This Day in History: 29 February 2020
29 February 1692
328 years ago, today, the first people, Sarah Good, Sarah Osbourne and Tituba, were accused of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts. During the 14th century, the belief in the supernatural, especially in the devil and his practice of giving some humans the power to harm others, had emerged in Europe and colonial New England. A month prior, two young girl named Elizabeth Parris and Abigail Williams began having fits of screaming and violence, and the local doctor diagnosed them with bewitchment. Other young women in the community began to experience similar symptoms, such as Ann Putnam Jr., Mercy Lewis and Mary Warren. Arrests warrants were later issued for the Parris' Caribbean slave, Tituba, along with two other women: the homeless beggar, Sarah Good, and the poor, elderly Sarah Osborn. The girls diagnosed had accused them of bewitching them.
The three convicted witches were brought before the magistrates, Jonathan Corwin and John Hathorne, and were questioned. Even their accusers appeared in the courtroom, and were consumed by spasms, contortions, screaming and writhing. Good and Osborn denied the guilt, but Tituba confessed and was found guilty, but claimed that other witches were acting alongside her in service of the devil, against the Puritans. Hysteria began to spread throughout the community and beyond Massachusetts, leading to many others being accused, including the four-year-old daughter of Sarah Good. Several other 'witches' confessed, and trials would soon begin to overwhelm the local justice system.
Want to find out more about the Salem Witch Trials? Click here for more information, or click here to watch a cartoon on the events.
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