The Salem Witch Hunt

The most famous witch-hunt in American history began in February, 1692. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a group of young girls in Salem Village began shaking, screaming, and falling down in fits. They claimed that they were bewitched, and they accused three Salem women of casting spells on them and tormenting them with evil visions.

Most people at that time believed in witches and the devil, so many took the girls at their word. Two of the accused women were convicted and hanged. Then the situation worsened as mass hysteria swept through the village. By June, about 100 men and women had been arrested for witchcraft. To avoid hanging, many gave false confessions and accused others. By late September 27 people had been convicted and 19 had been hanged.

One man who refused to plead guilty or innocent was tortured to death. But people finally began to question the charges. That October, the governor of the colony stopped further arrests.

Why did the Salem witch-hunt take place? No one knows for sure. Some historians believe that the girls who started it did so as a prank, and were later too frightened to confess. Rivalries between Salem citizens also played a part in the frenzy. Whatever the cause, the Salem witch-hunt was a terrible episode in the history of colonial America.

Arthur Miller’s popular play, The Crucible, deals with the Salem witch-hunt of 1692.

The image with this post was painted by T.H. Matteson in 1853. The title is Examination of a Witch.