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More than Salem and more than Hocus Pocus, The interesting truth about witches in American History will fascinate, and probably disturb you a little. (rightly so)
Witches Before Europeans
Many tribes had stories and lore about a woman with special powers. Tribes vary in their stories as to whether the woman is a wise woman or someone with nefarious intent.
For example, Squant of the Wampanoag was a tiny grandmother whose emotions were tied to the sea. Severe storms meant she was arguing with her husband.
Then there is the Seminole stories of Stikini who are indeed evil and transformed into owl beings. They would vomit up their souls at night and go feed on human hearts. Terrifying.
And the stories go on. They are as rich and varied as the 500 nations that existed here originally.
READ NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Salem Witch Trials
By July 1692 the witch hunt surrounding the towns of Salem and Salem Village had already been raging for months. There was even a special court established to try suspected witches that had been well used. It seemed as there was a lull with no new arrests for almost six weeks. Residents could almost exhale believing the crisis would soon be over. Almost…
Almost…
The Andover Witch Hunt of 1692
In nearby Andover a middle aged woman lay gravely ill. Her husband naturally suspected witchcraft as the culprit to the origins of the illness. He invited the famed afflicted girls from Salem Village to town to determine if his suspicions were valid. No surprise when they confirmed it. The young ladies were really enjoying their unique rise to fame and the power that came with it.
NOTE: Think about it, these girls who would otherwise be ‘property’ at the time in a staunch puritan society rose to Kardashian fame and notoriety just because of their accusations. People loved and feared them. They were teenagers…with power. Power that was waning since Salem with trial were near over but…
Here We Go Again
Witch Accusations on Steroids
The first person the girls accused not only confessed but stated there were more than three hundred witches in the region! This was FIVE TIMES the number of suspects already in jail! Thus a new wave of accusations, confessions, formal accusations, and deaths kicked off and Salem, Salem Village, Andover and all of Essex County went into US history and has fascinated and terrified us since.
In the Shadow of Salem
In the Shadow of Salem is the most complete account of the largest ‘supernatural’ crisis in American History I have read to date. Richard Hite does an excellent job at setting the stage to the witch hysteria that plagued our early nation. Much detail is given to explaining things like how belief in witchcraft was the norm of the time. Understanding the psyche of the people, the position of gender, rivalries, and the political agendas of locals are key to unlocking the truth of what actually happened and why.
As fascinating as the story itself is, it is also worth mentioning the pattern leading to accusation, trial, conviction etc, is a pattern we see today in modern culture in many forms really. The accusations may be different but the parallels are there. Spooky and worth taking the time to learn and understand lest history repeat itself. I mean, how does that saying go? Those who don’t learn their history are doomed to repeat it? Almost like a witches curse…
The Witch Hysteria Solution
I found it so interesting that is was the townspeople themselves who put an end to the trials. It took them a while to be sure but once they decided enough was enough, they banded together, defended and stood by each other, and put an end to a devastating trend. To grab a phrase from the book, ‘Andover provided the organized opposition that the region needed to put out the blaze that the town helped to ignite in the first place.’ The town paid a terrible price but no other New England community fell to such disaster again.
I loved this book. After I read it I watched this dramatization (link below) and it helped to further bring to life what Hite wrote so well. The two together provide an excellent foundation on witches in American History.
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Witches in the Early 1900s
Witches weren’t really a thing in the 1700’s and 1800’s. My sense of it is that people were still reeling from the stories and aftermath of Salem and the surrounding areas.
In the 1900’s however…Ladies’ Magazines were all the rage and with the new era came a new lens to look at witches. Witches suddenly were not depicted as terrifying maidens of hell but rather beautiful and even, alluring. This was marketed as part of the ambiance in throwing perfect Halloween parties.
Witches go Hollywood
In the 1960’s when everyone else was going through cultural revolutions, so did witches. The Crucible play came out and Bewitched was super popular. This was a game changer and the town of Salem, who had held its head low in historical shame for years found a new sense of pride and commerce in being celebrating witches in a sometimes campy very commercial way.
Boil Boil Toil and Feminism
Witches in American History wouldn’t be complete without acknowledgment of groups formed in the 1970s and later like Women’s International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell, Women Interested in Toppling Consumer Holidays, and Women Inspired to Tell Their Collective History. These groups all have their own doctrines and agenda, many of them performing witchy publicity stunts.
Collectives and groups have popped up all over the place practicing Wiccan traditions as well. Some of these are formal groups and gatherings and some are not. There is even an American Council of Witches that came up with agreed upon Principles of Wiccan Belief.
Witches in the Modern Era
Witches today run the gamut from political ideology to religious to fantastical. There is very little of the grave history involved in a modern witchery.
Today you can buy a spell on Etsy or you can align yourself with witchcraft as a modern display of feminism. One only has to jump online to find local events, covens, and festivals. Salem, of course, embraces their legacy and has a thriving tourism market as well as many modern witches as described above.
And I haven’t even touched on the phenomenon of Harry Potter. We have books and movies and theme parks. It’s so big, author JK Rowling has recently brought America into the world she’s created and brought in some of our own witch history stories and legends.
This Family
One thing we do every year is put on a Witches’ Brunch. We do this as a fun way to celebrate the season but also recognize witches in American History. Like Pirate Day, it’s a fun event that is low key but often has some stimulating discussion. Plus we just like to dress up and go do something fun.
So far, I’ve been able to trace a couple of lines to Essex County, MA. One of my ancestors appears to be a founding father of Salem. I have not yet been able to connect the names with the famed witch trials but with so many accusers and accused, it is foolish to think This Family wasn’t involved in some way. The question will be what side of the noose did my family land on?
Across The Pond
Now that you know all about witches in America, I bet you have a whole lot more questions. Well, THIS LINK RIGHT HERE will take you to my sister blog across the pond and she will tell you all about the witch hysteria in England.
Want to play witch?
Another interesting way to learn a little history in a fun and unique way.
This is what the blog is all about. Some history, some fun, some unexpected, occasionally ridiculous! Won’t you join us? Sign up here to receive our newsletter and get articles like this one delivered to your email box! We also send once a month giveaways or deals to be had all dealing with American History and historical fun!
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Guess What?! We Got An Award!
Within hours of posting this article, we found out This Family Blog is number 19 in Top 100 Family Lifestyle Blogs on Feedspot!!!! The result of hard work, luck, or maybe a little magic… we’lll never know for sure but we sure are grateful!
Congratulations on your award! History is interesting. Make you wonder about today and accusations.
This is absolutely fabulous!!! I know many modern day witches who are amazing and beautiful.
Love reading about history and I do have a small curiosity about the accounts that talk about witches, but I’ve never been a huge fan of the topic. This is a pretty interesting read, though. Thanks for sharing.
Brilliant article. It’s such an interesting time in world history, the concept of witches.My dad tells me that I actually have some great great aunt that was burned at the stake for being a witch in Salem maybe I have some witchy blood in me…?
I’ve always been fascinated by the Salem witch trials and real history behind it. Now I need to get this book!!!
Even though my career was teaching high school math, my undergrad degree was in history. Fascinating post!
What a fascinating post with lots of interesting facts! Its really horrible how out of control the witch trials got. Perfect post for this time of year!
Never knew some of this! Thanks for sharing! My sister wants to visit Salem so bad!
We live right next to Salem and we’ve done all the witch stuff. It’s very interesting and this month it’s really a magical town.
Witches are a fun idea and to dress up like one too. Interesting history on witches, Hollywood does well with witch characters
Awesome post. Our family visited Salem in May and was fascinated with its history. Our 90-minute walking tour turned into 3 hours because our guide had so much historical knowledge and enjoyed answering all of our endless questions. He even introduced us to one of the modern witches that we bumped into on the street. She was a direct descendent of one of those accused during the witch trials. Such a travesty in our history. Did you know Salem native Nathaniel Hawthorne’s great-great-grandfather was a leading judge in the trials? The author added a W to his last name to distance him from that legacy. It’ll be cool to hear about your family’s heritage.
I’m a historian and this is awesome! 😀 Thanks!
Fascinating topic, perfect for this time of year.
Fascinating! It’s hard to believe that the witch scare in Salem and surrounding areas could happen. I’m glad that witches are meant for fun nowadays!
Great article. I live 40 mins south of Salem, MA and have been many times. I love learning all about witches. It is fascinating to me.
Very interesting. I love learning more about historical yet unique topics like this one!
Interesting read! Thanks for sharing!
I have to say I never gave much thought to witches. This is really interesting. Thanks!
well I’m glad I gave you something to think about!
I think the history of witches is so interesting love this..
Glad you enjoyed!
Such an interesting read! That time seems so unreal and yet it had so much historical impact. And you are right! Sometimes it seems we haven’t learned much at all about wrongly accusing others and creating hysteria! I’m grateful I didn’t live in those times. With my love of gardening and herbs, I fear I would have been labeled as a witch!
HAHAHA I have thought that very same thing myself! I have grown and also collected things in the wild to use as medicines and I am pretty sure I’d be labeled a witch too. It’s so crazy what a ‘mob mentality’ in isolation can convince itself of.
Very fun, interesting and informative read. I never knew about so many stories.
I’m so glad you enjoyed!
I had no idea there were so many witch stories!
It’s incredibly fascinating isn’t it?
Wow, that was not only really interesting, but it was really fun to read. Thanks.
Perfect! Success!!
This is so fascinating! I find this type of history so interesting and love to read about it!
I hope you will consider subscribing to our blog! It’s pretty much what we are all about
I didn’t realize there was so much history about witches. You are never educated about those when you are youngjud - only cartoons and movies.
I find that true about a great deal of our own American History. It is a shame because we have some fascinating stories. Hopefully some of them can be told here to share 🙂
Interesting stuff! I admittedly do hope to go Salem this summer, and I want to see the Hocus Pocus stuff. But the other facts are interesting, too. I teac the Crucible, and it’s interesting how much you can relate the events to different times in history, including present-day headlines. I enjoyed reading this!
Oh me too! We are big fans of Hocus Pocus! But I want to see it all. My cousin thinks when we visit I’ll never want to leave LOL
Fascinating! We’ve been trying to decide for week whether Mary Poppins would be considered a witch or not? LOL What do you think?
You know… we have had this very discussion several times! I say yes… she is indeed magical! Not all witches have to look like they came from Oz! But she certainly has all the boxes checked off… If she was doing her Mary Poppins thing in 1642 Salem 1000% she would be accused…
As a witch myself, I got nervous reading the title of your post only because so many people get it wrong. For me it’s not about feminism or anything like that, it’s about finding peace in nature and that sort of thing. I do like that you put more of the history twist to it. Great article overall.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I have had more then one friend over the years who was a witch. It seems to me that like many labels it is a bit of a catch all and does not mean the same thing for everyone who claims it as their own. That is what I find fascinating…how things have changed in the 400 years of witches in American history and I expect it will change more as time goes on. I’m interested in sharing stories, not perpetuating any stereotype or incorrect info so it means a great deal to me you enjoyed. Thank you.
Great history on witches! Thanks so much for sharing it.
Thank you for reading! It’s fascinating isn’t it?
Love your tradition of dressing up for brunch! Sounds like so much fun 🙂 Thank you too for all of the history!
We’re going this weekend if you want to join 😉
Wow, I never knew there was so much history on witches in America. Thank you for sharing.
We have quite the history indeed!
Best thing I’ve read all month, hands down. Love this!
Thank you Matt! That is a heck of a compliment and I appreciate it!
I have some friends who live right by the cemetery in Salem. Pretty crazy witch stories there! But this article is definitely interesting. wow!
Oh yes… many stories in Salem!
I enjoyed reading this. So interesting!
Awesome! I’m glad you did!
I had no idea there was such a long history of witches. Thank you for sharing.
Glad to hear you enjoyed and learned something 🙂
The history of witches is crazy to me. I loved reading about it!
Awesome!
This is very interesting. The Witches Brunch sounds like so much fun too! Thanks for sharing all this history with us!
The witches brunch is a riot. We are doing ours this weekend. Can’t wait
Extremely interesting. I am a history major and I love this read because we know history books are not always correct with every detail. Loved it.
It’s so true. I find many of the really interesting stories somehow got left out of the history books. Hopefully this blog can shine a light on some of them
My daughter is into reading about Salem and witches, must be that time of year.
indeed it is…
What an amazing history - certainly going to read more about this (perfect for October reading!)
Check out the book mentioned above. It’s a wonderful read. And I’m giving one away….
How fascinating to read especially the Salem Witch Trials and the history behind it. And what better way to celebrate it than having the Witches Brunch 🙂 What a cool idea!
It’s fun!
As a huge history nerd, I found this post to be both interesting, and a little bit creepy! Haha! I loved it, and your website is great!
Why thank you Ellen! Glad you took some time to check us out!
What a fun and educational post! I never really had read anything like this before! Thanks I enjoyed it!
Success!!! Thank you Holly!
I have always been fascinated with spooky history. Such a fun read! Thanks for sharing =)
I think a lot of people are. You can’t help but get sucked in to a good story like this…