Quotes:

Citation:

• Author:

• In-Text Citation:

• Works Cited:

• Key Players

• Influence

• Origins of conflict

• Key players

Research Topics:

• Leaders (prominent figures)

• Major battles

• Number of casualties

• Role of religion, technology, & weaponry

• Starting and ending dates

• Initial tensions between groups

• causes of conflict

• Participating countries/groups

• Influences & Aftermath

• Remembrance & Legacy

• Human Impact

• Deaths

Research Topics:

• Cultural Impact: art, music, literature, etc.

• Tributes to victims

• How people remember the conflict today

• Long-term effects

• Accusers/accused Perspective

• Roles of women

• Impact on Civilians

• Lifestyle Changes

The Salem witch trials helped create several laws that are lasting now because of how poorly the witch trials were. Now, it is "Innocent until proven guilty," while during the SWT it was, "Guilty until proven innocent," Which ended up killing several people from the poor conditions in prison.

Quotes:

• "Nearly a century after the crisis in Salem, during debate over ratification of the Constitution, anti-Federalist delegates (successfully) argued that the document needed a "Bill of Rights" to guard against the violation of individual citizens’ fundamental freedoms by the federal government."

Citation:

• Author: Sarah Pruitt

• Works Cited: Pruitt, Sarah. “How the Salem Witch Trials Influenced the American Legal System | HISTORY.” HISTORY, 4 Oct. 2021, www.history.com/articles/salem-witch-trials-justice-legal-legacy.

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The Salem witch trial began in the spring of 1692 when a group of young girls were claimed to be bewitched, leading to accusations against several local women (and men). These accusations were fueled by a combination of factors including religious beliefs, social tensions, and economic hardship.

Citation:

• Author: Elizabeth Yuko

• In-Text Citation: Salem Witch Trials: What Caused the Hysteria? - History - february 20, 2025

• Works Cited: https://www.history.com/articles/salem-witch-trials-hysteria-factors

NOT everybody who died

Before the Salem witch trials, the people of Salem Village (now Danvers, MA) and Salem Town were experiencing a variety of challenges and tensions, including the aftermath of wars, a smallpox epidemic, and a rising fear of attacks from Native American tribes. These events, coupled with internal disputes and a growing rivalry between the two communities, created a climate of fear and paranoia that ultimately led to the trials.

Citation:

• Author: Jay Menice

• In-Text Citation: CHRONOLOGY PRIOR TO SALEM TRIALS - 1692 Salem Witch Museum - no date stated

• Works Cited: https://salemwitchmuseum.com/chronology-prior-to-salem-trials/

The Salem witch trials made the right to question both sides, assuring the sixth amendment that makes sure somebody is there to combat the accusations, and innocence rather than guilt.

Quotes:

• The abuses of the Salem witch trials would contribute to changes in U.S. court procedures, playing a role in the advent of the guarantee of the right to legal representation, the right to cross-examine one’s accuser, and the presumption of innocence rather than of guilt.

Citation:

• Author: Jeff Wallenfeldt

• Works Cited: Wallenfeldt, Jeff. “Salem Witch Trials - the Trials.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 2019, www.britannica.com/event/Salem-witch-trials/The-trials#ref332156.

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The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of individuals accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between 1692 and 1693. Over 200 people were accused, and at least 19 were executed by hanging. The trials were driven by a combination of religious beliefs, social tensions, and fear, culminating in a period of intense paranoia and injustice.

• Citation: Peabody Essex Museum

• In-Text Citation: The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 - Peabody Essex Museum - no date stated

• Works Cited: https://www.pem.org/the-salem-witch-trials-of-1692

This explains some of the deaths along with why it continued for so long.

Quotes:

• In all, 19 were hanged, one pressed to death, and five others died in jail.

• Tituba confessed and identified more witches from Salem.

  “It didn’t have to go any further than those three,” says Burns, “but they didn’t have a way to defend themselves. Just the usual suspects. All were marked for class and Tituba for race. John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin, the local magistrates, coerced a false confession out of Tituba. If it had been another time, it might just have stopped there.

Citation:

• Author: Laura Wolff Scanlan

• Works Cited: Scanlan, Laura. “Records of the Salem Witch Trials.” The National Endowment for the Humanities, 2022, www.neh.gov/article/records-salem-witch-trials.

This includes when people would start needing more evidence than just what somebody supposedly saw or dreamt. It helped speed along Rules of Evidence (in law) to decide what people can or can't count as acceptable in order to punish someone.

Quotes:

• In January 1693, the newly created Superior Court of Judicature began hearing the remaining witch trials. The judges could not accept spectral evidence and most of the remaining trials ended in acquittal. Phips pardoned the rest.

Citation:

• Author: New England Law

• Works Cited: New England Law. “A True Legal Horror Story: The Laws Leading to the Salem Witch Trials.” Www.nesl.edu, New England Law Boston, 2024, www.nesl.edu/blog/detail/a-true-legal-horror-story-the-laws-leading-to-the-salem-witch-trials.

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How the people died.

Quotes:

• During the Salem witch trials, 19 people were executed by hanging. The first execution was Bridget Bishop on June 10, 1692, at Gallows Hill in Salem Village. Subsequent hangings occurred on July 19, August 19, and September 22, 1692, involving individuals such as Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, and George Burroughs, among others. George Burroughs notably recited the Lord's Prayer perfectly before his execution, which was believed to be impossible for a witch, causing some to doubt his guilt. Additionally, Giles Corey was pressed to death with heavy stones on September 19, 1692, after refusing to enter a plea. Five others died in custody during the trials.

Citation:

• Author: Jeff Wallenfeldt

• Works Cited: Wallenfeldt, Jeff. “Salem Witch Trials | History, Summary, Location, Causes, Victims, & Facts.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 July 1998, www.britannica.com/event/Salem-witch-trials/The-trials#ref332155. Accessed 11 Apr. 2025.

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Just a doc of everyone executed / does not include people who died in prison.

This is of the aftermath and how it ended. The post is also about how there is now a memorial for those in the SWT and museums and educational sites. There was also public apologies for how the Salem Trials went and how they should have ended long ago.

Quotes:

• After Governor Phips’s wife was accused, he again interceded and ordered that a new court be established that would not allow so-called spectral evidence. By May 1693 everyone in custody under conviction or suspicion of witchcraft had been pardoned by Phips.

Citation:

• Author: Britannica

• Works Cited: “How Did the Salem Witch Trials End? | Britannica.” Www.britannica.com, www.britannica.com/question/How-did-the-Salem-witch-trials-end.

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The accusers wanted attention and the bystanders were scared and worried about the people around them. This led to people impacted during the time. The text is about the psychology around the Salem Witch Trials.

Quotes:

• Something that may have fueled the Salem witch trials was the social position of the girls who first made the accusations. “For the first time, the most influential people in the town are listening to the least powerful, most silenced minority group—these young girls,” Larry explained. The more accusations they make, the more famous they become and the more authority and recognition they receive.

Citation:

• Works Cited: Robinson, Erin. “Unraveling the Psychological Drivers of the Salem Witch Trials | Hogan Assessments.” Hogan Assessments, 5 Nov. 2024, www.hoganassessments.com/blog/psychological-drivers-salem-witch-trials/.

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The accusers being affected by these likely led to why they were acting so. It is part of what was going on in their minds at the time and why.

Quotes:

• “Many modern theories suggest the girls were suffering from epilepsy, boredom, child abuse, mental illness, or even a disease brought on by eating rye infected with fungus,”

Citation:

• Works Cited: New England Law. “A True Legal Horror Story: The Laws Leading to the Salem Witch Trials.” Www.nesl.edu, New England Law Boston, 2024, www.nesl.edu/blog/detail/a-true-legal-horror-story-the-laws-leading-to-the-salem-witch-trials.

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What was once a murderous town full of terrors is now a fun Halloween place full of witch shops and candy stores :) So respectful of the people who died due to that.

Quotes:

• Thousands of tourists visit the memorial each year. While most treat the space with reverence, some, particularly during the Halloween season, fail to appreciate the weight of this tragic history. Perhaps that is the reality of any public memorial dedicated to such distant events.

Citation:

• Author:

• Works Cited: New England Law. “A True Legal Horror Story: October 27, et al. “The Salem Witch Trials Memorial: Finding Humanity in Tragedy.” Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, 27 Oct. 2022, folklife.si.edu/magazine/salem-witch-trials-memorial.

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Led people to be more aware of mass hysteria and it's affects and what can happen from it. It also led to the understanding of people abusing power and how people may be desperate for power. It led to people wanting more reasonable trials and a need for evidence. It became a huge current day metaphor for fear and scapegoating.

Citation:

• Author: Jeff Wallenfeldt

  
  

• Works Cited: Wallenfeldt, Jeff. “Salem Witch Trials.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Nov. 2018, www.britannica.com/event/Salem-witch-trials.

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After the SWT it left a heavy legacy in the government and how the laws were written and how they should be in the legal system. It left a legacy of innocent until proven guilty and the need for actual evidence.

Quotes:

• The abuses of the Salem witch trials would contribute to changes in U.S. court procedures, playing a role in the advent of the guarantee of the right to legal representation, the right to cross-examine one’s accuser, and the presumption of innocence rather than of guilt.

Citation:

• Author: Jeff Wallenfeldt

• Works Cited: Wallenfeldt, Jeff. “Salem Witch Trials.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Nov. 2018, www.britannica.com/event/Salem-witch-trials.

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While it might have been only for a while after and during the SWT, it led to mass fear and trauma among the civilians. It led to long lasting psychological effects on the community and a economic impact because the accused had to give up their land. The major legacy by the SWT was the legal route and how it helped shaped laws.

During the SWT people's life changed because people they'd depended on left for either jail or were dead. People were scared and fearing of everybody around them because nobody trusted anybody which led to people living in a constant state of fear. It led to people being alone and against socializing out of fear of being either accused or of the supposed witches.

Unlike almost every other witch trial in Europe and British America, this was the only known trial that was led by women. It is unclear why this one specifically was led by women but the likeliest reason is some girl accused once then once they realized how much attention it created they continued and spread until it became a mix of power and fear.

Citation:

• Author: Sarah Pruitt

• Works Cited: Pruitt, Sarah. “Salem Witch Trials: Who Were the Main Accusers? | HISTORY.” HISTORY, 27 Sept. 2021, www.history.com/articles/salem-witch-trials-accusers.

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The Salem witch trials were likely created because of jealousy and unfairness. Not unjustified jealousy, but it was likely caused by girls feeling ignored and hurt because they were seen as so low. After the first girl accused it was likely that they enjoyed the attention and power which caught on and people continued to point out others they didn't like or assumed they were a witch. Soon they would get confused and worried from the mass spread and soon it would just become a panic and worry that people started pointing out others simply because they were scared that it could be true.

Another theory to what influenced the start of the Salem Witch Trials is that the accusers had mental diagnosis that couldn't be helped at the time such as child abuse, diseases, and schizophrenia. If this is the case, it would make sense if it were hallucinations because they could've thought that they saw somebody doing something.

In the end though, it is a confirmed fact that the Salem Witch Trails were heavily surrounded by a social structure of a Puritan society and the belief that the devil was affecting humans and caused the Salem Witch Trials as people feared those around them were witches relating somehow to the devil.

The Salem Witch Trials left a legacy mostly consisting of legal matters. This legacy consists of assuring the sixth amendment in making sure that somebody is there to go against the accusations to make sure that it is not incorrect. It also made sure to question both sides, assuring it is not simply said because one does not like the other. Along with that, it confirmed innocent until proven guilty which prior had been guilty until proven innocent. With it being guilty until proven innocent, people died in the prison who may have lived had they not been in the prison. More of the legal legacy created through the Salem Witch Trials, it ensured that people needed more evidence than just eye witness to make sure it is accurate and correct.

Along with this though, there was also a legacy left in Salem around the witch trials. There are museums and educational centers focused only on the witch trials and what went on during them. Sadly though, sometimes it's not taken as series as some wish it would be because of the innocent lives lost. It is now seen as a tourist spot over Halloween full of shops and amusement places. There is still a heavy educational aspect to it, informing people of what went on, but it is now majority just a tourist spot for October.

The Salem Witch trials changed how people lived after the trials ended and how people in that community survived. It completely altered peoples mental state and health. The human impact on todays world was heavy, but during the trials and directly after it was stronger than ever.

While it might have only been for a while after the Salem witch trials, it led to mass fear and trauma among the civilians. People were looking around them at people who might have been one of the largest aspects that they feared and were terrified constantly. Watching their loved ones die in front of them and losing connections with those around them as they feared that perhaps they also were witches. Imagine having to look around constantly in fear that somebody ten feet away was a witch, everyday, all day. Soon I imagine it became people saw the smallest thing that was off about somebody and reported them to save themselves in fear of them being a witch. It messed with peoples mindset by being in a constant state of kill or be killed which left long lasting psychological effects on the community. Along with that, it led to a economic struggle for families as those accused had to give up their land leading to poverty and homelessness because they had no place to live and no money to afford life.

The Salem Witch Trials left a huge change on peoples life because people that they depended upon left for either jail or died. The rumors and trials led people to be scared of everybody and in a constant state of fear. It led people to be alone and against socializing out of fear of being either accused of being a witch or of the supposed witches themselves. While this likely led to closer relationships with the people in their homes, it also led to broken relationships with neighbors and friends. It made people scared of others and likely similar to the Covid quarantine how the number of people depressed in America rose after being alone for so long. While depression the diagnose might not have existed, the symptoms were still found and likely rose after the Salem Witch Trials after being alone for so long and family and friends dying.

While it left a stronger impact directly after the trials, it also left a lasting human impacts For example it led people to be aware of mass hysteria and its affect and how it happens. It led people to understand how events such as the trials happen and led to a bigger understanding of how people can abuse power and how they may be desperate for that power. Finally the Salem Witch Trials became a heavy metaphor for fear and scapegoating to explain how current day actions may be similar.