Why Do Witches Wear Pointy Hats? The History Behind the Costume

America’s obsession with witches is older than the country itself. At first, it was rooted in fear, fueling false accusations of witchcraft, including those that led to the Salem witch trials. Beyond the courtroom, witches have been a steady presence in American culture through folk legends and local lore, fairy tales, Halloween traditions, and eventually,

The Salem Witch Trials 1692

With October just around the corner, Halloween and Salem Massachusetts often comes to mind. The city of Salem Massachusetts has a global perception for being a town of Halloween and witch related festivities. Part of this perception is tied to the Salem Haunted Happenings celebration that takes place here in Salem Massachusetts every October. This

May 26 – On this day in History: American Witch Hanged, Dracula Published

Alse Young is the first American executed for witchcraft in 1647 Forty-five years before the hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials, the first American colonist accused of witchcraft, Alse Young, is executed in the town square of Hartford, Connecticut. More executions will follow, as witchcraft would remain a capital crime in Connecticut until 1750. More

Celebrating The 400th Birthday Of Salem Witch Trials Victim Rebecca Nurse

In Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible,” the playwright notes that “gentleness exudes from” a sick, elderly woman named Rebecca Nurse. At age 71, Nurse became the oldest woman killed at the Salem witch trials of 1692 and 1693. About 200 people were tried for witchcraft in Puritan New England and 19 of them, mostly women, were

Witches on trial: Peabody Essex Museum displays rare documents and artifacts from Salem’s infamous past

“The Salem Witch Trials 1692,” which opened in late September at the Peabody Essex Museum, puts extremely rare and original witch trials documents on display for the first time in nearly 30 years. Tens of thousands, perhaps as many as 100,000 people accused as witches were burned at the stake in Europe between 1400 and

Peabody Essex Museum’s Gripping New Exhibition Shines a Spotlight on Salem Witch Trials

Drawing on rarely seen items from PEM’s sprawling collection, “The Salem Witch Trials 1692” tells the tragic, true stories behind one of New England’s most notorious events. The Salem witch trials threatened the very core of the early Massachusetts Bay Colony. The extraordinary hysteria involved more than 400 people and led to the deaths of