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Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

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The History of the Salem Witch Trials Witchcraft is when people were considered worshiping the devil and taking part in his sinful acts. Witches were described as being people that the devil would give power to so that they could harm others in order for them to become loyal to the devil. Starting in Massachusetts in 1692, the Salem Witch Trials became a quite serious matter. First people to be convicted were, Sarah Good, Sarah Osburn, Tituba (the house slave), and Bridget Bishop, they were hung and fifteen others followed. Included were ten other women, five men, and two dogs through the twenty-five towns. After all, it did not matter your age you could and would be convicted of witchcraft if you were turned in. In fact, the youngest person …show more content…

Such as, boredom, cold weather, belief, disputes, and poisoning were some of the many reasons that the people of the villages had for witchcraft. Consequently, the young girls in the villages were thought to be bored and used the witchcraft as a way of entertainment. Also, the witch trials were used as a way to explain the cold weather that had taken their crops. Along with this, some people actually did believe in witchcraft and were very afraid when they thought anything seemed suspiciously evil. Another reason was that people used witchcraft conviction as a way to punish those whom they disliked or had unresolved issues with. Finally, the witch trials were used as a way to explain the symptoms from the fungal infections that the villagers were getting. Without any other way to explain why these infections were poisoning the people in the villages or why the crops were being ruined, the villagers turned to anything such as witchcraft to explain what was happening. All of these causes led to a witchcraft epidemic in the villages in Massachusetts and suddenly new towns and states started joining …show more content…

By May, the jails in Salem and neighboring towns held up to two-hundred accused witches. While in prison, these innocent people were treated terribly. Instead of being in a cell above ground, the “witches” were held down in a dungeon with their arms and legs chained to the wall. According to the jailers, this was so that these dangerous people could not continue to torture their victims from the prison. Of the two-hundred or so people that were imprisoned only ten escaped from the dungeon. In addition to that only about ten were pardoned but were not set free until the end of the Salem Witch

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They even began to take the “afflicted” girls to other towns to look for witches. Most of the people who were accused were visited by the sane people in town in hopes to bring them some warmth to this jail chamber that was covered in hair and bugs so they wouldn’t feel as bad as they did. There had bed twenty people killed for witchcraft. Fourteen of them were women, and there were two infant children and five other accused souls had died in prison. These trials were of mass hysteria caused by political drama in the church.

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1277 Words | 6 Pages

The Salem Witch Trials I. From June to September of the 1692 in the small farming village of Salem, Massachusetts, nineteen people were hanged on Gallows Hill for the crime of witchcraft. But as many as thirty-seven (sources conflict as to the exact number) may have died when one factors in the men and women who were hanged, those who died in prison, and the one man (Giles Corey) who was pressed to death. I am writing about this incident because I believe it to be significant to history for two major reasons. Firstly, this incident did not occur in the time or place where one would have expected it.

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1606 Words | 7 Pages

The Salem Witch Trials were a series of events that occurred within the 1690's. The numerous allegations lead to hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. The trials resulted in the executions of twenty people, most of them women. Additionally, the accusations lead to community wide hysteria and blood thirst for the death of nearly all the accused witches.

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760 Words | 4 Pages

Included in the accused were two dogs that were suspected and shot and killed. Out of the accused twenty four people died. Nineteen were hung, one pressed to death, and the other four perished in prison. (salem witch trials,

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494 Words | 2 Pages

Another reason why the salem witch trials occurred is due to attention seeking. The two young girls that started having the fits first were suspected of faking their “bewitched” fits just to get attention. Many people suspected they kept going when it got too serious and used their fits a scapegoat to not get punished.

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612 Words | 3 Pages

Over the next few months everything went mad, a court was made for the witches, people were hung and killed. But then the Governor stopped from new arrest to happen and let go of the accused witches and eventually got the witches out of jail. But even though this stopped further pain and suffering, it had already caused so much damage to the area. This trial haunted the area for years and the people so much that people even know what the Salem Trials were

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659 Words | 3 Pages

Many children of Salem conducted the claims of witchcraft due to boredom. Not much was available to children in the 1600’s. Parents were very strict with exploration in witchcraft and forbade from any use of it. ”To the colonists, witchcraft was very real and a very real threat. They believed that witches could control people’s thoughts and force them to behave in evil ways.”

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1387 Words | 6 Pages

The Salem Witch Trials were not due to actual witchcraft, but occurred due to socioeconomic tensions, ergot poisoning, and religious persecution. The infamous trials sparked from the hysteria after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, had claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft. As it spread throughout colonial Massachusetts, a special court began to hear the cases of the accused, beginning the Salem Witch Trials. Belief in the supernatural and specifically in the devil’s practice of giving certain humans the power to harm others in return for their loyalty had emerged in Europe as early as the 14th century. They believed that the devil was giving people the ability of witchcraft

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1446 Words | 6 Pages

Salem Witch Trials The Salem Witch Trials were a series of accusations of witchcraft brought against the women, men, and children of Salem, Massachusetts, during the late 1600s. This event in early American history shaped not only how America conducts its justice, but also how we view it. The Salem Witch Trials were started in Salem, Massachusetts in February of 1692. These witch trials resulted in 25 deaths which at the time was considered to be a very large number of deaths for one singular event, and also is possibly one of the most known and covered mass persecutions for witchcraft in history.

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445 Words | 2 Pages

Some theories being attention seekers, jealousy or illness. One of the theories of why the Witch Trials occurred is attention seekers. In the play many of the girls in town were involved in the witchcraft hysteria. The three main characters in the play that caused the trials were Abigail Williams,Betty Parris and Mercy Lewis. In Act one Betty wakes up from her “coma” like sort when everyone is gone except for Mercy, Abigail and Mary Warren.

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613 Words | 3 Pages

The Salem witch trials occurred during the 14th century. During this century the puritans beliefs were very strong in supernatural areas, in other words this means the belief in the devils practice of giving certain humans the power to harm others. If you were a puritan living at this time and you committed the crime of witchcraft the punishment for this would be death. The religion and beliefs during this time had a big role on how the puritans dealt with the so called witches, although christian rule stated that no one shall kill. Killing was still involved in the trials causing the rules and laws to be broken, because of this the acception for breaking this rule was unknown.

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719 Words | 3 Pages

The Salem Witch Trials started in 1692, after a group of young girls claimed to be possessed by the devil and then accused several different people of witchcraft. This event spread through mass hysteria that impacted history in many ways. While this event is very well known, the true details of what happened are not widely known. The false information spread from the trials has made this event something of a spread of paranoia and injustice. Understanding what truly happened during this time is important.

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593 Words | 3 Pages

Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, it didn’t matter who you were or what you did if you're were accused you were sent to jail or put to death. Some people were let free if they confessed to being a witch, but not everyone was that lucky. “ On July 15, Martha Carrier, a resident of Andover, was arrested after being accused by several of the afflicted girls from Salem” (Billings). Martha was condemned on August 5, 1692. Later her children Thomas and Sarah were put into jail until they said their mother's name, soon after they were beaten and punished until their mother confessed.

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574 Words | 3 Pages

The Salem witch trials took place early 1692 to mid 1693 held in the Old Colony State, Massachusetts. The trials first took place due to a group of girls acting strange, which caused a scene in front of the town of Salem. The town doctor concluded that this was an act of witchcraft. At the time this was considered a great sin to the Puritan town, this ultimately led to the creation of the witch trials that America knows today. The history of the infamous trials explores cultural beliefs, societal, and political factors that contributed to the dark part of history that is called the Salem witch trials.

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454 Words | 2 Pages

The youngest to be taken into custody was a four-year-old girl named Dorothy Good. The jails were so full of other women they did not have any handcuffs for Dorothy, the town people were so afraid of the “witches” they created small cuffs for Dorothy so she could not harm anyone else. Brown says. “Why are young girls and young women feeling that they’re possessed by the devil and are cursed and tormented by older women and men in the community?”(Possessed: The Salem witch trials)

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