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The Salem Witch Trials

The Salem Witch Trials were a part of American History, as they were moslty the only prosececution of witches and wizards. The trials occured during the time periods of 1688 through 1702 were the Genral Court Declares it unlawful.

For witches and wizards of the time, it was dangerous as if anyone caught you, you would have been publicly tortured until you admit that you were a witch/wizard, and then you would be publicly exicuted.

But first lets start from the beginning, Salem was first setteled in 1629 by the British Empire in Massachusettes, one of there Colonies. Then in 1641, Britian declares that witchcraft is a capital crime and a punishment by death. And then a couple years later in 1684, Britian declares that the colonies may not self-govern. Then four years later were the first strange happening with witchcraft begun. In 1688, following an argument with laundress Goody Glover, Martha Goodwin, 13, begins exhibiting bizarre behavior. Days later her younger brother and two sisters exhibit similar behavior. Glover is arrested and tried for bewitching the Goodwin children. Reverend Cotton Marther meets twice with Glover following her arrest in an attempt to persuade her to repent her witchcraft. Glover is hanged. Marther takes Martha Goodwin into his house. Her bizarre behavior continues and worsens.

Then soon after the Goodwin incident, there started to be more reports of witchcraft being used, as in 1692, 11 year old Abigail Williams and 9 year old Elizabeth Parris begin bahaving much as the Goodwin children acted four years earlier. Soon Ann Putnam Jr. and other Salem girls begin acting similarly.

In Mid Febrary, 1692, Doctor Griggs who attends the "afflicted" girls, suggest that witchcraft maybe the cause of their strange behavior and so dose a long period of time of terror for witches and wizards alike and inicent muggles who have been thought to be one of us. .

February 25,1692, Tituba, at the request of neighbor Mary Sibley, bakes a "witch cake" and feeds it to a dog. According to an English folk remedy, feeding a dog this kind of cake, which contained the urine of the afflicted, would counteract the spell out of Elizabeth and Abigail. The reason the cake is fed to a dog is because the dog is believed a "familiar" of the Devil. .

Then later on in the month, being pressured by ministers and townspeople to say who caused her odd behavior, Elizabeth identifies Tituba. The other girls later accused Sara Good and Sarah Osborne of witchcraft. Then on February 29,1692 arrest warrants were issued for tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne. They latered died in prison. .

These kinds of things have gone about for along time and they became so up-tight about it they have "found" ways to figure out if you were a witch or a wizard. .

If you had any marks of any kind like a birth mark or even a mole on a part of your body, they claimed it to be unnatural and that you were a witch or wizard. Or just by tortureing them, by stiping them from head to foot and to see if they're were any unusual marks, or by tieing their hands and feet together and then throwing them into a river, which if they floted they said that the river God made rejected them and were to be considered evil, and if the sunk which most of them did, they drowned and were not considered evil as God has accepted them into the river, but if you did survive that you would have been hung or burned alive in a public square. There are many other ways to but most of them might be to grusem to mention. .

THE DEAD

Nineteen accused witches were hanged on Gallow Hill

Bridget Bishop

George Burroughs

Martha Carrier

Martha Corey

Mary Easty

Sarah Good

Elizabeth Howe

George Jacobs Sr.

Susannah Martin

Rebecca Nurse

Alice Parker

Mary Parker

John Proctor

Ann Pudeator

Wilmott Redd

Margaret Scott

Samuel Wardwell

Sara Wildes

John Willard

One accused witch or wizard was pressed to death when he or she failed to plea guilty or not guilty

Giles Corey

Other accused witches died in prison

Sarah Osborn

Roger Toothaker

Lyndia Dustin

Ann Foster

As many as thirteen others may have died in prison

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