The Other Victims Of The Salem Witch Trials
TwitterA memorial for the people accused of being witches in Salem.
By the time the dust settled in Salem in 1693, 20 people had been executed.
In addition to Sarah Good, Bridget Bishop, Giles Corey, Martha Corey, George Burroughs, Martha Carrier, Rebecca Nurse, and Mary Easty, there were 12 others who were killed: Elizabeth Howe, Susannah Martin, Sarah Wildes, John Willard, George Jacobs Sr., John Proctor, Alice Parker, Mary Parker, Ann Pudeator, Wilmot Redd, Margaret Scott, and Samuel Wardwell.
Most were unpopular outcasts. And most declared their innocence. Yet, one by one, the Salem witch trials found them guilty.
But why? And what caused the Salem witch trials in the first place?
Historians have offered a couple of possible explanations. One popular theory suggests that a series of catastrophes, including smallpox outbreaks and the Native American Wars, had put Salem residents on edge. Already paranoid, they easily succumbed to mass hysteria.
Another theory suggests that the Salem witch trials came about because of two feuding families: the Porters and the Putnams. Town politics became so intense and bitter that they resulted in a literal witch hunt.
But perhaps the most bizarre theory came out in the 1970s and involves fungus. The fungus ergot, when digested, can cause muscle spasms, delusions, and hallucinations. Salem offered the right conditions for it to flourish, and it’s possible that it grew in Salem’s rye and wheat supply.
Ultimately, however, it’s difficult to pinpoint the true reason why the Salem witch trials started. And any logical conclusion is little comfort to the descendants of the people who lost their lives — and their reputations.
However, Massachusetts has tried to make amends. Only a few years after the Salem witch trials, the town underwent a day of fasting and soul searching as penance for what had happened. And by 1711, the colony of Massachusetts passed a bill that restored the good names of the accused. Still, it took until 1957 for the state to issue a formal apology.
Today, the accused Salem witches are seen as victims of one of the most bizarre periods in American history. Faced with mass hysteria, vengeful neighbors, and evidence like “specters,” they stood little chance. Nevertheless, most of them professed their innocence until the end.
But perhaps the most unsettling aspect of the Salem witch trials is their mysterious origins. It happened once — who says it couldn’t happen again?
After learning about the victims of the Salem witch trials, read about Abigail Williams, the girl who caused the whole thing. Then, take a look at the bizarre “witch tests” people once used to determine if someone was a witch.
