Witchcraft Salem Village)/Author(Nevins, Winfield S
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
REB EC C A NURS E ON N D ANVERS . M UME T , WITCHCRAFT S A L E M V I L L A G E% 1 6 9 2 TOGETHER WITH SOME ACC OUNT OF OTHER WITCHCRAFT PROSECUTIONS IN NEW ENGLAND AND ELSEWHERE N N WINFIELD S . EVI S ” ” A H R OLD NA K AG “ T HE NO H SHORE UT O UM E , RT , “ % THE IN VA E ETC . TER L , M MA SA E SS . L , NORTH SHORE PUBLISHING COMPANY BOSTON LEE AND SHEPARD 1892 ( Efeox 1892 Copyrighted, , EV S . BY WINFIELD S . N IN All Rights Re se rve d . SALEM OBSERVER PRESS 1 City Hall Avenue Sa m Mass . le , CONTENTS . ST o r UST AT S LI ILL R ION , AC PREF E, AP . a 1 . 692 CH I S lem previous to , AP . a it ch craf t a CH II . E rly W C ses , AP r a in a m a CH . III . Outb e k S le Vill ge, AP r and a a CH . IV . Cou t Pl ces of Tri l , AP r d . a a an CH V . M th Giles Corey , AP a s CH . VI . Story of Rebecc Nur e, AP r r CH . VII . Rev . Geo ge Bur oughs , AP . and a CH VIII . Bridget Bishop the J a cobs F mily, AP IX Pro ct e rs ~ illard . W CH . The , , Car HOW rier and , A E st P X. na a n a a CH . Susan M rti , M ry y and others , AP XI and CH . Accused Tried but not Executed, II AP . X . CH A Review , PP A ENDIX . t n A . Lis of Perso s Accused, e m a a Re co m B . R ov l of Att inders and pense , ’ a C . Gov . Phips Expl natory Letter, n D . The Bury St . Edmu ds Case, LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS . R a r n m e n r n . ebecc Nu se Mo u t , F o tispiece Old r C r S a m 13 Fi st hu ch , le , . ra r H S a m 42 Gov B dst eet ouse , le , arr H an r 47 P is ouse , D ve s , a m V a S le ill ge Church , 53 a H an r 55 G dge ouse , D ve s , S ara O rn H an r 60 h sbu ouse , D ve s , rn r rwi n H s 69 Co e of Judge Co ou e , S n 71 Chief Justice toughto , Sam S a 72 Judge uel ew ll , n o r R r a H Corwi oge Willi m s ouse , 75 16 r H Site of 92 Cou t ouse , 78 ’ n a r ra n 8 1 Cotto M the s G ve , Bosto , n a r Cot to M the , 84 r 97 Giles Co ey Mill , ar r C m r a How d St eet e ete y , S lem , 107 Ann nam H an r 108 Put ouse , D ve s , R a r H an r 112 ebecc Nu se ouse , D ve s , Fac S m r E am na n 126-7 i ile Nu se x i tio , ara Ho ult e n H an r 130 S h ouse , D ve s , a H Sa m 144 G llows ill , le , ’ Sa m H s e Site of Bishop s le ou , 148 Tra H r r 152 sk ouse , No th Beve ly , H Sa m Shattuck ouse , le , 156 H r e r 157 Bishop ouse , No th B ve ly , a e rn Sa m Be adle T v , le , 160 abo bs ra an rs 164 J G ve , D ve , a H an r 166 J cobs ouse , D ve s , a Procter House , Pe body , 169 a an n H 175 N th iel Felto ouse , Ta rn m Site Bea dle ve , Sale , 180 n am n u r H o n 181 Be j i F lle ouse , Middlet , T m a r H n 183 ho s Fulle ouse , Middleto , n a n nam H s 194 Co st ble Joh Put ou e , H n H 1 Thom as ai es ouse , 20 ar nam H an rs 205 M y Put ouse , D ve , E n H Sa Phillip glish ouse , lem , 215 n nam 3d H an r 220 Joh Put , , ouse , D ve s , n Sa m C r H u 231 Witch Pi s , le ou t o se , n am H us an r 237 Joseph Put o e , D ve s , PREFACE. Y design in writing this book has been to tell the story of the witchcraft de lusio n of 1692 in such a way as to h convey a faithful picture to t e reader . In order to do this it seemed advisable to give some account of the settlement of S alem and the i a and r r 1626 ne ghboring vill ges , their g owth f om 1692 a n to , that the re der might understa d the character of the people w h o lived there during r the period covered by this histo y . Following hi a t s , will be found a ch pter descriptive of the c ourt that tried the accused persons , and a brief n summary of its several sitti gs . A chapter de n a voted to some accou t of e rlier witchcraft cases , ad in this country and in Europe , seemed also v un an isable , that we might the better derst d that in 16 2 witchcraft was not new to the world 9 , and ” a so - th t Salem Witchcraft, called , differed from other witchcraft only in the details . A PREF CE . 7 In succeeding chapters I have de alt with each a and of the individu ls tried executed, according to the interest in the case or the full ness of the m n docu entary records that have come do w to us . In addition to these, such mention is made of a ~ other c ses , where the accused were not exe o as uted , the circumstances connected with a o r them seemed to demand . No chronologic l ' o rtio n o f der is observed in this p the work . aim d The has been in giving the evi ence , to quote the exact langu age so far as space would n permit, otherwise it has bee abridged with strict regard to conveying the true m eaning of n the wit ess . a no a I m ke claim to originality of m terial . Possibly a few documents and a few facts of interest m ay here be brought within the range fi m of the reading public for the rst ti e . If my view of the witchcraft delusion of 1692 and n ff the respo sibility therefor , di ers somewhat f m n ro that e tertained by most of those writers , I believe it is the one now generally accepted among historical students , and the one which the j udgment of the future will pronounce cor rect . The mistake which , it seems to me , the majority of the writers on this chapter of our history have made , is that they did not put themselves in the places of the m e n and women 1 2 n a of 69 , but judged by the sta d rd of the lat ter half of the nineteenth century . I have 8 P A REF CE . tried to avoid this . Whether I have succeeded , d n the ver ict of the reader alo e will tell . I have not deemed it necessary to give my authority f o r statem ents made when that author ity was the records of the trials no w on file in a m the court house in S le . In all other cases where important statements are m ade on the a uthority of others , the reference is given . In ’ s a a n Cale f s the ca e of cert in public tio s , like ” ’ “ and a More Wonders , M ther s Wonders of ” n ua t o the Invisible World, the refere ce is us lly n n some rece t editio , because the early editions of s the e works are not always accessible . CHAPTER I . SALEM P RE VI O US TO 1 6 9 2 . a ALEM It s ; Q was s ettled by the Puritans . R b settlement was a natural result o f the e Th e me n formation in England . hardy and fi women who rst came to ancient Naumkeag, f u law and came , not so much because o njust re tyrannical rulers, as because they could not Spect the enforced forms of worship then exist f s ing in that country . They pre erred the toil and privations of the w ilderness in the ne w world to the tyranny of the Established Church and its supporters in the old . In religious matters those w ho came to Salem diff ered somewhat from those who established w no t themselves at Plym outh . The former ere true separatists from the Church of England ; n u it s they were disse ters from its corr ptions, e and n w s intoleranc , its formula o ly . In the ord u l of the ministers at Salem , to John and Sam e “ 162 the Browne in 9, they separated not from ” m s Church of England, but fro its corruption .