Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Excerpt from The Wonders of the Invisible World by Cotton Mather An unofficial yet nonetheless significant figure in the Salem Witch Trials was Cotton Mather. He was the son of Increase Mather, a massively-influential figure in Massachusetts Bay politics due to his position as president of Harvard College, where Cotton became the youngest student ever admitted at the age of eleven. After completing his education, Mather joined his father’s church, and spent the near-entirety of his adult life attempting to escape Increase’s shadow, creating a strained relationship between the two. The most public example of this was the Salem Witch Trials, in which Cotton was heavily involved, while Increase opposed. Although Mather was not an official participant in the legal proceedings, he recorded a detailed account of the Trials, publishing it as Wonders of the Invisible World, which was endorsed by William Stoughton. The book played into the supposed supernatural elements of the Trials, as seen in this excerpt taken from his account of Bridget Bishop’s trial, and generally justified the Court of Oyer and Terminer’s actions. While Cotton Mather was previously viewed as a driving force behind the Salem Witch Trials— a view that significantly impacted Mather’s reputation afterwards— modern historians consider him to have been a moderating force rather than a direct participant. Mather’s notable contributions to the Trials include advising the Court against the use of spectral evidence; voicing concern in regard to innocent people facing harm; defending the authorities when the people of Salem became discontented with the Trials; and being present at the hanging of George Burroughs, where he justified the execution after witnesses began to question Burroughs’ guilt, and encouraged the continuation of the executions on August 19, 1692. While Cotton Mather’s influence on the outcomes of the Salem Witch Trials may have been ultimately insignificant, they are nevertheless noteworthy, particularly in regard to how the Trials were remembered in their aftermath. Next 

Hutchinson's Manuscript History: Original Manuscript, Part 2 This is an excerpt from the original 1765 manuscript of Thomas Hutchinson’s history of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which features one of the first historical accounts of the Salem Witch Trials. The governor of Massachusetts Bay during the lead-up to the American Revolution, Hutchinson was also a historian, and was considered to be something of an expert on Tituba in regard to the Trials. Hutchinson’s writings are the sole source for the leading theory of Tituba’s birthplace having been “New Spain,” which is believed to be a reference to the Caribbean— more specifically, Barbados. While this manuscript was never completed due to Hutchinson’s mansion being ransacked during the Stamp Act Riots of 1765, Hutchinson eventually rewrote and completed the volume, which was published in 1767. Both the damaged originals and completed manuscripts are housed at the Massachusetts Archives.  Prev | Next 

Petition of Elizabeth Johnson Jr. for reversing attainder and for restitution This document includes Elizabeth Johnson Jr.’s request to the Massachusetts General Court to be included in the list of those accused in the Trials to be pardoned and compensated by colonial authorities, a process initiated in 1711. Centuries later, and decades after the Commonwealth of Massachusetts began formally pardoning Salem victims, Elizabeth Johnson Jr. became the last individual to be formally exonerated in July 2022. An eighth grade civics class at North Andover Middle School discovered that Johnson had been forgotten, likely due to a lack of descendants making pleas on her behalf, and successfully petitioned the Massachusetts state government to pardon her.  Prev | Next 

Resolve Relative to the Indictment, Trial, Conviction and Execution of Ann Pudeator and Certain Other Persons for "Witchcraft" in the Year Sixteen Hundred and Ninety-Two In 1957, the Massachusetts General Court formally apologized for the Salem Witch Trials, later amended in 2001. Since then, there have been several attempts to reconcile further, including gradually pardoning the victims and establishing memorials in Salem (Salem Town) and Danvers (Salem Village).  Prev