From June to September of the year 1692 in a small town of Salem Village, Massachusetts Bay colony, several men and women were sentenced to death after being accused of witch craft. At some point during February Betty Parris became strangely ill. She contorted in pain, complained of a fever and ran about. There were several things that could have caused her symptoms - stress, asthma, child abuse, epilepsy, delusions - but the town doctor did not diagnose her strange behavior with any of these.
The ideas of witch craft began when several of Betty's friends began to show the same symptoms and strange behavior. As a Puritan populated colony religion was brought to explain their strange behavior as the town doctor could not come up with a reasonable explanation for the children. The unusual episodes were eventually described as 'the works of Satan' as talk began to spread around the village.
Betty's father had a slave, Tituba, who was known to tell stories to Betty and her friends of voodoo, witch craft, and omens that had been passed through her culture. The village blamed her for bringing out the Devil, or Satan, through the girls.
The witch hunt began after the issue of the warrant for arrest of Tituba, Betty, and one of her friends, Abigail Williams. The first three to be accused of witch craft were Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborn. Tituba was an obvious target as she had been telling the girls her stories of voodoo, witch craft, and omens. Sarah Good was an extreme social misfit and lived anywhere someone was willing to risk their social status by housing her. Osborn was old and much to the village's dismay, had not attended church in over a year. These women were accused because of their actions and were easy to blame do to their behavior as they were not socially alike the others.
After the hunting, warrants, and trials of each accused witch, those found guilty were sent to be hanged. However, one of the victims of the witch hunt was not hanged, but crushed under the pressure of heavy stones. By the end of the witch hunt, 19 had been executed, 4 of the accused had died while awaiting trial in prison, and one man, Giles Corey, had been crushed to death. 1-2 hundred were arrested as suspected witches.
The ideas of witch craft began when several of Betty's friends began to show the same symptoms and strange behavior. As a Puritan populated colony religion was brought to explain their strange behavior as the town doctor could not come up with a reasonable explanation for the children. The unusual episodes were eventually described as 'the works of Satan' as talk began to spread around the village.
Betty's father had a slave, Tituba, who was known to tell stories to Betty and her friends of voodoo, witch craft, and omens that had been passed through her culture. The village blamed her for bringing out the Devil, or Satan, through the girls.
The witch hunt began after the issue of the warrant for arrest of Tituba, Betty, and one of her friends, Abigail Williams. The first three to be accused of witch craft were Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborn. Tituba was an obvious target as she had been telling the girls her stories of voodoo, witch craft, and omens. Sarah Good was an extreme social misfit and lived anywhere someone was willing to risk their social status by housing her. Osborn was old and much to the village's dismay, had not attended church in over a year. These women were accused because of their actions and were easy to blame do to their behavior as they were not socially alike the others.
After the hunting, warrants, and trials of each accused witch, those found guilty were sent to be hanged. However, one of the victims of the witch hunt was not hanged, but crushed under the pressure of heavy stones. By the end of the witch hunt, 19 had been executed, 4 of the accused had died while awaiting trial in prison, and one man, Giles Corey, had been crushed to death. 1-2 hundred were arrested as suspected witches.