Power & Persecution: Race & Gender in the Salem Witch Trials

The Devil Went Down to Salem: The Salem Witch Trials Papers

Despite the many white, male victims of the Trials, it was primarily women and people of color who endured the brunt of Salem’s wrath. In addition to the three women of color in Salem Village, nearly eighty percent of the Salem Witch Trials' victims were women. The answer to why this was can be found within the Puritan religion itself. Puritans believed that women were naturally more sinful than men, and more predisposed to damnation. Though this group believed that all people were equal in the eyes of God, they could not say the same for the Devil.
Outside of these firmly-held Puritanical values, New England society in the 17th century was deeply patriarchal, and women were inherently at risk. The documents below demonstrate the ways in which racial and gender discrimination were at the center of the Salem Witch Trials.

Deposition of Elizabeth Hubbard
v. Tituba

Indictment No. 1 of Martha Corey for afflicting Elizabeth Hubbard

Deposition of Ann Putnam Jr.
v. Sarah Osborne

Statement of Elizabeth Hubbard
v. Mary Warren and Bridget Bishop

Examinations of Abigail Hobbs
in prison

Testimony of Samuel Sibley
v. Sarah Good

Deposition of Elizabeth Hubbard v. Tituba

Given that she was one of the only people of color in Salem Village, it is not surprising that Tituba was the first person to be accused in the Salem Witch Trials— and she was not alone. The two other enslaved women in Salem, Candy and Mary Black, were likewise accused of witchcraft, meaning that all women of color in the village were accused. The only non-white person to escape persecution was John Indian, and that was because he testified. Additionally, their statuses as slaves meant that these women were not fully considered people, making it even easier to target them.

Indictment No. 1 of Martha Corey for afflicting Elizabeth Hubbard

Martha Corey, wife of Giles Corey, had a controversial reputation in Salem Village. This was not only due to her husband’s past, but also because more than twenty years prior to the Salem Witch Trials, she had a child out of wedlock who was of mixed race, either African or Native American. This made her a natural target for the Puritans, who were outraged by what they considered to be a sinful and shameful past. She was executed on September 22, 1692, three days after her husband was crushed to death.

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Deposition of Ann Putnam Jr. v. Sarah Osborne

As an enemy of the Putnams, and the subject of scandal regarding her premarital sexual relationship with an immigrant indentured servant, Sarah Osborne was clearly vulnerable to persecution. However, it was her status as a woman seeking wealth and power— taking that wealth and power from men, no less— which made her a threat to the Puritan way of life as well.

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Statement of Elizabeth Hubbard v. Mary Warren and Bridget Bishop

Bridget Bishop’s status as the first victim of the Salem Witch Trials is a testament to the previously unseen violence and cruelty towards women that was on display during the Trials, and the lengths to which the Puritans were willing to go in order to maintain their values.

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Examinations of Abigail Hobbs in prison

Abigail Hobbs, who was among those accused of witchcraft, also confessed and accused others. She was likely targeted due to her adolescent rebelliousness, as an independent woman who refused to go to church or submit to Puritan values. Luckily, Hobbs and her family were spared.

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Testimony of Samuel Sibley v. Sarah Good

As an unhoused woman, Sarah Good was dependent on others to survive. In general, dependent women were more often accused of witchcraft, which was yet another card stacked against Good’s survival.

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Curated by: Andrew Fischer
With Assistance From: Yolande Bennett

Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Power & Persecution: Race & Gender in the Salem Witch Trials

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