The Salem Witch Trials was a series of trails and court cases that took place in colonial Massachusetts. The trails unfortunately resulted in the deaths of many townspeople; including women and children. During the 1600's, strong religious beliefs governed the colonist of Massachusetts as the Puritan lifestyle was an influential part of society. Witchcraft was believed to be the work of Devil and religious colonist were terrified of such forces. The accusations of Witchcraft led to the deaths of many colonist would live in both Salem Village and Salem Town. Due to the religious background and lack of tangible evidence most defendants were executed if they did not confess to Witchery. The government officials believed that the defendants were actual witches and took the word of the plaintiff because of the of moral standards and expectations of the colonial village. However those who plead "Not Guilty" was most likely sentenced to death. The following list...
Year Accused Person Town, Colony
Verdict and Final Action
1647 Alice Young Windsor, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1647 Elizabeth Kendall Cambridge, Massachusetts convicted (executed) 1648 Margaret Jones Charlestown, Massachusetts convicted (executed) 1648 Mary Johnson Wethersfield, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1651 Joan Carrington Wethersfield, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1651 John Carrington Wethersfield, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1651 Mary Parsons Springfield, Massachusetts acquitted 1651 Hugh Parsons Springfield, Massachusetts convicted (reversed) 1651 Alice Lake Dorchester, Massachusetts convicted (executed) 1651 Bassett [female] Fairfield, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1652 John Bradstreet Rowley, Massachusetts acquitted 1653? Knapp [female] Fairfield, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1654 Lydia Gilbert Windsor, Connecticut convicted (executed) 1655 Elizabeth Godman New Haven, New Haven acquitted 1655 Bailey [female] New Haven, New Haven acquitted 1655 Nicholas Bailey New Haven, New Haven acquitted 1656 Jane Walford Portsmouth, Massachusetts acquitted 1656 Eunice Cole Hampton, Massachusetts acquitted 1656 Ann Hibbens Boston, Massachusetts convicted (executed) 1658 Elizabeth Garlick Easthampton, Connecticut acquitted 1659 John Godfrey Andover, Massachusetts acquitted 1659 Mary Holman Cambridge, Massachusetts acquitted |
Those who did not end up getting sentenced to death stayed in jail for the rest of their lives. Mostly because they would not pay back the debt they owed by staying in jail. The girls who were guilty of starting this massive fear in the community of witches truly existing did not see harm in what they were doing. They ended up having enough elders convinced that what they said was the truth. This made it hard to find any evidence to make the accused free. The members of the community believed that God would play a pivotal force in the fate of the accused. Mostly, they relied on having them recite different parts of the Bible or proclaiming to their faith in God (mostly by criticizing their attendance of Church). If one mistake was made, or if their attendance was poor, it automatically made them a witch in the eyes of the community.
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