lived. .
A common misconception of the Salem.
Witch Trials is that they took place in the Town.
of Salem Massachusetts. Salem Village and the.
Town of Salem were two different places. .
Salem Village was created after the town of.
Salem when a group of farmers moved 5 miles.
from Salem Town. The inhabitants of this.
village remained legally part of Salem, but in.
1660 they began petitioning for independence. .
By 1672 Salem Village was a separate parish. .
At this time they built a meeting house and hired.
their own minister. In 1689 the village.
established a Covenant Church with Rev.
Samuel Parris as their new Minister. .
Now, you might wonder why I've given so.
much history on this town and it's people. BUT,.
it all comes to bare. In January of 1692, Rev.
Parris's 9-year-old daughter Elizabeth, and .
12-year-old niece Abigail Williams began to fall.
into horrid fits of yelling and convulsions. In an.
attempt to discover what was causing these fits,.
Dr. William Griggs was called upon to give his.
opinion. He suggested that the girls were.
victims of witchcraft. Their parents put a great.
deal of pressure on them to give the names of.
those causing their distress. The girls finally.
accused three village women, and warrants were.
sworn out for the arrest of Sarah Osburn, Sarah.
Good, and Parris's slave, Tituba.
On March 1, 1692, magistrates John Hathorne.
and Jonathan Corwin conducted an examination.
at the Meeting House. Sarah Good and Sarah.
Osburn were separately examined and as they.
answered the questions put to them, the.
"afflicted" girls went into horrific fits. To all.
present, the girls were obviously victims of.
these women's witchcraft. Though the two.
protested their own innocence, Tituba unraveled.
a confession of meeting with the devil and.
stating there were still other witches in the.
neighborhood. This evidence was sufficient for.
the magistrates, and the magistrates, and the.
three women were jailed. The girls" afflictions.
did not abate, however, and still more villagers.