evidence? 1629 Massachusetts Bay Theocracy: No separation of church and state City on a Hill 500 population in Salem Village

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2 The Salem Witch Trials Evidence? 1629 Massachusetts Bay Theocracy: No separation of church and state City on a Hill 500 population in Salem Village Puritans - Pre-determination: elected or damned How can you tell? Caused severe anxiety Misogynistic community: devalues females More susceptible to the devil Disdain for women Land disputes are a regular occurrence Religious fervor

3 1692: Reverend Samuel Parris Home Daughter Elizabeth, 9 years old Cousin Abigail Williams 11 years old Tituba (Caribbean Slave) watching the girls Tituba told tales of magic and power told amongst her people Demonstrated voodoo tricks Girls knew it was against the Puritan religion to entertain such things They keep it secret for awhile The group of girls begins to grow Ages range from Girls overcome by excitement and guilt

4 Fits, trances, prickled with pins, cut with knives, tempted to throw themselves into the fire, commit suicide, couldn t listen to preaching or the world of God, screaming, crying out, throwing things Rev. Paris calls in Doctor William Griggs Finds no physical signs for the behavior Must be a spiritual cause He declares they are under the evil hand of witchcraft Puritans believed in witches, so this was easily accepted The girls are questioned at length to find out who the witch is Elizabeth and Abigail named Tituba Didn t end there They also accused Sarah Goode Sarah Goode Town beggar

5 Described as stooped and wrinkled Had a temper Low socioeconomic status Made her an easy target Sarah Osborne Old and bedridden Scorned for marrying her indentured servant John Osborne Neither women attended church March 1, women brought to informal tribunal in the meeting house to see if there was evidence of witchcraft No lawyers, just the accused and the accusers Judges hear verbal accounts

6 Kinds of evidence allowed is important Presented by more than 2 people Spectral evidence allowed: Damning person accused appeared to those tormented in the form of a spectre Shape of a bird (perhaps) Image of the person, not the person herself Hitting, pinching, or biting victims Spectre only evident to the person making the accusation No one else can see it Sarah Goode is questioned first Ann Putnam swore the spectre of Sarah Goode tried to get her to be a witch by signing the devil s book Claiming to be pinched and pricked

7 Other girls confirm this accusation Sarah Goode repeatedly denied being a witch Each denial, the girls convulsed in fits, screams, and claimed Goode s spectre attacked them there in the courtroom Judges see this as strong evidence of Goode s guilt Same with Sarah Osbourne s questioning Tituba s testimony changes the course of the trial She confesses to witchcraft She tells them what they want to hear The devil came to me and bid me soothe him This rocked Salem She claimed 9 people had signed the devil s book Opened up a can of worms Paranoia swept Salem pitting neighbor against neighbor

8 If there be one, how many others could be hiding amongst them? Poisoned atmosphere Accusations spread Difference in the new accusations Directed at upstanding members of the community Rebecca Nurse Elderly, 70-71, sick, deaf Marks a split in Salem Supporters of Nurse lived in the eastern part of the village (Liberal views) More prosperous Accusers were poor farmers of lower status, lived in the western part of village 39 signed petition attesting to Nurse s moral character By spring, the number of accusations escalated Over 100 from Salem to Boston arrested

9 Relatives of accused became targets Youngest 4 years old, Dorothy Goode Believed to have confessed to be w/her mother in prison Anyone who spoke out against the trials was immediately suspect Former minister, George Burroughs, lived in Maine was held for trial Numbers of accused continues to grow Something had to be done in Salem Official trial begins June 2, 1692

10 Salem Witch Trials: Economic Factors In 1692, Salem was divided into two distinct parts: Salem Town Salem Village Salem Village (also referred to as Salem Farms) part of Salem Town but was set apart by its economy, class, and character. Residents of Salem Village were mostly poor farmers made their living cultivating crops in the rocky terrain. Salem Town was a prosperous port town at the center of trade with London. Most of those living in Salem Town were wealthy merchants.

11 For many years, Salem Village tried to gain independence from Salem Town. Salem Town, depended on the farmers for food, determined crop prices and collected taxes from Salem Village. Despite the three-hour walk between the two communities, Salem Village did not have its own church and minister until The was also a division within Salem Village: Those who lived near Ipswich Road, close to the commerce of Salem Town, became merchants: blacksmiths, carpenters, and innkeepers. They prospered and supported the economic changes taking place. But many of the farmers who lived far from this prosperity believed the worldliness and affluence of Salem Town threatened their Puritan values.

12 Salem Village Salem Town

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14 One of the main families to denounce the economic changes was the Putnams a strong and influential force behind the witchcraft accusations. Tensions became worse when Salem Village selected Reverend Samuel Parris as their new minister. Parris was a stern Puritan who denounced the worldly ways and economic prosperity of Salem Town as the influence of the Devil. His rhetoric further separated the two factions within Salem Village. It is likely that the jealousies and hostilities between these two factions played a major role in the witch trials. Most of the villagers accused of witchcraft lived near Ipswich Road, whereas the accusers lived in the distant farms of Salem Village. It is not surprising that Reverend Parris was a vigorous supporter of the witch trials, and his impassioned sermons helped fan the flames of the hysteria.

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