Salem

fungus contaminated the crops harvested by the people of Salem, Massachusetts which developed the hallucinations of the citizens and started the Salem Witch Trials. In 1692, they harvested a great deal of wheat, rye and cereal grasses. Ergot, or ergot poisoning, is a fungus that attacks the central nervous system and causes muscle contractions, confusion, impaired speech, crawling sensations on the skin and hallucinations. The girls in Salem had feelings of pricking or pinching skin sensations,…

The Salem Witchcraft Hysteria The Salem witchcraft hysteria is an event that occurred during the February 0f 1692 through May of 1693 in colonial Massachusetts. There were a series of trails that resulted in twenty executions, one hanging, and five deaths in prison, all of people accused of witchcraft. The question you may ask is what caused the Salem witch trails. That question has been asked since the event occurred. Will anyone ever have a definitive answer? Probably not, it is not a complex…

The Salem Witch Trial In 1629, Salem was settled as a Massachusetts Bay Colony (Dunn 4). Little did anybody know that in about 50 years, this land would turn into one of the most remembered and haunted places in the world. In Salem, in the years between 1692 and 1693, over 150 people were accused of witchcraft, and 20 people were executed because of this accusation (“First Salem Witch Hanging”). This report will explain exactly how these executions happened and some of the dark conspiracies that…

There are many hypotheses on how the Salem Witch Trials began. In Salem 1692, many innocent people were put to death. Salem is a miniature town with a population of 600 people. Many of these people grew up with each other, but why would they accuse one another for being a witch if they knew them for ages? In this paper, I argue that LSD mixing into the supplies of grain, people acting to get the attention, and jealousy caused the Salem Witch Trial hysteria in 1692. LSD getting into the supply…

Nina Wise Professor Bruce Franklin HIST2013 14 September 2016 Salem Witch Trials In order to understand the Salem Witch Trials, you must first understand the Puritan belief in the supernatural. The Puritans believed that witches allied themselves with the devil to carry out evil deeds and anything bad that happened in the colonies such as death or illnesses were more times than not blamed on the work of witches (Boundless). They also believed in the wrath of God and they took any measure…

The Salem witch trials began in February 1692 when two young children, Abigail Williams and Elizabeth Parris, began to act in a strange manner (chronology of events relating to the Salem witch trials, n.d.), showing signs of fits and hysterics (important persons in the Salem court records, n.d.). During this period in time where fear of the devil was much more common and superstition was a part of daily life for practically everyone it was easiest to blame witchcraft when both girls spoke of…

The Salem witch trials all started with Tituba who was a slave of Samuel Parris. Several other girls joined Tituba in the kitchen in early 1692. People thought that Tituba and her group had a black magic dance in the woods. The girls would fall to the floor and start screaming and this behavior started to spread all over Salem. Soon after the Puritans believed that the girls would never put themselves under such a spell. They started asking the girls who did this to them and who tortured them,…

scatter throughout the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Among the many accusers of witchcraft, the most common offenders were teenage girls (“Salem Witch Trials”). The Witch trials are believed to have happened for three possible different reasons: the effects of ergot poisoning, a boring puritan lifestyle, and to gain land or economic prosperity. Although many theories exist, the Salem Witch Trials most likely occurred due to a boring and strict Puritan life (Shah). The Salem Witch trials were a…

hysteria of the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. Many historians have debated what the cause was varying from PTSD, diet, rivalry between families and neighbours, and the oppression of women based on the Puritan culture. To judge this however, I will look at what cause had the most long lasting impact, of which I will be focusing on the following; religious views in the Puritan culture, the oppression of women, war and the rivalry between the two main families occupying Salem Town and Salem Village: the…

Historical Debate: Were Socioeconomic Tensions Responsible for the Witchcraft Hysteria in Salem? In 1692, a town called Salem had one of the most debated and dark times of the colonies. Mass hysteria became a real problem for this town, with around twenty people murdered and over two-hundred more accused of witchcraft. It began when three girls played a fortune telling game, people noticed they started acting strange, and one of the girls claimed that she was working for the devil. Many people…