The Salem Witch Trials By Dontae’ Brown ID2

Here is what the witches of Salem Massachusetts looked like.

Okay, not really . They were regular people. They were very pretty.

How did the Salem Witch Trials begin? The Puritans, from England, found life in America hard. Things were falling apart. The political and religious climate in MA was causing many arguments and disagreements, and prior to these infamous trials, the idea of witchcraft and black magic was running rampant. The colonists began not trusting each other and blaming everything on the work of witches, people who had signed a contract with the devil.

Then, something added fuel to the fire.

The beginning of the trials In January of 1692, like others, Betty Parris, 9 years old, and Abigail Williams,11 years old, the daughter and niece of town minister Samuel Parris began to act peculiar. They began having seizures and calling out gibberish. Their bodies twitched into strange positions and they complained of being pricked and pinched. Today, people call this twitching having an epileptic fit or seizure.

How Could They Fix Them? Their parents sent doctor William Griggs to see what was wrong with them. The doctor found nothing physically wrong. So, he came to a conclusion.

They Must be…. Witches!

Tituba confessed - saying that Satan talked to her disguised as a dog. The Accused Betty and Abigail, not really knowing, blamed their Indian Caribbean slave babysitter Tituba for their “bewitchment”. Thinking that by telling her prosecutors what they wanted to hear, she would be saved. Tituba was the first “witch” to confess. Tituba confessed - saying that Satan talked to her disguised as a dog.

And More Accused… Soon there were more witch allegations by the “tortured” girls. Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne were next accused. More children joined Betty and Abigail. One was Ann Putnam. Soon added were Bridget Bishop, Rebecca Nurse, and many more. Eventually over 150 people from Salem and neighboring areas were alleged to be witches! All it took was someone to conclude that a loss, illness or death was caused by witchcraft and a complaint filed against the witch.

The Trials Not only did it not take much for someone to be accused, the evidence at the trials against the accused was minimal . Accepted were: - Forced confessions, visions of the accused by the victim, the touch test (the “witch” stops the victim’s fit by touching her/him, witch cakes and other unreasonable or unproven evidence. People could be convicted in as little as 1 day!

The end of the trials At least fifty people were in jail by the end of the witch hunt, 19 people were executed – many by hanging. The Massachusetts colony was becoming more worldly. Some of the ministers helped stop the trials. Other religious people were tired of the killings too so they also helped. Judges got tired of the madness in the courts. The Governor of Massachusetts found out that innocent people were dying. Three papers were signed to stop the trials. In 1711 the Massachusetts legislature made payments to the families of the witch hunt victims. These infamous trails ended in less than a year.

Who Died During the Trials? Bridget Bishop Rebecca Nurse Sarah Good Susannah Martin Elizabeth Howe Sarah Wildes George Burroughs Martha Carrier John Willard George Jacobs, Sr. John Proctor Martha Corey Mary Eastey Ann Pudeator Alice Parker Mary Parker Wilmott Redd Margaret Scott Samuel Wardwell Giles Corey Sarah Osborn Roger Toothaker Lyndia Dustin Ann Foster

Were there Really Witches? Of course there are no such thing as witches! Today’s thought is that there was a fungus in the grain that caused this bewitchment in people – Ergot Fungus.

Think you could survive being accused of being a witch? The scorn of your neighbors The silly tests that you would be subjected to. The intense pressure of the interrogation. Go Here: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/salem/

Fun Fact! Nathanial Saltonstall, a judge of the Salem witch trials, was eventually accused of being a witch himself. What goes around - Comes around!!!!

Bibliography http://www.salemwitchtrials.com/faqs.html#burnedatstake http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/salem.htm http://salemwitchmuseum.com/education/faq.shtml http://www.nationalgeographic.com/salem/ http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/ASAL_DE.HTM http://www.funtrivia.com/en/subtopics/Salem-Witch-Trials-70048.html The Salem Witch Trials by Lori Lee Wilson http://library.thinkquest.org/J002395/end.htm