Salem Witch Trials

The Salem Witch Trials refers to an actual series of events that took place in the Colonial town of Salem in the territory of Massachusetts from February to May, 1692. In the ultimate historical example of a land deal gone bad, the Puritanical legislature of Salem held trials wherein more than two-hundred people, mostly women, were accused of witchcraft. Of the 200, fourteen women and five men were found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging. The award for short-end-of-the-stick however, actually went to the accused, Giles Corey, who refused to enter a plea, and was executed by having a bunch of large rocks dropped on his chest, crushing him to death.

Being as how we live in the "really real" world, obviously those who were executed were not actual witches, since witches don't exist. At least not the kind that the Salem judges believed in. As one of the most gruesome witchhunts in American history, the Salem Witch Trials have since gone on to become the fodder for various forms of fiction including the Nicholas Hytner adaptation of the Arthur Miller play The Crucible starring Winona Ryder as well as the 1976 comedy Love at Stake.

Notes & Trivia

 * Salem witch trials redirects to this page.