The Crucible is a play about the Salem Witch Trials written by Arthur Miller. The play debuted on Broadway in January of 1953 and has since become an American classic. Although the play is based on the Salem Witch Trials, it was intended to be an allegory for the Red…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Elizabeth Proctor, wife of Salem Village farmer John Proctor, was accused of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. The Proctors were a wealthy family who lived on a large rented farm on the outskirts of Salem Village, in what is now modern-day Peabody, Massachusetts. Elizabeth, Proctor's third wife,…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Rebecca Nurse was a 71-year-old grandmother and wife of a local artisan when she was accused of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials. Nurse was also the sister of accused witches Mary Easty and Sarah Cloyce and the daughter of suspected witch Joanna Blessing Towne. Born in Yarmouth, England in…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Tituba was a slave who worked for Samuel Parris during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The various documents and books about the Salem Witch Trials over the years often refer to Tituba as Black or mixed race, but the actual court documents from her trial refer to her as…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Salem Village was a farming community on the northern edge of Salem Town during the 17th century. It is famous for being the place where the Salem Witch Trials first began in 1692. The village is now a historic district within the town of Danvers, Massachusetts. The area was originally…| History of Massachusetts Blog
George Burroughs was a minister who was accused of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. George Burroughs Childhood and Early Life: Burroughs was born in Suffolk, England in 1652 and migrated to the settlement of Roxbury in the Massachusetts Bay Colony with his mother when he was a…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Elizabeth “Betty” Parris was the first afflicted girl and one of the main accusers during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Born in Boston on November 28, 1682, Betty moved to Salem with her family and slave Tituba in November of 1689 when her father, Samuel Parris, was appointed the…| History of Massachusetts Blog
Abigail Williams was one of the first afflicted girls in the Salem Witch Trials. Despite the fact that she was one of the main accusers during the Salem Witch Trials, not much is known about Abigail Williams before or even after the trials ended. What historians do know is that…| History of Massachusetts Blog
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 were a dark time in American history. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were killed during the hysteria. Ever since those dark days ended, the trials have become synonymous with mass hysteria and scapegoating. The following are some facts…| History of Massachusetts Blog
The Salem Village Parsonage archaeological site is the location of the Salem Village parsonage during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. The parsonage is where Reverend Samuel Parris, his wife Elizabeth Parris, their three children, including daughter Betty Parris, their niece Abigail Williams and their slaves, Tituba and John Indian,…| History of Massachusetts Blog