Salem

This act, passed in 2001 by the Massachusetts State Legislature, amended the previous resolve passed by the same body of government in 1957. The act included names of other individuals accused and convicted during the Salem witch trials.

This resolve, passed in 1957, absolved many individuals who were accused and convicted in the Salem witch trials. The General Court of Massachusetts sought to correct past mistakes made by the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the witch trials. The resolve identifies the popular religious hysteria of…

In 1711, the Province of Massachusetts Bay passed an act to null the convictions and restore the rights of 22 different individuals who were wrongfully accused and convicted of witchcraft during the Salem witch trials. This act was a significant step for the colonial government to reckon with the…

The Death Warrant for Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth How, and Sarah Wilds, which was issued on July 19th 1692, ordered the execution of these women who were convicted of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials. The death warrant was issued to the High Sheriff of the County…

This document, titled, "Petition of Ten Prisoners at Ipswich," details the request from ten women and “three or four men” confined in the unheated Ipswich jail, requesting that they be released on bail so that they do not “perish with cold.”

This episode of "The Engines of Our Ingenuity" radio program explores the theory that ergot poisoning, a disease caused by eating rye infected with a fungus, played a role in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.

Rebecca Nurse was a pious, respected woman whose specter, according to Ann Putnam, Jr. and Abagail Williams, attacked them in mid March of 1692. Ann Putnam, Sr. added her complaint that Nurse demanded that she sign the Devil's book, then pinched her. Nurse was one of three Towne sisters , all…

This map shows the locations of major landmarks, farms, land grants, physical features, and the dwellings of promient and important residents in Salem during 1692.

 

The earlier covenant of 1629, The Salem Covenant, was apparently found to be inadequate. This “enlarged” version addresses the specific points of dissension that needed to be settled and thus provides a “window” into the colonists’ life as a people. Because Salem in 1636 was a theocracy, what…

Although a part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Salem established its own town government early in its existence. About the time that the Massachusetts Bay Colony was evolving a more liberal oath, Salem was moving in a contrary direction and attempting to exert more careful control over its…

<p><span class="deck"> When four aristocratic blackquards were jailed for a brutal murder, justice seemed triumphant. But these were no ordinary criminals, and justice needed eloquent help</span> </p>

<p><span class="deck"> They marched across a bridge at Salem —and then marched right back again</span> </p>