My Salem Blog:

Between 1692 and 1693, the American colonial town of Salem Village was forever immortalized due to the frenzy of witch trials which occurred at this time. Its population of fervently religious Puritans wholeheartedly believed in such things as witchcraft and demonic possession and it is no wonder that fear quickly grew around the village when supernatural events were suspected.
Two local young girls, Betty Parris and Abigail Proctor sparked the hysteria of the witch craze which would account for over one hundred people being arrested and nineteen people convicted and hanged. Although this chronicled episode was short lived, it left an indelible mark on the regions history and remains an important tool in understanding themes of Puritan ideologies in early modern American witch trials.

Recently, new information has been discovered which provides critical insight into the mindset of some of the most important players during the trials. Excerpts from diaries written during the witch trials by Betty Parris, Abigail Williams and John Proctor allow the modern reader new knowledge about what life was life in the village and why the trials happened in the first place. While there has been substantial debate about the roles of the two girls and their reasons for their involvement, these diaries seem to prove that they were fully commited to causing turmoil due to boredom and being dangerous juvenile delinquents. The diaries were found this year in remarkably good condition and I have posted them on my new Salem blog. Please Enjoy!

[Pictures courtesy of Salem Witch Trials 1692- Famous American Trials. http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SAL_PHO.HTM Accessed April 7th 2011.]

Works Cited

Aronson, Marc. “Unholy Wars.” The School Library Journal (2001), Vol.47, Issue 11. Accessed March 20th, 2011. http://web.ebscohost.com


Hill, Francis. A delusion of Satan: The Full Story of the Salem Witch Trials. New York: Doubleday, 1995.


Hoffer, Peter Charles. The Devil’s Disciples: Makers of the Salem Witchcraft Trials. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996.


Procter, John. Petition of John Procter, July 23rd, 1692. Letter, From The Salem witchcraft papers, Volume 2 : verbatim transcripts of the legal documents of the Salem witchcraft outbreak of 1692 / edited and with an introduction and index by Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum. http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccernew2id=BoySal2.sgm& images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/oldsalem&tag=public&part=51&division=div1 (accessed March 20th, 2011).


Ray, Benjamin C. “Satan's War against the Covenant in Salem Village, 1692.” The New England Quarterly Inc (2007): 69-95. Accessed March 20th, 2011. http://www.jstor.org%20/stable/20474511

Weisman, Richard. Witchcraft, Magic and Religion in 17th- Century Massachusetts. Massachusetts: The University of Massachusetts Press, 1984.

Diary of Betty Parris- September 1689:

Our family, including my cousin and best friend Abigail Williams and our slaves Tituba and John Indian, have moved to Salem Village where Father is to become the new minister.  We, the children, have become quite close to Tituba and she has been telling us the most interesting stories about her home in Barbados. She believes in magic and when my parents are not present, she speaks to us about how to ward off bad magic with counter-magic which we find a very exciting topic.  We are to live in the parsonage, a very grand two story clapboard house, which seems to me to be quite suitable. Our home has four rooms, four fireplaces, a lean-to kitchen and is surrounded by two acres of meadow which I intend to play games in with Abigail.  Although we have heard terrifying stories about savage Indians, I am not afraid.  I like our bedroom in the house the best and this is where Abigail and I can speak about things in private.  It is adjacent to our parent’s room on the second floor. We have discovered a very interesting thing! Through the cracks in the floor we can watch and listen in on conversations between father and visitors in his parlor downstairs.  This should make up for boring times when we are cooped up in the house.

Diary of Betty Parris- December 1689:

Father is very upset today. Since he became the minister in Salem, he has been quarreling with others in our community but about what, I don’t really know.  At night, he complains to mother that he feels the devil is at work here and is trying to stop his faithful flock from growing.  He sometimes says things that make me uneasy, yet I cannot talk to anyone about this because he believes he is speaking to mother in private during these times and I am supposed to be asleep. More and more people in our covenant are not attending which is troubling father.  During his sermon’s, Father tells our congregation that we are God’s chosen people and that outsiders that refuse to join us are wicked.  He told Mother that some of the villagers are refusing to pay taxes for Father’s salary.  Father has explained to me, and I agree, that we have come to Salem with a very important purpose and that is to combat the evilness that lurks in the hearts of many here.  I hope that his Godly undertaking will inspire these wicked ones to bear in mind the consequences of their corrupt ways because if they refuse to pay Father with currency, they will pay the Devil with their souls!

Diary of Betty Parris- December 1690:

Abigail and I have been spending much time with Tituba and she has been telling us about fortunetelling. Today, Abigail and I decided we would try fortune-telling for ourselves and so together we looked into a cup filled with milk and egg to find out who we might marry.  We were very startled when we saw an image of a coffin looking back at us.  My parents have spoken to us about death often and I know that death can come for anyone at any age, so when we saw this we were terrified. Abigail told me not to tell anyone what we saw.  We have decided to keep this discovery to ourselves as not to alarm my parents but I must confess, I find myself thinking of it often.

Diary of Betty Parris- January 1692:

Our fourth winter in the house has been very unsatisfactory due to unseasonably frigid weather.  Our home has been very chilly and damp and I am afraid that I am catching a cold.  I now have a fever, sore throat and cough but mother has been very good to me and has assisted me with much care.  I began to complain of an upset stomach which has accorded me much attention and so lately I have been behaving strangely by dashing about and diving under furniture.  It soon became a game as Abigail has joined in and is beginning to do the same.  Abigail and I have told the other girls who come to play with us what we have been up to and so they too are now acting afflicted which upsets the adults and makes it more fun.

Father has begun to think our behavior is being caused as a judgment upon him.  Maybe we should stop our little game?

Diary of Betty Parris- February 1692:

Dr. Griggs has come to our home to examine Abigail and me due to our strange fits.  He seems to think that we have been bewitched and is talking to Father in a hushed worried tone.    

Father and Mother seem to be very worried and have been pressing us to name who has done this terrible thing to us.  Abigail and I are having too much fun rolling on the floor and faking hysterics to accuse anyone yet but our plan is to first accuse Tituba. As a nursemaid, Tituba had been a friend that we enjoyed spending time with, yet she had become distant and less caring lately which makes me angry.   Anne Griggs and Elizabeth Hubbard have also been pretending to be inflicted which only makes our plan more exciting.  We  have begun to name witches but are careful not to name anyone who was a near neighbour, except for Tituba. We feel like we cant stop since the adults have been pestering us to reveal who was causing our injuries and honestly, I like the attention this has brought me.  Father has never spent so much time talking with me before and I feel so close to him now! 

We have named Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborn who lives two miles away.  Abigail and I have chosen Goody Good and Goody Osborn because the adults had already suspected them of deviant ways which we have overheard through the floor in our bedroom.  They are worthless women who contribute little and should be cast out of our fair village anyway.