This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of the creation of the Salem Witch Trials Memorial. Erected in downtown Salem in 1992, this was an important moment for the city, as Salem continued to process the legacy and significance of these tragic events as a modern community. During the years leading up to the 300th anniversary,...
This year is an anniversary heavy year for us-- as many of you may know! Not only is it the Salem Witch Museum's 50th anniversary, it is also the 30th anniversary of the Salem Witch Trials Memorial and the 40th anniversary of Salem's Haunted Happenings festival (both of which this museum was instrumental in creating)....
Tituba, an enslaved woman in the household of Salem Village’s minister, was one of the first to be accused of witchcraft in 1692. Under enormous pressure, she became the first to confess and claim there were more witches hiding in the colony. Through word Tituba was defined as a witch and through the word she...
History is like a game of telephone: an incorrect fact can be passed from person to person and become conventional wisdom. Through diligent research, historians strive to untangle these errors....
Witch hunting is a thing of the past in the western world. Witch persecution is alluded as a tragic episode that happened centuries ago. Incidentally, this is not the case in many parts of Africa. Witch persecutions and trials are ongoing incidents in the region. Witchcraft accusation is a form of death sentence in many...
We’re delighted to welcome author Heather B. Moore, a tenth-generation descendant of Susannah Martin, for a signing at the Salem Witch Museum on June 22, 2023. Moore’s historical fiction work, "Condemn Me Not," is an affecting and moving re-telling of Martin’s story. In Moore’s hands, the woman who was infamously cemented in history by Reverend...
Why do witches wear pointed hats? Or have big noses? Or eat children? The answers, it may surprise us to learn, can be found in the history of antisemitism. Before witchcraft became a dominant scapegoat for misfortune in Europe, it was Jews who were often said to be demonic, evil individuals who poisoned wells, spread...
Studying the lives of colonial women can be a difficult undertaking. Ferreting out basic information, from a birthday to a maiden name, is often impossible. This is particularly challenging when one comes across a woman who is described as mentally unwell. What does it mean to be “crazed in her understanding,” “melancholy,” or “one part...
We’re delighted to welcome author Janice Thompson for a book signing at the Salem Witch Museum on Friday, May 24, 2024. Thompson’s first novel is a historical fiction work titled...
Cotton Mather is perhaps most famous for his role in the Salem witch trials. He was also the minister at Boston’s North Church (Second Church) and a prolific writer with a transatlantic audience. Mather has often been portrayed as an instigator of the trials and a witch hunter. But what exactly did he do, and...
