Salem Witch Museum

Witch Panic! Massachusetts Before Salem
2025-09-25 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | Virtual Event
Salem’s witch trials were the last frenzy of witchcraft accusations in colonial New England. But what was the first? Join us for a free virtual lecture with Elizabeth Kapp, Curator of History at the Springfield Museums, on Thursday, September 25th at 6:00 pm EST.
Discover the story of Mary Lewis and Hugh Parsons featured in Witch Panic! Massachusetts Before Salem, an exhibition at the Springfield Museums. A married couple living in Springfield, the Parsons faced accusations of witchcraft in 1651, over forty years before the events of Salem. Listen to their neighbors’ testimony and explore how evidence came from aspects of everyday colonial life. Uncover how their alleged witchcraft involves one of the first banned books in English North America and learn how the edition on display connects Springfield to the Salem Witch Trials. The exhibit Witch Panic! Massachusetts Before Salem is on display at the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History through November 2, 2025.
Registration is required for this event. Please register here.

Profoundly Vulnerable: The Story of Four Witchcraft Accusations
2026-03-05 18:00 - 19:00
Join us on March 5th for our first virtual lecture of 2026, “Profoundly Vulnerable: The Story of Four Witchcraft Accusations,” presented in celebration of the 39th annual Women’s History Month.
There were many reasons why a woman in seventeenth-century New England might be accused of witchcraft, but those who were alone, poor, and, perhaps, quarrelsome were in particular danger. We will focus on four women targeted during the Salem witch trials. Rachel Clinton, Sarah Good, Margaret Scott, and Ann Dolliver each had promising beginnings in the New World but, through no fault of their own, found themselves in desperate circumstances.
This free virtual program will be hosted on Thursday, March 5th at 6:00 pm ET. Registration is required for this event. Please register here.

Enchanted Plants: An Exploration of Common and Uncommon Plants in Folklore and Magic
2026-05-07 18:00 - 19:00
From the tangled forest to the garden gate, join folklorist, rotten botanist, and author Varla Ventura for an exploration of some of the world’s most enchanted plants. We’ll start in the Queen’s Garden of cultivars, then amble over to the Cottage Garden where ordinary plants offer extraordinary stories. Carefully we’ll slip through the iron gates of the Witch’s Garden to discover poison plants that have shaped history. We’ll gallop on to meadowlands, forests, and finally the sea. From the ordinary apple to the fabulous foxglove, we’ll discover plants that have played a significant role in fairy tales, folklore, and history.
This free virtual program will be hosted on Thursday, May 7th at 6:00 pm ET. Please register here.

Our Founding Mothers and Fathers: More Revolutionary War Connections to the Salem Witch Trials
2026-09-17 13:00 - 14:00
Each year we meet hundreds, if not thousands, of individuals who can trace their family line back to the Salem witch trials. We often tell visitors that the English colonists of 1692 were the founding fathers and mothers of our country. They were themselves descended from the earliest settlers, who were establishing a new country and took the biblical instruction “be fruitful and multiply” to heart.
It is fascinating to consider the many connections between the Salem witch trials and the Revolutionary War generation, particularly the one most often referred to as our “Founding Fathers.” Part II of our Rev250 lecture series will focus on four more connections, including witchcraft skeptic Robert Calef, Ipswich court clerk Thomas Wade, condemned witch Mary Bradbury, and accuser Bathsheba Pope.
Join us on Thursday, September 17th at 1:00 pm for this free, virtual program.
Registration is required for this event. Please register here.
