The Salem Witch Trials
By: Madison Butler
A horrific event even to this day.
This event occurred from 1692-65. And through out this period 200 people were accused of witchcraft, 20 people were hung or burnt at the stake. And one elderly man was pressed (pressed means that you have a type of bored laying on you and they laid multiple rocks or bricks upon you causing your bones to break as well as killing you.) And all of this occurred simply if you were accused of practicing the Wicca religion.
How it all began.
The start of the whole Salem trials came from Reverend Parris’s daughter, Elizabeth at the age of 9. And his niece Abigail at the age of 11. They started having “fits” of screaming, speaking in tongues, throwing things, and made themselves form into weird positions with their body. And then other women of their age started having the same fits and a local doctor declared that the reason they were doing those specific things was because of Witchcraft.
The first women that were accused.
One woman's name was Tituba, and she was a Pariss’ caribbean slave. The second was Sarah good, a homeless beggar. And last but not least there was Sarah osborne, an elderly impoverished (poor) women. The two women (Osborne & Good) declared innocence. But Tituba claimed that she was practicing the Wicca religion and she also claimed she saw very strange things such as Yellow birds, red dogs and black cats. She also claimed a man with no face all in black told her to sign his book and she did.
The first women hanged.
After this occurrence took place paranoia took it’s place in the tiny little town and fear took over the community. Accusations started flying, and people were getting thrown in jail left and right. Even a strong member of the Salem church by the name of Martha Corey was accused of witchcraft. After this things got very hectic, everybody had the mindset of “Well if she was a witch why’ll being such a devout member to the church, then anyone could be one”. A special case of Bridget Bishop was also taken place and has a huge role in history. She was known to be a gossip of the town and also was considered to have loose morals. She stated that she had nothing to do with witchcraft and that she was as innocent “as the child unborn”. But her statement had no effect upon the judges and she was sentenced to be hanged. She was recorded to be the first person hung on what is today called Gallow Hills.
Conclusion
So as you can see the Salem Witch Trials were a very hectic time. And caused a lot of distress upon the city of Salem. Many females were burned at the stake for false accusations of the practice of witchcraft. And people were also pressed to death because of these accusations. Some people were guilty and admitted of these practices, but some also admitted simply because they were tired of the questioning and torture that was brought upon them. The Salem Witch Trials left the whole town in fear, and this situation is a key example of what happens when fear takes over. But the real question is, where these witches really real? And do they continue to exist to this day? Or is it all just a myth.