The Salem witch trials are where the story starts with the hysteria of witches. Just like a storybook, it had a beginning, middle, and yet it doesn’t have an ending.
The Salem Witch trials began in the late 1600’s. According to the Smithsonian Museum website, in January of 1962, two young girls were found with peculiar problems with their body. They were said to be seen in peculiar positions; when a local doctor was asked, he claimed that unnatural forces were behind it. Later, three women were accused of witchcraft in a court on the 29 of February in 1962. One woman by the name of Tituba, a caribbean slave, claimed she was given a deal with the devil along with many other witches. She said there was a book about destroying the Puritans, and many more witches had made the same deal with the devil. The three women were immediately arrested, and the trails were born.
The Salem Witch trials and hunts had begun. According to the History Channel website, the trials began in 1692. Hysteria began spreading, accusing many women of being witches. The cases spread all the way to Salem, where a special court agreed to hear them. The first convicted witch was Bridget Bishop, who was hung that June. Eighteen others were sentenced to the same fate, while 150 more men, women, and children were accused of witchcraft. Witch hunts took over, spreading the fear of being imprisoned amongst many communities.
The Salem witch trials brought up hysteria that lasted until its downfall. The amount of witchcraft prisoners started to equal the amount of traditional criminals, making witchcraft a usual crime. The History Channel says that in September of 1962, the public started to turn against the trials, saying that the guilty verdicts were accused to witchery weren’t truly witches. Many found it wrong that the families of the accused witches were discriminated by communities, so it became annulled. In 1693, May Phips decided to pardon all the prisoners who were accused of witchcraft, and released them. In 1967, the Massachusetts general court declared a day of fasting for the tragedy of the Salem witch trials. The Salem witch trials continued on in a different form when referenced by Senator Joseph who combined the idea with communism and began hunts for communists.
The Salem witch trials were a dangerous game for both the guilty and the innocent. A story that will follow the depths of time through any trial. Trials that hold many tragedies, and sadly many innocent deaths.