Hi Amy, This book, that you described, certainly sounds like what I'm looking for! I too, have been reading up on everthing I can put my hands on, about the Salem witch trials, as I had 4 ancestors who were tried and convicted, one was even put to death by hanging and a friend of mine, has an ancestor as well. I haven't been able to learn very much about them and I'd like to learn more details of their lives and etc. Could you please tell me where I can order the Marilynne Roach book-The SALEM WITCH TRIALS, I'm assuming, that it's a recent book that has just been published, or am I wrong? Please let me know. Bea Amy Bond Simpson wrote: > If any of you want to read an excellent book on the Salem witch trials, this is it! > It is the BEST book I have seen on this subject. I have a rather extensive personal library and many books on this particular subject. > > The book is easy to read and is well documented. The index is very user-friendly and the appendixes are extremely well planned. > > AS I have been reading everything I could about the Salem Witch Trials, I was pleased to find information that was new to me. The nearly 40 pages of end notes prove this book to be well documented and the bibliography shows that the authoress did extensive research. > > I especially like the day to day and town to town format. > > This is not a book that can be read in an evening. It has nearly 700 pages! It is a book that can be read many different ways. You can start at the beginning or look up favorite persons in the index or just leaf through, looking for items of interest. The maps and pictures are sure to take time. > > We should all thank Marilynne Roach for writing this fascinating book. > > Amy Simpson

If any of you want to read an excellent book on the Salem witch trials, this is it! It is the BEST book I have seen on this subject. I have a rather extensive personal library and many books on this particular subject. The book is easy to read and is well documented. The index is very user-friendly and the appendixes are extremely well planned. AS I have been reading everything I could about the Salem Witch Trials, I was pleased to find information that was new to me. The nearly 40 pages of end notes prove this book to be well documented and the bibliography shows that the authoress did extensive research. I especially like the day to day and town to town format. This is not a book that can be read in an evening. It has nearly 700 pages! It is a book that can be read many different ways. You can start at the beginning or look up favorite persons in the index or just leaf through, looking for items of interest. The maps and pictures are sure to take time. We should all thank Marilynne Roach for writing this fascinating book. Amy Simpson

just thought I'd introduce myself and say hi to everyone. My name is Dave and I live in Seattle, but I used to live in Connecticut and have been to what is called "Salem Village" in Massachussetts. AmyStrange is the name of my kitty (in case you were wondering), and I have had an almost lifelong fascination with the Salem Witch Trials. I have even written an article about it. It was suppose to be written for a newsletter, but the newsletter seems to have folded even before it actually got started so it was never published. I didn't write it for money so it didn't really matter that it never got published, but I think I did a pretty good job on it. In case you want to read it, you can find it here: http://www.AmyStrange.com/SalemWitchTrials.html Thanx everyone for listening and I can't wait to get started and participate in what I'm sure will be some cool and fascinating discussions, Dave <AmyStrange@AmyStrange.com> Ayotte http://www.AmyStrange.com/MyLifeStory.html http://www.SeattleActivist.org ALL my webpages (like my mind) are ALWAYS under construction

At 05:24 PM 11/23/02, ALums48454@aol.com wrote: >I am reading the new Witchcraft book which takes each day and its happenings. > It is pretty well documented..and rather dull actually. It appears that >some property and goods were taken in a number of cases. It sounds a bit >like Corwin did pretty well out of it. Those poor jailed people had to pay >for being jailed and that seems to have been at least one basis for the >confiscations. >Abby Abby, which "new Witchcraft book" is this? Thanks!

At the time of the trials, witchcraft was one of those serious felonies for which the convicted person was "attainted" -- that is, their property, both real estate and personal property, was forfeited to the Crown. Attainder was in addition to any other punishment. The surviving relatives of the convicted "witch" could apply to have the attainder lifted (thereby restoring the property to the family members) but they were usually unsuccessful. Legislation passed by the General Court (the colonial legislature) in 1711 lifted the attainders of some of the convicted Salem witches, but not all of them. Of course, in those few cases where the attainder was lifted, the authorities would deduct the cost of the accused's room and board in jail before returning the property to the family.

Subject: Steven Johnson & Elizabeth Dane; Andover Is anyone able to help me solve this with information and facts? I am supporting my data and was sourcing dates, names and places with this family and their children. I come across an abnormal recording of their children's birth. A gap of four years! This family had six of ten of their children recorded in vital records of Andover. Seven, if you include Elizabeth' death. I can not find any information on the twins, Benjamin and Joseph, and their younger brother Stephen Johnson who were born between 1677 and 1679. From another secondary source I have actual dates for them but can not substantiate with vital record information. Their older sister Abigail (1) is listed in 1675, along with her death, and the younger sister named for the previous Abigail (2) in 1681. Marriage date for the parents is recorded in 1661. Their first child Elizabeth is not recorded except for her death and the first birth that is recorded is for Ann Johnson in 1668. Their first five children died young, accordingly to the vital records. Was there a probate or a will for the parents? This family was caught up in the Andover witchcraft craze in 1692 and is well documented. Did the family leave and return during these four years? Is it there and I am just missing it? After 1692, there are no known death dates for Steven Johnson and his wife Elizabeth (Dane) Johnson. Did they leave the area? Their youngest child Francis, along with one others sibling, Abigail stay and married in Andover and other Essex towns (Boxford). I seem to can not find anything on Benjamin and Joseph, but I did find that Steven (2) aged 13 was imprisoned for 5 weeks for witchcraft. Children of the two are listed below: Elizabeth Johnson Ann Johnson Stephen Johnson Mary Johnson Abigail Johnson Benjamin Johnson Joseph Johnson Stephen Johnson Abigail Johnson Francis Johnson ________________________________________________________________ Sign Up for Juno Platinum Internet Access Today Only $9.95 per month! Visit www.juno.com

I am reading the new Witchcraft book which takes each day and its happenings. It is pretty well documented..and rather dull actually. It appears that some property and goods were taken in a number of cases. It sounds a bit like Corwin did pretty well out of it. Those poor jailed people had to pay for being jailed and that seems to have been at least one basis for the confiscations. Abby

Does anyone know when (the years) that Bartolomew Gedney served as the Probate Judge for Essex Co. ? -- Helen Graves

I am trying to determine if the real estate owned by those who were found guilty was confiscated or not. >From the numerous books I have been using in my research, High Sheriff George Corwin confiscated personal property (the "moveables") -- i.e. anything of value in the house, crops, food, animals, and other assets, such as the ships owned by Philip English. However, so far I can find no reference as to whether the real property (real estate) was confiscated. I did find reference to a term "forfeitures" which may or may not have pertained to real estate. Does anyone have further information on "forfeitures". Does anyone know what the legality was concerning the real estate owned by the accused and convicted ? Or does anyone have documented proof that any real estate was seized ? -- Helen Graves

Hi Everyone, I'm new to the list and I have a few ancestors who were tried and convicted of witchcraft, during the Salem Witch Trials. All but one of them, escaped execution. Margaret (Stevenson) Scott. I know, very little about her, exept that, she married June 1642, Benjamin Scott. He d. September 1671 in Rowley, Ma. I'm hoping, that someone will have alittle more info. on her, her date of birth, parents or etc, anything at all. Thank-you so much. Bea

>From Cathy Brinkman: >The book is Currents of Malice, Mary Towne Esty and Her Family in Salem >Witchcraft, by Persis W. McMillen, Peter E. Randall Publisher, 1990. Thank you muchly, Cathy! I got only a brief look at the book several years ago and forgot to bnote the title and author. I'm not a descendant of Mary but my impression was that the book would be a goldmine for her descendants. Francine Nicholson _________________________________________________________________ STOP MORE SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

The book is Currents of Malice, Mary Towne Esty and Her Family in Salem Witchcraft, by Persis W. McMillen, Peter E. Randall Publisher, 1990. Cathy Brinkman Karen wrote: > I would like to know the name of the book you are talking about. > > Thanks, > > Karen (a descendant of Mary)

Francine wrote: Does Enders Robinson explore this aspect, too? And there's a book on Mary Easty and her relatives that emphasizes the role of neighborly feuds, isn't there? It seems to me that neighborly feuds play a significant roles in moat cases of witchcraft, especially since in most cases, one neighbor is accusing another of doing harm to person or property. When I was reading the accusations against Elixabeth Morse, it struck me just how angry the accusers were. The young men who accused her were just as angry about the fact that she didn't speak to them with the respect they thought they should receive from a woman as they were about sheep dying. I would like to know the name of the book you are talking about. Thanks, Karen (a descendant of Mary)

You wrote: >>Another author, John Demos, analyzed the social and psychological >>characteristics of the participants. He found that the accused were mostly >>married women between the ages 40 and 60 with some kind of personal >>eccentricity. I haven't read Mary Beth Norton's book, but I saw her presentation on CSPAN II. I think she contradicts this notion, at least if you look outside Salem, and considering that at least half the accused were from outside Salem, I think one should look at the accused from outside Salem. >The accusers were divided into two categories- those that experienced fits who ended up being mostly single girls between the ages of 8 and 20, and those people who had experienced some misfortune that they attributed to witchcraft. This second group had no unifiying characteristic except that they tended to be neighbors of the accused! I believe that the neighborly connection between accused and accusers is one of the main points of Demos' book, _Entertaining Satan_, which is generally considered a "classic" on the subject and well worth reading. It was something that immediately struck me when I started researching Elizabeth Morse, and it's something that I think merits even more research (if I ever can manage it!). Does Enders Robinson explore this aspect, too? And there's a book on Mary Easty and her relatives that emphasizes the role of neighborly feuds, isn't there? It seems to me that neighborly feuds play a signficant roles in moat cases of witchcraft, especially since in most cases, one neighjbor is accusing another of doing harm to person or property. When I was reading the accusations againsty Elixabeth Morse, it struck me just how angry the accusers were. The young men who accused her were just as angry about the fact that she didn't speak to them with the respect they thought they should receive from a woman as they were about sheep dying. Francine Nicholson _________________________________________________________________ Add photos to your e-mail with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail

I am about two thirds of the way through Witches and Historians: Interpretations of Salem second edition by Marc Mappen. This book examines the historical views of what happened at Salem from Cotton Mather to Carol Karlsen and Richard Godbeer. I have read some interesting viewpoints that I have never considered before. One author, Lawrence Stone, made the point that although belief in the supernatural was a part of the culture at that time, the Reformation theologians had discarded the only "cure" for such ills as occured at Salem- practices such as exorcism. Another author, John Demos, analyzed the social and psychological characteristics of the participants. He found that the accused were mostly married women between the ages 40 and 60 with some kind of personal eccentricity. The accusers were divided into two categories- those that experienced fits who ended up being mostly single girls between the ages of 8 and 20, and those people who had experienced some misfortune th! at they attributed to witchcraft. This second group had no unifiying characteristic except that they tended to be neighbors of the accused! This is a very interesting book and I highly recommend it. Cindy

I started an outline to keep track of my Salem connections through my greatgreat grandparents Joseph Howard Jr. and Anna Gregg because it was starting to look like one giant spider web in my mind. I'd like to share it becuase I have some less common lines and have made some connections between participants that I haven't seen noted. If I've made any mistakes, let me know-I'm just a beginner. Cindy My Salem Connections I. The Accusers: A. Isaac Cummings 1. Relationship- 8th great-grandfather through Anna Gregg Son: Isaac Cummings Jr. Wife: Mary Andrews Cummings All testified against Elizabeth How 2. Mary's two brothers: John Andrews, Joseph Andrews, Testified to what John Andrews above testified to regarding Sarah Wildes B. Ann Carr Putnam 1. Relationship- sister of Sarah Carr Baker, 8th great-grandmother through Anna Gregg C. John and William Carr 1. Relationship- brothers of Sarah Carr Baker, 8th great-grandmother through Anna Gregg 2. John is the one whom the aged Mrs. Mary Perkins Bradbury was convicted of bewitching in 1692, so that he became crazed and prematurely died. His brother William's testimony at the trial shows that the proposed match of John and Jemima True was broken off by his father and John became melancholy and at times insane. D. Goody Pope 1. Relationship- either: Bonfanti-Gertrude Shattuck : stepmother of Damaris Pope, 9th great-grandmother through Joseph Howard Jr. Would have been 67 yrs. Other sources: Bathshua Folger Pope, sister-in-law of Damaris Pope, would have been abt 42, living with widow Gertrude.Charles Sutherland Tapley in his book about Rebecca Nurse says Mrs. Joseph Pope, (which could be either Gertrude or Bethshua). He also says she was one of the first to denounce the delusion. She was a participant at several trials. F. Thomas Ruck 1. Relationship- 8th great-grandfather though Joseph Howard Jr. 2. Testified against George Burroughs G. John Gould and Zacheus Perkins 1.Zacheus Perkins, son of Thomas Perkins and Phebe Gould (ninth great-grandparents through Anna Gregg) John Gould, brother of Phebe 2. Testified against Sarah Averill Wildes II. The Accused A. The Towne Sisters- sisters of Joseph Towne, 8th great-grandfather through Anna Gregg 1. Rebecca Nurse- 2. Sarah Cloyse 3. Mary Easty- B. George Burroughs 1. Relationship-wife Sarah Ruck was sister of Thomas Ruck- 8th great-grandfather through Joseph Howard Jr. C. Daniel Andrews and sister Rebecca 1. Relationship-children of Thomas Andrews mentioned under Isaac Cummings above (Thomas was brother-in-law of Isaac Cummings 8th great-grandfather through Anna Gregg) D. George Jacobs Sr. 1. Father-in law of Rebecca Andrews above E. Mary Perkins Bradbury, daughter of John Perkins and Judith, sister of Thomas Perkins married to Phebe Gould, and aunt of Phebe Perkins married to Joseph Towne, Joseph Towne, 8th great-grandfather through Anna Gregg III. Witnesses and Defenders Joseph Putnam and Elizabeth Porter were parents of Israel Putnam. His wife Hannah Danvers Pope was the granddaughter of Joseph Pope, brother of Damaris Pope Buffum 9th great grandmother through Joseph Howard Jr. Her daughter Damaris married Thomas Ruck above. IV. Ministers, Judges and Lawyers A. Reverend Deodat Lawson 1. Relationship- son-in-law of Hope Allen 10th great-grandfather through Joseph Howard Jr. 2. Role -third minister in Danvers (Salem Village) after George Burroughs and before Samuel Parris. He also took extensive notes at the trial B. Reverend James Bailey 1. Wife Mary Relationship- sister of Sarah Carr Baker, 8th great-grandmother through Anna Gregg 2. Role - James Bailey was the first minister in Danvers

Dear Salem Witch group - I received the following note from a 9th grade student researching the trails. I thought this group might be able to help with this project - see list of questions, below. Please contact Mitchell directly at CMJ2DRJ2@shtc.net - Thanks. Cathy Hartt, RN, CNM, MS Editor - Empower! women empowering women www.HarttWeb.com/empower cathycnm@msn.com "If you do follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in the field of your bliss, and they open doors to you. I say, Follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and doors will open where you didn't know they were going to be." Joseph Campbell ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mitchell Jordan" <CMJ2DRJ2@shtc.net> To: <cathycnm@msn.com> Sent: Saturday, November 09, 2002 4:46 PM Subject: salem witch trials > Dear Ms. Hartt, > My name is Haigan Jordan. I am a 9th grade student at Cheraw High > School. I am working on a National History Day Project, concerning the > Salem Witch Trials. I am trying to prove that the accused victims had no > rights and were wrongly executed. While searching for information on the > internet, I came across your web site and discovered that you are a > descendant of Elizabeth Hartt, Mary Easty, and Rebecca Nurse, who is Mary > Easty's sister. When I read about you and your connections with these > accused people I knew I would like to contact you to see if you would be > willing to provide me with any information about these trials. If you could > send me any papers or additional sources it would be greatly appreciated. > My address is 303 Diane Drive > Cheraw, South > Carolina 29520 > > > My E-mail address is CMJ2DRJ2@shtc.net. Please contact me as soon as > possible. Thanks in advance for your time and effort! > > Here are a few questions that I thought I might add if you had time to > answer them. > > Do you feel that it was the responsibility of the court to convict innocent > people in order to prevent more chaos? Why? > > > Do you believe that the accused had any rights to try to defend themselves? > > > Why do you think the "AFFLICTED" girls blamed innocent people? > > > Did you find the Court Of Oyer and Terminer to be very unfair? > > > Do you feel that the accused should have confessed to witchcraft even > though they were innocent, in order to prevent execution? > > Can you tell me any of the Tests that were preformed on the accused to try > to prove witchcraft was being practiced? > > Do you believe that Tituba should have been executed? > > >

Hello all: I have not suggested noe do I now recommend that an accusation of "mischief" should automatically be interpreted as witchcraft. However, I do think that the close association of mischief with witchcraft justifies research to see whetheer a woman accused of witchcraft was assumed to be a witch, no matter what the date was. If I remember correctly, there was some questioning of whether other crimes were charged when the accusers were actuaqlly thinking "witchcraft." I've found one possible case in an article from Journal of Black Studies, Sep94, Vol. 25 Issue 1, p99, 19p by Timothy J. McMillan. The title is BLACK MAGIC: WITCHCRAFT, RACE, AND RESISTANCE IN COLONIAL NEW ENGLAND." McMillan notes two cases in which black slaves were convicted of arson. However, instead of receiving the usual punishments, one was burnt. The other was hung and then his bordy was burnt on the same spot where the woman was burnt, so that their shes would mingle. McMillan points out that though the crime was arson, the punishment corresponds to that used in Europe for witches (and I'd add, heretics). McMillan argues--persuasively, I think--that in the minds of the magistrates and the accusers, the accused were witches, and though they were convicted of arson, they were treated the way witches were in Europe. Btw, the burning occurred in Roxbury--is that Middlesex or Suffolk County? Of course, burning blacks for various crimes continued to happen in various colonies--it seems to be a race-related thing. So, it may not be that notions of witchcraft were involved. McMillan notes that in the eighteenth century in NYC, "The use of this traditional method of execution [burning] demonstrates the fear among Whites of the satanic power possessed by Blacks and the need to cleanse their society of the threat." McMillan notes that burning, the ultimate method of execution, associated with destroying heretics and witches, was used on blacks accused of committing or plotting violence against whites or their property--and we're back to associations with "mischief." Incidentally,one of the black women who was accused at Salem confessed to having a knotted handkerchief and other objects that would be used in image magic, good or bad. McMillan notes that, "Peoples of African origin were considered to traffic with devils and actually resembled Satan himself." Repeatedly in New England records, the devil is described as a "black man" (although there are also associations with Indians or "tawnies," a point McMillan does not make.) Francine Nicholson _________________________________________________________________ Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

>From : Margo Burns <margo@ogram.org> >It may seem that way, but according to Mary Beth Norton's book, it was not. >The magistrates spent a great deal of time and care researching English law >on the subject. In fact, it was more common for accusations of witchcraft >to boomerang on an accuser with a countersuit of libel. And one feature of >the trials that made Salem truly unusual was that the magistrates ignored >the precedent that spectral evidence alone could not be enough to convict >someone. On the subject of the use of spectral evidence I recommend the following article (I'm including the abstract for those who may not have access): "SPECTRAL EVIDENCE, NON-SPECTRAL ACTS OF WITCHCRAFT, AND CONFESSION AT SALEM IN 1692" by WENDEL D. CRAKER University of Georgia abstract. It is commonly asserted that people were hanged at Salem on charges of spectral appearance ; and the way to avoid hanging was to confess. Non-spectral acts of witchcraft are regarded as inconsequential to the outcome of the trials. Yet it was the non-spectral acts which provided the one magnet that attracted attention from the court. No one charged only with spectral appearance was even tried. The reprieves granted to confessors were the last decisions the court was allowed to make. This profile provides evidence that the standard claims about the court of oyer and terminer's use of evidence are the reverse of what actually happened, and highlights a number of patterns that have gone unremarked, requiring fresh interpretations." Incidentally, may I make a request: could the listmembers be so kind as to quote only the portion of messages to which they are referring? Sometimes it's difficult, especially if you subscribe to the Digest as I do, to distinguish what's new from what's being quoted. Also, not all of us have unlimited bandwidth, and it's something of a hardship to download a lengthy message, only to find that all but a couple of lines quoted previously posted messages. I'd really appreciate it if others could snip previous messages except where they're being referred to directly. ThankS! Francine Nicholson _________________________________________________________________ MSN 8 helps eliminate e-mail viruses. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/virus

Being a white witch, like being elderly, was one of the things that could increase a person's chances of being accused of witchcraft. But Elizabeth Morse's experiences were not typical for a white witch -- any more than Rebecca Nurse's experiences were those of the typical elderly woman. It would be very wrong to say that the New England witch trials were caused by prejudice against or intolerance of white witches. The people New Englanders feared were the cow- and child-killing "black" witches who didn't exist. There are several strands of evidence that support this conclusion. 1) Contemporary accounts. Religious leaders, particularly Puritans, stress the popularity that white witches enjoyed. Almost all contemporary guides to witch-hunting discuss this. New England Puritan clergy mounted a major campaign in the 1680s to try to convince people that helpful magic was evil, like harmful magic. If most people feared/hated white witches, they wouldn't have needed to do that. (Richard Godbeer's book that I mentioned has a good discussion of the New England sermons and books which attacked popular acceptance of helpful magic.) 2) Studies of lists of white witches and midwives. These unfortunately come from England (where churches were supposed to keep lists of notorious sinners) and may not be completely applicable to America. But where we have lists we can see that white witches were extremely common. The churches in Essex County, for instance, reported 41 practicing white witches living in their county alone, and another 20 operating in the county area. Few of these people seem to have been accused of witchcraft. (Thomas summarizes this material.) Anecdotal evidence suggests that something similar happened in America. Many anonymous white witches appear in the accounts of colonial life; only a few ended up accused of witchcraft. 3) Witchcraft laws and the populace's reactions to them. If people hated all magic equally, all forms of magic would have been illegal. Witches would have been prosecuted, whether or not there was "evidence" of them causing harm. Neither of these things were true. Even New England, which had some of the most "clerical" laws around, did not class all magic as witchcraft. Witchcraft was defined as having a familiar spirit and lay people did not believe that you needed to have a familiar to do magic. Even some clergy, like John Hale, admitted that some magic users might not have a compact with Satan. Some people, Hale said, did what they did "ignorantly, in misbelief." The trials themselves demonstrate that people generally limited their accusations to perceived magical criminals. In England and New England there are almost no trials where a witch was accused simply because she was a magical healer. I don't know the exact statistics for American trials off-hand, but I believe they all contained accusations of harmful magic. There are approximately six cases from England that involved pure healing. (The cases are listed in Thomas, pg 246) I am not arguing that being a healer had no impact on your chances of being accused. It did -- like marital status, like sex, like age. However white witches like Elizabeth Morse were the exceptions, not the norm. People might harbor ambiguous feelings towards white witches. How could they not, with their clergy raving about how evil these people were? But contemporary accounts show that most colonial New Englanders believed in the possibility of morally neutral magic, and of good witches. Being considered a white witch did not automatically lead to being hated. >>I'm hoping someone will do a thorough examination of the court records, the local histories, and the books people were reading to examine what people in New England actually thought and how their ideas determined their actions.<< Richard Godbeer's _The Devil's Dominion: Magic and Religion in Early New England_ (Cambridge University Press, 1992) is a great start. Very similar to David Hall's excellent works, which you mentioned. Godbeer discusses the differences between popular and clerical attitudes towards white magic in New England. He then explores how Puritans justified this apparent intellectual dichotomy. Jenny Gibbons