Salem Witch Trials Daily Course – How It Works | Day-by-Day History Education
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Welcome to our YouTube channel! Discover a revolutionary way to learn about the Salem Witch Trials through our daily video series. This comprehensive course follows the actual 1692-1693 timeline, bringing you history as it happened day by day. In this informational episode, learn how our unique course structure works and see a sample daily lesson.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel for daily videos throughout 2026-2027 as we follow the historical timeline!
What You’ll Get on This Channel: ✅ Daily bite-sized video lessons (just a few minutes each) ✅ 75-week journey through the complete 1692-1693 timeline ✅ Watch on YouTube as we release them or binge full weeks ✅ Companion resources at AboutSalem.com
Beyond YouTube: 📚 Weekly workbooks with activities and challenges 📝 Blog posts recapping each week’s content 🎙️ The Thing About Salem podcast 🏆 Achievement badges to track your progress
Course Features: 📚 Researched from primary sources 📝 Fill-in-the-blank summaries and reflection questions ✍️ Citation practice and character journal prompts 📖 Vocabulary building and quote analysis 🎯 Four weekly challenges to grow your expertise ⏱️ Watch at your own pace as all YouTube videos remain available
The Salem Witch Trials by the Numbers: • 156+ formal accusations • 30 convictions • 20 executions • Started January 1692 in Minister Samuel Parris’s household • Legal proceedings: February 1692 – May 1693
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Salem Witch Trials | History Education | Online Course | Colonial America | Massachusetts History | Educational Videos | YouTube History Channel | History Curriculum
Welcome to Week 1 of Salem Witch Trials Daily! Whether you’re working through the full course or just following along, this is where it all begins.
We’re covering the events of 1692-1693 day by day, following the actual timeline. This week sets the foundation for understanding how America’s largest witch panic could happen.
January 1: Introduction to Salem Witch Trials Daily
January 2: Five Contributing Factors
January 3: The History of Massachusetts
January 4: Salem’s Founding
Salem Witch Trials Daily YouTube Playlist
Weekly Podcast
The Thing About Salem: “What harm were Salem’s supposed witches actually accused of causing?”
The Scope of the Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials produced at least 156 formal accusations, 30 convictions, and 20 executions. Some sources suggest accusers named more than 200 people as witches, though not all were prosecuted. It started in mid-January 1692 in the household of Salem Village Minister Samuel Parris. His nine-year-old daughter Betty and eleven-year-old niece Abigail Williams began behaving strangely. They barked like dogs, quacked like ducks, and flapped around like geese pretending to fly. Doctors couldn’t diagnose what was wrong. Strangely, Betty and Abigail were the only ones in a household of eight to exhibit these symptoms. The parents didn’t get sick. Betty’s siblings didn’t get sick. One of the enslaved individuals in the household, John Indian, eventually showed symptoms, but not right away. This mysterious illness in the minister’s house would spark a panic that consumed the colony.
Five Factors That Created the Perfect Storm
Universal Belief in Witchcraft: Belief in witchcraft was nearly universal in 1692. Even trial critics didn’t refute the existence of witches. Those defending accused witches believed in witchcraft. This wasn’t just a Puritan thing or a Massachusetts thing. It was universal across Europe and the colonies, regardless of denomination.
War and Sickness: King Philip’s War in the 1670s was the deadliest war per capita in what is now the United States. King William’s War was being fought in the 1690s in northern New England. War brought trauma, death, and displacement. A smallpox outbreak accompanied King William’s War. Soldiers attempting to invade Quebec came home sick, bringing smallpox with them. This epidemic would later factor into witchcraft accusations.
Economic Collapse: The wars ravaged the economy. Colonial debt was massive. Massachusetts started printing money for the first time to pay war costs. Taxes were high, burdening residents already suffering direct financial losses from the wars. Property destruction, loss of income, and economic precarity created anxiety.
Social Tensions: War refugees flooded into Massachusetts, particularly Essex County where Salem is located. This influx of displaced people heightened existing tensions between neighbors. Economic precarity amplified conflicts.
Religious Anxieties: Many Massachusetts ministers felt the colony was spiritually backsliding. By 1692, this was the third and fourth generation since the founders. Ministers believed the current generation lacked the strong faith of those who first settled in the 1620s and 1630s. Locally in Salem Village, intense controversy surrounded Minister Samuel Parris. For two decades, the community squabbled over ministers. No one lasted more than a few years. In 1692, at least half the community opposed Parris.
These five factors created an environment ripe for panic.
Massachusetts: From Native Land to Colonial Crisis
For more than 10,000 years, Native Americans occupied what is now Massachusetts. In the 16th century, Europeans came to fish and trap game. A series of epidemics from 1616 to 1619 decimated the coastal native population where contact with disease-carrying Europeans was common. English colonists tried several settlements before the Mayflower pilgrims successfully established Plymouth Colony in 1620. In 1626, Roger Conant founded Salem at Naumkeag, a former Native American settlement. The name means “fishing place.”
In 1628, the Massachusetts Bay Company founded Massachusetts Bay Colony. King Charles I issued a charter in 1629 allowing the colony to govern itself. Boston was founded in 1630 and became the colonial capital, displacing Salem. The 1630s brought massive immigration. About 20,000 Europeans poured into New England, creating new towns around Salem. Between 1648 and 1691, Massachusetts prosecuted many witchcraft cases. Eight people were convicted, five were executed, and two women were jailed or placed under house arrest.
In 1684, King James II revoked Massachusetts’s charter, throwing the colony into disarray. Two years later, he established the Dominion of New England, a supercolony running from New Jersey to Nova Scotia under one royal governor, Edmund Andros. Andros was unpopular and harsh. When the Glorious Revolution happened in England in 1688 (King William and Queen Mary taking the throne from James II), colonists stormed Boston’s capitol, arrested Andros, and sent him back to England. From 1688 to 1692, Massachusetts operated under an interim government. Courts couldn’t function properly, leading to jail overcrowding as suspects couldn’t be tried.
Massachusetts finally got a new charter in 1691, but it was controversial. The colony had to tolerate other religious beliefs besides Puritanism. They had to accept Anglicans, Baptists, and Quakers. Previously, they had persecuted these groups, even executing Quakers. The charter was issued in October 1691 but didn’t arrive until February 1692. The new governor didn’t arrive until mid-May. By then, jails were already packed with witchcraft suspects.
Salem: From Capital to Divided Town
Salem was founded in 1626 by Roger Conant, who led 20 families from Cape Ann to settle at Naumkeag. You can see a statue of Conant outside the Salem Witch Museum today. In 1628, the Massachusetts Bay Company bought out the previous holdings. John Endicott was appointed governor and sailed to New England with 100 colonists, establishing his government in Salem. Roger Conant was granted 200 acres in exchange for surrendering leadership. After this peace was forged, the community was renamed Salem, from shalom, the Hebrew word for peace.
The First Church in Salem formed in August 1629. In colonial Massachusetts, a church was a body of people, not a building. Members met in private homes until 1635 when the first church building was constructed. In 1629, John Winthrop succeeded Endicott as governor. In 1630, Winthrop and 700 colonists reached Salem in 11 ships. But Winthrop didn’t stay. He and most new arrivals relocated to found Boston, making it the new capital.
As immigration exploded, new towns were created around Salem. Salem itself originally included what are now Beverly, Marblehead, Manchester, Wenham, Topsfield, Danvers, Middleton, Peabody, and Swampscott. These communities gradually split off. Most of Salem’s population lived near the bustling port. Others resided to the west in Salem Farms, which included a small settlement called Salem Village. Salem Village’s history and disagreements with the town of Salem are crucial for understanding the local dynamics during the witch hunt.
This Week’s Podcast: What Witches Were Accused of Doing
The Thing About Salem: “What harm were Salem’s supposed witches actually accused of causing?”
Understanding what people believed witches could do is essential for understanding why accusations were believed. According to 17th century belief, witches were recruited by Satan. This diabolical witchcraft theory developed in 15th century Europe. All witchcraft was believed to come from Satan. All powers granted to witches came from him. Witches betrayed God by abandoning his church for Satan’s church. Satan marked his recruits with a witch’s mark or teat hidden on their body. Several Salem accused were physically inspected and found to have supposed marks. New witches signed the devil’s book in their own blood, echoing how Puritan church members signed covenants. Witches were baptized by Satan in rivers. They gathered at sabbats where they drank blood wine and ate red bread, mocking Christian sacrament.
In New England, Satan’s purpose was tearing down the Christian Church. The witches supposedly wanted to begin in Salem Village where conflict was rampant. They intended to spread across New England and return the land to the devil. Witches attacked Christ’s kingdom by creating chaos. They afflicted people through maleficium (harmful magic), causing sickness like Betty Parris and Abigail Williams experienced. Many murders were blamed on witches. Witnesses reported seeing ghosts of murder victims dressed in winding sheets, demanding justice. Witches spoiled food, destroyed crops, attacked livestock, and raised storms. They could separate their specters from their bodies. These spirits traveled great distances to harm people, animals, and property. Accused witches were shackled in jail because colonists believed metal prevented specters from roaming free. It apparently didn’t work.
Witches had familiar spirits, usually animals or strange amalgamations. These familiars assisted witches and fed through witch’s teats. Witches could shapeshift, know the future, read private conversations, and use poppets to inflict pain on enemies. The devil promised rewards like money and fashionable clothing to recruits. He never delivered and utterly failed to protect his servants from trial and execution.
Where We Are in the Timeline
Week 1 of ~75 weeks | 1% Complete | January 2026 – May 2027
We’re in the setup phase. January 1-4, 1692. All the conditions are in place, but the trials haven’t started yet. This is the calm before the storm.
Next week, we dive deeper into Salem Village’s conflicts and Minister Samuel Parris’s controversial ministry. We move closer to mid-January when Betty and Abigail’s symptoms become impossible to ignore.
Key People to Remember
Betty Parris (age 9): Minister’s daughter whose symptoms started the panic
Abigail Williams (age 11): Minister’s niece who exhibited the same symptoms
Samuel Parris: Salem Village’s controversial minister facing opposition from half his congregation
Roger Conant: Salem’s founder who surrendered power for land and peace
John Endicott: First governor who established Massachusetts Bay Colony’s government in Salem
Join the Course
This isn’t just a video series. It’s a comprehensive course researched from primary sources by Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack.
Course students get:
Weekly workbooks with activities, exercises, and challenges
Fill-in-the-blank summaries and reflection questions
Citation practice and character journal prompts
Vocabulary building and quote analysis
Achievement badges tracking your progress
A special descendant track for those with ancestral connections
Everyone can:
Watch the daily videos
Read these weekly blogs
Listen to the podcast
Follow along at your own pace
Whether you dive deep or follow casually, you’re welcome here.
✅ #SalemStudent (started the course) ✅ #SalemWeek1 (completed Week 1) ✅ #SalemDescendantPathStudent (if you have ancestral connections)
Use #SalemDailyStudent #SalemWeek1 #ThingAboutSalem #SalemDailyYoutube #SalemDescendantPath to connect with others on this journey.
Join the Conversation
What do you think happens next? When doctors can’t explain Betty and Abigail’s symptoms, and the community is dealing with war trauma, economic collapse, social tensions, and religious anxiety, what does Salem Village do?
This course is created by the nonprofit End Witch Hunts. Your donations support primary source research, educational content, and advocacy for those facing witch accusations today.
What Were Witches Actually Accused of Doing in Salem?
Signing a mysterious book with blood. Attending midnight gatherings in the minister’s pasture. Shape-shifting into wolves. Sending spirits through jail cell walls despite iron shackles. The accusations against Salem’s alleged witches painted a picture of organized supernatural conspiracy that went far beyond what most people imagine.
But what did colonists actually believe witches were doing? How did the Devil supposedly recruit his servants? Why were investigators searching bodies for hidden marks? What made everyday misfortunes like spoiled milk or a bad dream transform into evidence of murder? And how did witnesses claim to see ghostly victims and impossible creatures with mixed animal parts?
The accusations reveal an elaborate belief system where witches weren’t just casting spells. They were waging war against the Christian church itself, plotting to return New England to Satan’s control one village at a time.
What’s in This Episode:
• How Satan allegedly recruited and marked his followers • The role of spectral evidence in convicting the accused • Why metal shackles were believed necessary but didn’t work • What investigators looked for during physical examinations • The supposed plot to establish the Devil’s kingdom in Salem Village • How poppets, familiars, and fortune-telling became criminal evidence • Why witnesses testified to seeing ghosts in winding sheets
Key Topics:
Salem Witch Trials, witchcraft accusations 1692, spectral evidence, Devil’s book, maleficium, witch marks and teats, familiars, poppets, Salem sabbats, Tituba confession, Bridget Bishop, Martha Carrier, George Burroughs, Rebecca Nurse, diabolical witchcraft, colonial New England, Samuel Parris, 17th century witch hunts
Discover the Answer:
What could transform your neighbor into a suspected servant of Satan? Join Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack to find out.
When Rebecca Nurse and Mary Esty wrote petitions from their jail cells in 1692, they couldn’t have known their words would inspire descendants 333 years later to continue the fight for justice.
Sarah Jack has now testified twice for her ancestors’ exonerations. In 2023, she stood before Connecticut’s Joint Committee on Judiciary on behalf of her ancestor Winifred Benham, part of a successful effort to absolve all the accused witches in Connecticut. Then in November 2025, she testified in Massachusetts for another ancestor, Mary Hale, Winifred’s mother, who was accused in the Boston Witch Trials.
While Massachusetts has systematically cleared names from the Salem trials over centuries, eight people convicted in Boston have been overlooked. House Bill 1927 seeks to finally exonerate these eight, including Mary Hale, and acknowledge hundreds more accused across the state whose lives were destroyed by accusations.
The act of speaking up spans generations. Family members in the 1600s risked being accused themselves by defending loved ones. Descendants petitioned through the 1700s and 1900s. In 2022, Elizabeth Johnson Jr. became the last Salem conviction cleared. Now it’s time for Boston’s victims to receive the same justice.
What’s in This Episode:
• The power of petitions across 333 years of seeking justice • Sarah Jack’s experiences testifying in Connecticut and Massachusetts • The history of witch trial exonerations from 1711 to 2022 • How Connecticut successfully cleared all their accused witches • Why eight Boston victims remain convicted while Salem cases were resolved • What you can do to support Massachusetts House Bill 1927 before the committee deadline
Key Topics:
Witch trial exonerations, Massachusetts House Bill 1927, Connecticut witch trials resolution, Boston Witch Trials, Winifred Benham, Mary Hale, Rebecca Nurse, Mary Esty, descendant testimony, historical justice, Joint Committee on Judiciary, Elizabeth Johnson Jr., Salem Witch Trials
Take Action:
The committee is still accepting written testimony through the end of January. Learn how you can add your voice at massachusettswitchtrials.org
Enjoy this author interview with New York Times bestselling author Kathleen Kent. Kathleen shares how she discovered her descent from Salem Witch Trials victim Martha Carrier and transformed that family history into her acclaimed debut novel, The Heretic’s Daughter.
Martha Carrier was executed on August 19, 1692, after refusing to confess to witchcraft. Accused of causing a deadly smallpox epidemic in Andover, Massachusetts, she stood her ground even when her own children were tortured into testifying against her. Today she’s remembered as a woman who wouldn’t confess to something she didn’t do.
In this conversation, Kathleen discusses her writing process, the challenges of bringing historical figures to life, and offers invaluable insights for aspiring historical fiction writers.
About Kathleen Kent
Kathleen Kent is a New York Times bestselling author whose books include The Heretic’s Daughter (winner of the David J. Langum Sr. Award for American Historical Fiction), The Traitor’s Wife, The Outcasts, and her Edgar Award-nominated crime trilogy. She is a member of the Texas Institute of Letters and teaches writing workshops for aspiring novelists.
Episode Highlights
How Kathleen discovered her connection to Martha Carrier
The research process behind The Heretic’s Daughter
Martha Carrier’s story
Advice for aspiring historical fiction writers
Balancing historical accuracy with compelling storytelling
Keywords
Salem Witch Trials, Martha Carrier, Kathleen Kent, The Heretic’s Daughter, historical fiction writing, Andover witch trials, Salem history, writing advice, Colonial America
More than 150 people were accused of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. Had the Court of Oyer and Terminer tried them all, they may all have been hanged.
They sat chained in dungeons to prevent their specters from roaming. They watched as friends and neighbors were dragged to the gallows. As the body count rose, the terror must have reached unimaginable levels. And yet the accusations kept coming.
How did an entire community participate in its own destruction?
In this essential introduction to The Thing About Salem, hosts Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack explore what made Salem different from every other witch hunt in American history. The mystery isn’t what ailed the afflicted girls. Why were people at the highest levels of society accused right alongside the usual suspects?
This episode reveals the forces that turned Salem Village into America’s deadliest witch hunt: warfare closing in on Massachusetts settlements, economic devastation, the collapse of political and religious certainty, and the kind of existential terror that makes the unthinkable seem reasonable.
In May 1692, one of Boston’s most respected citizens walked into a Salem courtroom—and the accusers couldn’t even identify him. Captain John Alden Jr., son of Mayflower passengers and decorated war hero, seemed an unlikely target for witchcraft accusations. But his connections to Native Americans and the French made him dangerous in the eyes of wartime Massachusetts.
What happened when Salem’s witch hunt reached beyond the village to pull in a prominent Bostonian with impeccable colonial credentials? This episode examines how Captain Alden’s examination revealed the absurdity and danger of the spectral evidence system and how his escape became one of the trial period’s most dramatic moments.
From his parents’ legendary Plymouth courtship to his own flight from justice, Captain Alden’s story shows us who could be accused, who could survive, and what it took to navigate Salem’s machinery of suspicion.
Episode Highlights:
John Alden Sr. and Priscilla: The last surviving Mayflower passenger and the marriage that inspired Longfellow
Captain Alden’s controversial fur trading and the rumors that made him a target
The chaotic May 31st examination where accusers needed prompting
The touch test, the sword, and the claims of “Indian Papooses”
His September escape to Duxbury and surprising return
Key Figures: Captain John Alden Jr., John & Priscilla Alden, Judges Bartholomew Gedney and John Richards, Rev. Samuel Willard, Robert Calef
The Thing About Salem examines the people, places, and events of the 1692 Salem witch trials. New episodes weekly.
When you think “Massachusetts witch trials,” you think Salem, 1692. But what if we told you that 44 years before Salem, Massachusetts was already executing people for witchcraft in Boston?
Between 1648 and 1693, more than 200 people were formally charged with witchcraft across Massachusetts. In 1957, the state cleared 31 Salem victims. But Boston’s victims have been forgotten.
On November 25, 2025, Bill H.1927 goes before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on the Judiciary to finally exonerate 8 individuals convicted of witchcraft in Boston and recognize everyone else who suffered accusations across Massachusetts.
Co-hosts Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack, descendants of Salem witch trial victims and co-founders of the Connecticut Witch Trial Exoneration Project, explain why Salem’s story is incomplete without Boston—and how YOU can help Massachusetts finish the job.
Before Salem: Boston’s Forgotten Victims
Five women were executed in Boston:
Margaret Jones (1648) – First person executed for witchcraft in Massachusetts, 44 years before Salem
Elizabeth Kendall (1651)
Alice Lake (1651)
Ann Hibbins (1656)
Goody Glover (1688) – Executed just 4 years before Salem, her case influenced Cotton Mather
Three others were convicted but not executed:
Hugh Parsons (1651)
Eunice Cole (1656-1680) Eunice was brought to court on witchcraft accusations over and over!
Cotton Mather was deeply involved in Goody Glover’s 1688 trial in Boston. Her execution influenced his thinking about witchcraft—thinking he brought to Salem just four years later.
The same fears, the same accusations, the same injustice—Boston laid the groundwork for what happened in Salem.
When Massachusetts cleared Salem’s victims in 1957, they left Boston’s victims behind.
What Bill H.1927 Does:
✅ Exonerates the 8 individuals convicted of witchcraft in Boston between 1647-1688
✅ Recognizes all others who suffered accusations across Massachusetts
✅ Completes the work Massachusetts started in 1957 when they cleared Salem’s victims
✅ Acknowledges that Salem wasn’t the beginning—Boston was
✅ Costs nothing – zero fiscal impact
How You Can Help RIGHT NOW:
1. Sign the Petition: Change.org/witchtrials – Over 14,000 signatures and growing
2. Contact Massachusetts Representatives: Email or call members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary before November 25th
3. Submit Written Testimony: Even if you can’t attend in person, your voice matters
4. Share This Episode: Help spread the word before the November 25th hearing
Why Salem’s Story Is Incomplete Without Boston:
For decades, we’ve told the story of Salem 1692 as if it appeared out of nowhere. But Massachusetts had been executing people for witchcraft since 1648.
The fears, the evidence, the methods—all of it was already established in Boston before it exploded in Salem.
You can’t understand Salem without understanding Boston.
Connecticut Showed It Could Be Done:
Josh and Sarah co-founded the Connecticut Witch Trial Exoneration Project and launched their podcast in 2022 to support the legislative effort. With help from listeners like you, Connecticut passed House Joint Resolution 34 in May 2023 with overwhelming bipartisan support, absolving 11 individuals and recognizing all others who suffered accusations.
You were part of Connecticut’s success from the beginning. Now Massachusetts needs you to help finish what they started in 1957.
Key Facts:
Boston’s first execution was in 1648—44 years before Salem
Goody Glover’s 1688 execution influenced Cotton Mather just 4 years before Salem
More than 200 people were formally charged with witchcraft in Massachusetts (1648-1693)
Massachusetts cleared 31 Salem victims in 1957, but left Boston’s victims behind
Massachusetts has already amended the 1957 Resolve twice (2001 and 2022)
Bill H.1927 simply continues this established pattern with zero fiscal impact
The November 25th Hearing:
When: November 25, 2025 Where: Massachusetts State House, Joint Committee on the Judiciary What: Public testimony on Bill H.1927
Even if you can’t attend, you can submit written testimony or contact committee members.
Why This Matters Today:
When we clear the names of historical victims, we acknowledge that witch hunting is not a relic of the past—it continues in the same form globally. The same patterns of accusation, fear, and injustice that started in Boston in 1648 and exploded in Salem in 1692 continue in witch hunts around the world today.
The Thing About Salem Co-hosted by Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack Descendants of Salem witch trial victims Co-founders of the Connecticut Witch Trial Exoneration Project A project of End Witch Hunts nonprofit organization
Massachusetts’ witch hunt history didn’t begin in Salem—and justice isn’t finished yet.
The Thing About Salem explores the 1692-1693 Salem witch trials in depth, examining the people, the trials, and the lasting impact on Massachusetts. But Salem wasn’t the beginning of witch hunting in the Commonwealth. Between 1647 and 1688, five women were executed for alleged witchcraft in Boston: Margaret Jones, Elizabeth Kendall, Alice Lake, Ann Hibbins, and Goody Glover.
These women were executed decades before the Salem panic began. Yet while Salem’s victims have been exonerated, these five Boston women remain the only people executed for witchcraft in New England who have never been cleared.
Massachusetts has an opportunity to honor all its witch trial victims. Bill H.1927 will finally bring them justice.
The Scale of Massachusetts Witch Trials
Between 1638 and 1693, more than 200 individuals were formally charged with witchcraft by Massachusetts courts. During this dark chapter:
At least 250 individuals were accused of witchcraft in Massachusetts
More than 200 were complained of, implicated in court, questioned, arrested, and/or imprisoned
38 people were convicted of witchcraft (30 in Salem, 8 in Boston)
25 people died: 19 hanged in Salem, 5 hanged in Boston, and Giles Corey pressed to death in Salem
At least six additional people died in jail while awaiting trial or execution
The witch trials spanned over five decades across Massachusetts, from the earliest accusations through the Salem panic. Most attention has focused on Salem, but the Commonwealth’s witch hunting began much earlier in Boston.
Massachusetts State House
The Boston Eight: Those Convicted in the Capital
Bill H.1927 seeks to exonerate 8 individuals convicted of witchcraft in Boston between 1647 and 1688:
The Five Executed:
Margaret Jones (executed 1648) was a woman whose medicines were deemed too effective, her skill too powerful. When neighbors’ misfortunes occurred, she became the scapegoat. She maintained her innocence to the very end. Margaret was the first person executed for witchcraft in Massachusetts.
Elizabeth Kendall (executed between 1647 and 1651) was falsely accused by a nurse who blamed her for a child’s death, a child who had actually died from the nurse’s own negligence. Even after the nurse’s fraudulent testimony was revealed, Elizabeth was never exonerated.
Alice Lake (executed c. 1650) was a mother of four who had been judged harshly for choices she made as a young woman. That judgment haunted her and was weaponized against her when witchcraft accusations arose.
Ann Hibbins (executed 1656) was called “quarrelsome” for speaking her mind and refusing to accept unfair treatment. Her husband had been an Assistant in the Massachusetts General Court, but even her connections couldn’t save her from being targeted as a widow with property.A character based on Ann Hibbins later appeared in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter.
Goody Glover (executed 1688) was an Irish Catholic widow whose first language was Gaelic. An outsider within her community, she became an easy target when children exhibited strange behaviors. Her execution came just four years before the Salem panic began. A plaque dedicated to her memory describes her as “the first Catholic martyr in Massachusetts” and stands on a Catholic church in Boston’s North End.
The Three Convicted But Not Executed:
Hugh Parsons (convicted 1652) of Springfield was tried in Boston. He was initially convicted but the General Court overturned his conviction and he was released from jail in June 1652. He moved to Rhode Island with his daughter Hannah.
Eunice Cole (convicted 1656 and 1673) of Hampton was convicted and imprisoned, though records are incomplete. She was whipped and spent years in and out of jail over witch hunt accusations spanning from 1656 to 1680. She may have been spared execution for reasons unknown. Hampton, New Hampshire formally recognized her in 1938, but Massachusetts never officially cleared her name.
Elizabeth Morse (convicted 1680) of Newbury was convicted and sentenced to death, but her sentence was reduced and she was eventually released. Her case involved accusations from her grandson and neighbors who claimed spectral evidence and mysterious occurrences.
These eight individuals—five executed, three imprisoned—all suffered grave injustices. None have been officially exonerated by Massachusetts. None have received an acknowledgment.
Bill H.1927: Completing Massachusetts’ Work
Massachusetts has already taken steps to address its witch trial legacy. The Salem witch trial victims have been exonerated through legislation passed in 1703, 1711, 1957, 2001, and most recently in 2022, when Elizabeth Johnson Jr. became the last Salem victim to be cleared.
But Massachusetts has never issued an official acknowledgment of any non-Salem witch trial victims, and the eight Boston-area victims have never been exonerated at all.
Bill H.1927, proposed by Rep. Steven Owens of Cambridge and Watertown, will:
Clear the names of the 8 individuals convicted of witchcraft in Boston
Recognize all others who suffered witchcraft accusations in Massachusetts
Finally address the incomplete justice that has left these victims behind for nearly 400 years
The Hearing: November 25, 2025
The Joint Committee on the Judiciary will hold a hearing on Bill H.1927 on November 25, 2025. This is a critical opportunity for Massachusetts residents, descendants, historians, and anyone who cares about the Commonwealth’s history to voice their support.
Massachusetts residents’ voices carry particular weight. Written testimony can be submitted to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary. Consider including:
These people were innocent
Why Massachusetts should exonerate all its witch trial victims
How this legislation honors the Commonwealth’s commitment to justice
Why an official acknowledgment matters for descendants and for Massachusetts’ historical record
The connection between understanding past injustices and preventing modern persecution
3. Contact Your Massachusetts Legislators
Find your state representative and senator. Tell them you support H.1927. Massachusetts exonerated the Salem victims but left the Boston-area victims behind. Ask your legislators to honor all the witch trial victims and ensure every person wrongly convicted receives justice and an official acknowledgment.
4. Spread the Word
Share this post and information about H.1927. Use hashtags like #H1927, #WitchTrialJustice, #MassachusettsHistory, #maswitchhuntjusticeproject.
Listen to The Thing About Salem: We explore Salem witch trial history in depth
Listen to The Thing About Witch Hunts: Our companion podcast connects Massachusetts history to witch hunting worldwide
Why This Matters for Massachusetts
The patterns that led to executions in colonial Massachusetts—scapegoating outsiders, targeting vulnerable women, using fear to justify injustice, denying basic rights—didn’t disappear after 1693. Understanding this history helps us recognize similar patterns today, both in Massachusetts and around the world where witch hunts continue.
By formally exonerating these victims and acknowledging what was done to them, Massachusetts demonstrates that confronting injustice honestly matters. This legislation acknowledges that:
These people did not have a diabolical pact with the devil. They were innocent people falsely accused.
It was human agency that executed alleged witches, not a community deluded by the devil. People made these choices and people must take responsibility for the injustice.
Previous efforts are incomplete. Massachusetts has exonerated those convicted during the 1692 and 1693 Salem witch trials, but has never issued an official acknowledgement of any Massachusetts witch trial victims outside of the Salem Witch-Hunt.
Justice delayed is justice denied. These eight individuals have waited nearly 400 years. Massachusetts can honor them now.
Massachusetts’ Opportunity
When Connecticut passed its exoneration resolution in 2023, it set an example for how a state can fully address its witch trial legacy—with both exoneration and apology. Massachusetts can follow this model and complete the work it began decades ago.
The Commonwealth has a chance to demonstrate that it values truth, acknowledges injustice, and honors all who suffered under its colonial courts.
Eight people convicted of witchcraft in Boston have waited nearly four centuries. Five were hanged. Three endured imprisonment and lifelong stigma.
Will Massachusetts finally bring them justice?
The Thing About SalemExploring the Salem witch trials in depthA companion podcast to The Thing About Witch HuntsCo-hosted by Josh Hutchinson and Sarah JackA project of End Witch Hunts
Does this work? I’ve added the overall Massachusetts statistics and details about Hugh Parsons, Eunice Cole, and Elizabeth Morse—the three convicted but not executed.
Not all witch trials were the Salem Witch Trials. To truly understand the infamous Salem Witch Trials of 1692-1693, we must examine the broader context of witch hunting that swept through colonial America. This episode explores the extensive history of witch trials in British North America that preceded and influenced the Salem events, revealing how witch hunts affected dozens of communities across New England and beyond.
Key Topics Covered
The Context Behind Salem
Why Salem didn’t happen in a bubble
European influence on colonial witch trials
How English writings shaped Salem court decisions
The role of European witchcraft tales in accuser testimonies
Pre-Salem Witch Trials in New England (1647-1691)
Connecticut Witch Trials
Alice Young of Windsor – First execution, May 26, 1647
How the Goodwin children became the model for Salem’s afflicted
Witch Trials Beyond New England
Virginia
First accusation: Joan Wright (1626)
William Harding conviction (1656)
Grace Sherwood, “Witch of Pungo” – water ordeal trial (1706)
Maryland
Multiple accusations investigated
Rebecca Fowler execution (1685)
John Cowman conviction
Maine, New Hampshire & Vermont
Goody Cole trials across jurisdictions
Massachusetts Bay control influence
Salem’s Wider Impact
The 1692-1693 Salem Witch Trials affected numerous communities:
Andover
Boston
Maine and New Hampshire territories
Connecticut spinoff: Katharine Branch case (1692)
Episode Highlights
First witch trial execution in colonial America: Alice Young, 1647
Total colonial witch trial scope: Over 65 indictments across multiple colonies
Geographic spread: From Connecticut to Maine, Virginia to Maryland
Timeline: 45+ years of witch trials before Salem
Legal precedents: How earlier trials shaped Salem procedures
Resources & Further Learning
Check out the hosts’ companion podcast: The Thing About Witch Hunts for deeper dives into European witch trial history and modern witchcraft persecution worldwide.
SEO Keywords
Salem Witch Trials, colonial witch trials, New England witch hunts, Alice Young witch trial, Connecticut witch trials, Massachusetts witch trials, Goody Glover, Cotton Mather, Grace Sherwood, Hartford Witch Panic, colonial America witchcraft, pre-Salem witch trials, New England history, colonial justice system
The Thing About Salem podcast explores the real history behind one of America’s most infamous events. New episodes dive deep into the social, legal, and cultural factors that led to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692-1693.
