Salem Witchtrials Research Paper
Victoria Nett
Minnesota BOT Standard: Time, Continuity and Change: Ways Human Beings View
Themselves in and over Time
Minnesota BOT Understanding:Historical knowledge and the concept of time as socially
influenced constructions that lead historians to be selective in the questions they seek to answer
an in the evidence they use
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692/93 was the most infamous witchcraft episode in United
State's history. Set in a Puritan New England settlement, Salem Village, the original ten females
became afflicted between January 1682 and the madness would not end until May 1693. Salem
Village, Massachusetts became engulfed in hysteria. During this time, one hundred and fifty six
people accused of witchcraft,[1] fifty four people confessed, fourteen women and five men were
hanged, a man was pressed to death, three women and a man died in jail. In addition an infant,
who was born in the jail died as well.[2]
Salem has been researched, discussed and actively collaborated by a broad range of
disciplines since the 1960's. These scholars hypothesize about what sparked the witch frenzy in
the winter of 1692. Besides fraud, a few of the many theories that surround the phenomenon of
Salem are feuding families and ergot poisoning; some lesser-known hypotheses are clinical
hysteria, hypocalcaemia, and economic profit. In order to understand the theories, one must first
examine the micro history of the episode. This paper will focus on scholars' theories of what
was the cause of bewitchment in Salem Village. However, even though Salem has been studied
and theorized countless times in the past, there is still no clear reason of what caused it. A
confluence of these theories may help pinpoint why such a battle was waged.
Salem Village is now present-day Danvers, Massachusetts.[3] Puritans inhabited Salem
since 1626 as a place for trade and fishing.[4] In 1641, a law in England made witchcraft a
capital crime punishable by death.[5] Before Samuel Parris took the position of Salem Village's
minister, a man named Deodat Lawson was the minister from 1684-1688.[6] He left his position
freely and Samuel Parris was hired as a replacement. Before coming to Salem, Samuel Parris
attempted to become a successful merchant in Barbados, but failed. He relocated in Boston, and
then chose to become a minister; he moved his family to Salem in 1689.[7] During this time
there had been other witchcraft episodes in New England, but Salem Village did not have any
witchcraft troubles to this point. That is until it enters the preacher's home.
Originally, the young girls who claimed they were stricken from witchcraft that started
the witch-hunt in Salem were Parris' daughter, Betty age nine, and his eleven-year-old niece,
Abigail Williams age eleven,. These two young girls, go on to accuse Tituba the Slave of
witchcraft. As the episode continues, more young girls become afflicted and begin to name other
men and women as being witches and practicing witchcraft. Betty and Abigail became the first
two afflicted of witchcraft in Salem Village. Documentation showed that between January 16
and January 19, 1692 the two girls become noticeably sick. Symptoms described that the girls
would "crouch under chairs and stools and twisted in puzzling postures."[8] The girls would also
faint, claim they were being pinched, hysterically cry, have disorderly speech, roll on the ground,
attempt to fly, tear off clothes, bark like a dog, have their bodies in unnatural shapes, hallucinate,
and have hearing loss.[9]
It was not until February 24th, 1692 that Dr. William Griggs "diagnosed the girls to be under an
evil hand,"[10] meaning witchcraft. The next day, while Mr. and Mrs. Parris were out, the girls
alleged that they could see who was tormenting them.[11] On this same day, more being
claimed to be stricken by witchcraft. Ann Putnam Jr. and Elizabeth Hubbard both said they
became plagued by witchcraft.[12] These two lived more than a mile from each
other.[13] Abigail and Betty continued to be sick, and claimed of their heads hurting.[14] They
named Tituba as their tormentor. Tituba confesses of alleged witchcraft and begins to name
other witches.[15] During this time more people become supposedly bewitched and the deadly
Salem witch-hunts began.[16]
Trying to discover the cause of the Salem Witch Trials has been attempted and some
scholars believe they may have discovered the source of the alleged bewitchment. From the
history stated previously, one could see that possible theories are feuding families, ergot
poisoning, clinical hysteria, hypocalcaemia, and economic profit. However since there are ten
original accusers, each individual may have had a different cause for becoming 'bewitched' and
thus one theory may not be completely right. Possibly a combination of a few theories could be
the true reason.
The theory of the feuding families came from Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum. The basis of
the theory is that there were two powerfully, wealthy families in Salem Village, who were the
Putnams and the Porters.[17] The Putnams were on the west side of Salem Village and the
Porters on the east side. The Porters were more connected to Salem Town.[18] Both families
were building up their power either by town leadership or by being a merchant.[19] The two
families may have been in a power struggle, which would explain why in the western part of the
village, is where thirty of thirty- two adult accusers resided, and twelve of the fourteen witches
were from the eastern section.[20] In addition, half brothers Joseph and Thomas Putnam were
not on the best terms. When Thomas Putnam Senior, their father died, Joseph was given the best
part of their father's land angering Thomas Jr. who was almost virtually not included in the
will. Straining the relationship further, Joseph Putnam married Elizabeth Porter, separating
himself from the Putnams and aligning with the powerful Porters.[21]
This theory also states that those who were supportive of Reverend Parris and divided the town
by those who were not. The villagers living on or around Ipswich Road, which goes to Salem
town were anti-Parris. The villagers living on or around Ipswich Road made up of one third of
the total anti-Parris group.[22] A quote embodying the anti-Parris movement is, "anti-Parris
villagers may have lived in the village but not of the village."[23] Meaning, even though they
lived in Salem Village, they were more connected to Salem Town. The Putnams were also
known for being pro-Parris. They made up of twenty four percent of the pro-Parris
movement.[24] The Putnams were never accused of being witches. However, as stated before,
twelve of the fourteen hanged witches belonged to the eastern side, which was known to not
support Parris.
Arguably an intriguing hypothesis surrounding the ten girls bewitchment is the idea of
ergot poisoning. This idea first arose by Professor of Biology, Linnda Caporael in
1976.[25] Convulsive ergot is from the Claviceps purpurea fungus that grows on rye.[26] The
ergot fungus over takes the rye grain, and turns it purple. Rye was a staple crop during this time
period, and they made bread from it.[27]
Ingesting ergot is very dangerous. It contains isoergine (lysergic acid amide.) [28] The drug
Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly referred to as LSD, was originally made from ergot.[29]
Ergot existed before the seventeenth century; however, it was so common that people believed it
belonged to the rye plant.[30]
Ergot fungus grows in wet climates and lowlands.[31] Salem Village resided in what is
presently the town of Danvers, in Essex County.[32] This village is located in the coastal
lowlands and the climate is wet and mild, perfect for ergot to thrive.[33] The colonists planted
seeds in April and gathering took place in August.[34] It was then stored until needed in the
winter months.[35] This could explain why Abigail and Betty did not become sick until winter,
because the infected rye was not eaten until then. Again, those who were accusers, apart from
the bewitched girls, the majority were from the western part of Salem Village, and the majority
of the witches were from the eastern side of town.[36] The ergot poisoning may have been only
on the west side of town.
The most convincing argument of ergot poisoning is the correlation between ergot
symptoms and Abigail and Betty's symptoms. Ergot poisoning affects mostly women and
children, because they "ingest more food per unit of body weight; consequently, they ingest more
poison per unit of body weight."[37] This would explain why the first accusers were
female.[38] Side effects of ingesting ergot are tingling hands or fingers, dizziness,
hallucinations, vomiting, muscle contractions, mania, psychosis, delirium and
melancholia. Some coincide with the girls' symptoms of pinching, barking like a dog, and
hallucinate.
A different theory surrounding Salem is mass clinical hysteria. Clinical hysteria is defined as "in
which a patient experiences physical symptoms that have a psychological, rather than an organic
cause; and histrionic personality disorder characterized by excessive emotions, dramatics, and
attention-seeking behavior."[39] Historian Chadwick Hansen believes that "the stress of living
in unsettled area, along with the strict Puritan religion, led to hysteria."[40]
During this time period the Puritans were constantly fighting with the Wabanakis tribe. The
American Indians became their biggest threat and enemy.[41] Settlers were being kidnapped or
killed.[42] The King Phillips war, which took place in 1675 with the Wampanoag Tribe, was
still in the Puritan's minds.[43] Fear of the wilderness and of Native Americans must have been
present in Salem. [44]
On January 25th, 1692 in York, Maine indigenous peoples attacked the settlers and many were
kidnapped.[45] Exactly a month later two more girls claimed they were attacked by
witchcraft. Ann Putnam and Elizabeth Hubbard. Elizabeth Hubbard was a servant girl in the
Griggs household. When she was a little girl living in Maine, American Indians attacked her
village and many people in her family were brutally murdered.[46] This experience would have
been stressful on anyone. Speculating that possibly with the news of the January 25th York
attacks, Elizabeth Hubbard could have experienced Post Traumatic Stress. Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder or PTSD is defined as, "the capacity to provoke fear, helplessness, or horror in response
to the threat of injury or death."[47] Symptoms of PTSD are shortness of breath, tremor, nausea,
insomnia, unexplained pain, and mood swings.[48] PTSD would not explain why all ten women
were claiming they were bewitched, but it could explain Elizabeth Hubbard's belief that she was
afflicted of witchcraft.
Aside from medical explanation, an economic theory has surfaced. The theory believes that
Parris used Betty and Abigail (the original two afflicted) for his own economic enhancement. As
of January 1692, churchgoers were not paying Reverend Samuel Parris' full salary, because some
wanted to drive the reverend out.[49] Understandably, the lack of promised payment would
cause financial hardship on the Parris family. Originally a merchant from Barbados, Parris must
have known something about economics. During some of his sermons he would address their
economic struggles. He was not successful in occupying the village meeting house for
worship."[50]
Some were going to the Salem town instead for church service.[51] Reverend Parris knew
something needed to be done to rejuvenate the Salem Village so that they would want to go to
their own place of worship and pay taxes for the minister's salary. Reverend Parris may have
used the girls to profit from by making him more important in the village. He may have thought
he would make more money if the village believed he was purging the town of evil. If church
members believed Reverend Parris was doing a favor to the town, this could have raised
attendance rates to church, and cause his salary to be paid in full. Once the trials came about
Parris did become more important in the village. Since he was a man of God's he was part of the
trials and believers flocked to him.[52]
Another town in Massachusetts in 1735 was having trouble filling the congregation with
churchgoers. Minister Jonathan Edwards decided to claim that instead of witchcraft and demons,
God actually blessed Northampton.[53] After Minister Edwards made that assertion, followers
began to flock to church. If this propaganda happened in 1735, it can be argued that Minister
Edwards got the idea from another source, which could have been Reverend Parris and his Salem
witches.
There is not any clear-cut explanation to the exact cause of the Salem Witch Trials, however
there are some logical and convincing theories: feuding families, ergot poisoning, clinical
hysteria, hypocalcaemia, and economic profit. As for the original accusers, there may be one
answer to the cause, or could possibly be a different reason for each one of the girls. One might
just have been play-acting while another was overcome with hysteria. Another girl's
involvement could have resulted from a family feud. We may never know the cause of the
Salem Witch Trials, but that will not stop scholars from evolving theories.
[1] Brian Levack, "State-Building and Witch-Hunting In Early Modern Europe," in The
Witchcraft Reader: Second Edition, ed. Darren Oldridge, (New York: Routledge: Taylor &
Francis Group, 2008), 192.
[2] Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil's Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692 (New York:
Vintage Books: a Division of Random House, Inc., 2002), 4.
[3] The University of Virginia, "Historical Sites of Danvers," under Salem Witch
Trials,2002. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Danvers.html.
[4] Frances Hill, The Salem Witch Trials Reader. (New York: Da Capo Press, 2009), xix.
[5] University of Missouri-Kansas City, :Chronology of Events Relating to the Salem
Witchcraft," http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/ASAL_CH.HTM.
[6] Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum, Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft.
(Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1974), 56.
[7] Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil's Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692 (New York:
Vintage Books: a Division of Random House, Inc., 2002), 17.
[8] Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-By-Day Chronicle of a Community
Under Siege (New York City: Cooper Square Press), 7.
[9] Nicholas Spanos and Jack Gottlieb, "Ergotism and the Salem Village Witch Trials," Science
194, no. 4272 (Dec. 24, 1976): 1391.
[10] Roach, The Salem Witch Trials, 18.
[11] Ibid., 19.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15]"Tituba: The Salem Witchcraft Trials, 1692," In The Witchcraft Sourcebook, by Brian P.
Levack. (New York: Routledge, 2003): 221.
[16] University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, "The Dead: Nineteen Accused Witches
Were Hanged on Gallows Hill in 1692,"
http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/ASAL_DE.HTM
[17] Boyer and Nissenbaum, Salem Possessed, 110.
[18] Ibid., 117.
[19] Ibid., 129.
[20] Linnda Caporael, "Ergotism: The Satan Loosed in Salem?" Science 192, no. 4234 (April
1976): 24.
[21] Boyer and Nissenbaum, Salem Possessed, 138.
[22] Ibid., 97.
[23] Ibid., 106.
[24] Boyer and Nissenbaum, Salem Possessed, 115.
[25] Caporael, Ergotism, 21.
[26] George Wong, "Ergot of Rye - I: Introduction and History,"
http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/wong/BOT135/LECT12.HTM
[27] Caporael, Ergotism, 23.
[28] Ibid.
[29] Wong, Ergot of Rye, http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/wong/BOT135/LECT12.HTM.
[30] Ibid.
[31] Franklin G. Mixon Jr. ""Homo Economicus" and the Salem Witch Trials," The Journal of
Economic Education 31, no 2 (Taylor & Francis, LTD 2000): 181.
[32] The University of Virginia, "Historical Sites of Danvers,"
http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/danvers2.html.
[33] Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network, "Massachusetts' Climate: The
Cocorahs 'State Climates' Series," http://www.cocorahs.org/Media/docs/ClimateSum_MA.pdf.
[34] Caporael, Ergotism, 23.
[35] Caporael, Ergotism, 23.
[36] Ibid., 24.
[37] Mary K. Matossian, "Views: Ergot and the Salem Witchcraft Affair: An Outbreak of a Type
of Food Poisoning Known as Convulsive Ergotism May Have Led to the 1692 Accusations of
Witchcraft." American Scientist 70, no. 4 (1982): 355.
[38] Mixon, Homo Economicus, 181.
[39] Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine. S.v. "hysteria." Retrieved April 19 2013 from
http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/hysteria
[40] Anne Zeller, "Arctic Hysteria in Salem?," Anthrpologica 32, no. 2 (1990): 240.
[41] Katherine Osburn, "Indians and Purtians," http://iweb.tntech.edu/kosburn/History201/Puritans & Indians.htm.
[42] Ibid.
[43] Libby Klekowski, "King Phillip's War,"
http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/philip.html.
[44] Ibid., 83.
[45] Roach, The Salem Witch Trials, 9.
[46] Ibid., 18.
[47] Rachel Yehuda "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder," The New England Journal of Medicine,
(2002): 346.
[48] Yehuda, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, 346.
[49] Roach, The Salem Witch Trials, 4.
[50] Mixon, Homo Economicus, 182.
[51] Ibid.
[52] Mixon, Homo Economicus, 182.
[53] Boyer and Nissenbaum, Salem possessed p 29.