Salem, Massachusetts 2006
by Whitewitch

In October 2006 I took a trip to New Hampshire USA to visit friends, the first day after my arrival was a Saturday, and we decided to visit Salem Massachusetts, Salem, dates back to 1626 when Roger Conant and the first settlers arrived here, but this beautiful costal city is probably best known for the Witch Trials of 1692. Having walked down the 'high street' we decided to have breakfast first didn't want to be too spooked on a empty stomach! There was various stalls selling the coolest of witches hats, so many things I liked but would never have got the suitcase home, I walked around various shops like the Goddess Treasure Chest, Bewitched, Broom Closet, Wicked Goodz, so many of them.
We then visited the Witch Museum, there were various goods on sale in the gift shop, however we were escorted into a room where we sat a lady dressed in costume talked about the start of the 'Witch Hysteria' how a few 'bored' girls thought it would be amusing to act like they were possessed and accuse villiages of 'hexing' them.
I thought it was terribly sad, so many were wrongly accused not only villiagers but judges, sheriffs etc. They told us how they tortured these people to obtain confessions, how Giles Corey's chest was weighed down with stone in order to get a confession from him. It was extremely interesting but also very sad.

Having left the Witch Museum we walked round to the Witch Dungeon; however we were informed that all the tickets had been sold and we could not enter. The Witches Dungeon has re-enactments of the trial of beggar-woman Sarah Good from the original transcript of 1692; however without access we were was extremely disappointed not to see this.

We then proceeded to the Witch House. This house was the home of Magistrate Jonathon Corwin and has come to be known as the "Witch House." This is the first place were the witches were examined and sentenced, in February of 1692. Three of the accussed witches were brought to trial in this house by Jonathon Corwin and John Hathorne.
The Witch House is an excellent example of seventeenth-century architecture. Jonathon Corwin, was buried in the nearby Broad Street Cemetery, he purchased the structure in 1675 when he was 24 years old and lived there for more than forty years. The house remained in the Corwin family until the mid-1800's.

The old Peabody Essex Museum used to hold Eerie Events every October this was discontinued and now Haunted City exists. Each year in October three original stories lasting around 10 to 15 minutes, are performed continuously throughout the evening, in the kitchens, bedrooms and parlours of the Witch House, most of the furniture is original pieces and was very interesting.

The Witch Trials 1692 Salem, Massachusetts was the sight of the worst case of mass hysteria in American history! It started with the ravings of 4 young girls and ended with the imprisonment of hundreds and the deaths of 24 men and women all accused of the sin of witchcraft! When the infamous Salem Witch Trials were over, 19 men and women were hanged to death on Gallows Hill, 4 died in prison, possibly more and one defiant man, Giles Corey, was pressed to death beneath a board and stones in a torturous attempt to obtain a confession.
Centuries later, the Salem cemetery still holds the final resting places for many of the 'Witch Trial' participants and, though the tombstones are worn from time they are still legible. The original homes of accused witch, Rebecca Nurse, and trial Judge Jonathan Corwin still stand as a reminder that "those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it."
The gallows tree is said to still stand, but officially, no one knows for certain which of Salem's surrounding hills was once called Gallows Hill, site of the hangings of 19 people, yet one museum displays a photograph of the hill and at least one shop sells "authentic" fragments from the actual gallows tree.

When we asked where the actual location of the tree was, we were surprised to be told that apparently the officials in Salem' do not know! Suprisingly, the historian did advise us that various people have managed to locate a reference point of Gallows Hill, however they advised that the location now has a 'Dunkin Donuts' built on top of it!!"