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Witch Hunting in Colonial America
Why did so many 17th century Americans believe that witches walked among them? How could they balance their faith in reason with a belief system that encouraged them to see wondrous signs of God’s love and the Devil’s temptations all around them? How did they respond when they believed the Devil’s servants were stalking their own communities? One response was, of course, the witch-hunt, dozens of which pock-marked the early history of the English colonies in North America. What were the hall-marks of a witch-hunt and why is the outbreak of witch-hunting in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, still so well-known today? Why did that tragic episode in Salem claim so many innocent lives and how have historians tried to explain its peculiar dynamics, impact, and legacy?
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