Salem Witch Trials Daily

We take you into Salem Village on the sacrament Sunday of May 8, 1692, when Samuel Parris preached from 1 Corinthians about choosing the Lord’s table over the devils’. Then the accusations turn chilling: Mercy Lewis says George Burroughs’ apparition returned to intimidate her, warning she wouldn’t see his two dead wives because she might testify against him. With haunted testimony and threats in the air, Susannah Sheldon reports Burroughs’ specter pressing her about the next day’s examination—then vowing to kill her before morning. At Ingersoll’s Tavern, the story escalates as Burroughs allegedly admits by spectral confession to murdering children in Maine, killing his first two wives by smothering and choking, and even killing two of his own children—seven deaths tied to witchcraft.

00:00 Welcome and Hosts

00:11 Parris Sacrament Sermon

00:35 Mercy Lewis Deposition

00:49 Ghosts and Murder Claims

01:14 Susannah Sheldon Threatened

01:34 Burroughs Confession Allegations

01:46 Serial Killer by Witchcraft 

Links

Salem Witch Trials History YouTube

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials

⁠The Thing About Witch Hunts⁠

⁠Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692

Bernard Rosenthal, ed., Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt

⁠Emerson W. Baker, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience

⁠Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege

High Quality Scans of Original Court Documents - Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

Mercy Lewis Faces George Burroughs’ SpecterWe’re on May 7, 1692, as Mercy Lewis reports a terrifying encounter with the apparition of former Salem Village minister George Burroughs—her past pastor, employer, and landlord in Falmouth, Maine. Our story follows her claim that his specter brutally tortured her and pressed her to sign “his book,” then produced a different book said to have been kept in his study, boasting of hidden volumes she’d never seen. We track the chilling accusations Mercy attributes to him: that he could raise the devil, that the devil served him as a weapon, that he bewitched Mr. Shepard’s daughter after his May 4 imprisonment, and that he made Abigail Hobbs a witch—along with unnamed recruits. Mercy’s refusal, even under death threats, drives the tension to the end.00:00 Welcome and Hosts00:10 Date and Context00:14 Burroughs Apparition Appears00:36 The Mysterious Book00:59 Claims of Dark Powers01:14 Threats and Torture01:21 Recruiting Other Witches01:43 Refusing to Sign01:56 Closing DefianceLinks:

Salem Witch Trials History YouTube

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials

⁠The Thing About Witch Hunts

⁠Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692

Bernard Rosenthal, ed., Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt

⁠Emerson W. Baker, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience

⁠Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege

High Quality Scans of Original Court Documents - Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

May 6, 1692: A Mysterious Illness, a Spectral Sighting, and a Warrant for Philip English

We follow May 6, 1692, as Daniel Wilkins—nephew of John Willard—begins a serious and mysterious illness that will shape what follows. Days later, during Alice Parker’s May 12 examination, Margaret Jacobs claims she saw Parker’s apparition that very night in Salem’s Northfields. Meanwhile in Boston, with the General Court in session, magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin issue a second arrest warrant for the fugitive Philip English, still concealed in a friend’s house, tightening the pressure as events accelerate.

00:00 Welcome to the Show

00:07 Hosts Introduction

00:10 Daniel Wilkins Falls Ill

00:26 Margaret Jacobs Testifies

00:42 Warrant for Philip English

00:56 Thanks and Tomorrow

Links:

Warrant no. 2 for the apprehension of Philip English, and officer's return: https://pem.quartexcollections.com/Documents/Detail/warrant-no.-2-for-the-apprehension-of-philip-english-and-officers-return/4744

Examination of Alice Parker: https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n97.html#n97.1

Salem Witch Trials History YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCliis4vjMIUgg3wcA0pXeYQ/

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub: https://aboutsalem.com/salem-witch-trials-daily/⁠

⁠The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials: https://aboutsalem.com⁠

⁠The Thing About Witch Hunts: https://aboutwitchhunts.com⁠

⁠Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692: https://bookshop.org/a/90227/9780375706905⁠

Bernard Rosenthal, ed., Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt: https://bookshop.org/a/90227/9781107689619⁠

⁠Emerson W. Baker, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience: 

https://bookshop.org/a/90227/9780190627805⁠

⁠Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege: https://bookshop.org/a/90227/9781589791329⁠

High Quality Scans of Original Court Documents - Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection: https://pem.quartexcollections.com/collections/salem-witch-trials-collection

Blobs in the Chimney: Burroughs Held at Beadle’s Tavern

It’s Thursday, May 5, 1692, and Salem’s tensions escalate and George Burroughs is held at Thomas Beadle’s Tavern, while officials delay his examination until May 9 so William Stoughton and Samuel Sewell can attend—signaling the shift toward the coming Court of Oyer and Terminer under newly arrived Governor William Phips. We follow Elizer Keyser from a wary conversation prompted by Captain Daniel King—who insists Burroughs is a “choice child of God”—to Keyser’s own suspicion that Burroughs is the ringleader. Then the story turns uncanny: Keyser reports a dozen jelly-like “blobs” and a quivering hand-sized light in his chimney, seen by his maid but not his wife, events later sworn to and tied to Burroughs by Mercy Lewis.

00:00 Welcome and Date

00:16 Burroughs Held at Beadle's

00:43 Court of Oyer and Terminer Setup

01:56 Concerns About Afflicted Testimony

03:01 Keyser Confronts Burroughs

04:26 Mysterious Chimney Apparitions

05:16 Grand Jury Claims and Wrap Up 

Links:

Statement of Elizer Keyser v. George Burroughs

Salem Witch Trials History YouTube

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials: https://aboutsalem.com⁠

⁠The Thing About Witch Hunts

⁠Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692

Bernard Rosenthal, ed., Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt

⁠Emerson W. Baker, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience

⁠Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege

High Quality Scans of Original Court Documents - Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

We take you to May 4, 1692, when Boston holds elections even as the new royal charter for the Province of Massachusetts Bay is about to transform the government. Simon Bradstreet is chosen to remain acting governor until William Phips arrives from London, and Thomas Danforth continues as acting deputy governor until he is replaced by William Stoughton. Our story then turns to 81-year-old Bray Wilkins, who later testifies that John Willard afflicted him during a lunch gathering at Richard Way’s home for travelers heading to the election, leaving Bray in severe misery for days and unable to eat or urinate. We also track the day Field Marshall John Partridge delivers George Burroughs to Salem.

00:00 Welcome and Hosts

00:10 Massachusetts Election Day

00:37 Bradstreet and Danforth Roles

01:15 Bray Wilkins Affliction

01:39 Deposition Details

02:39 Agony and Recovery

02:52 Burroughs Delivered to Salem

02:59 Like Subscribe and Thanks

May 3, 1692: Burroughs’ Specter, a Tavern Transfer, and the Salem Trials’ Only ReleaseSpecters reportedly strike from jail cells and as far away as Maine: we follow May 3, 1692 as Elizabeth Hubbard swears George Burroughs’ apparition visits with the devil’s book and boasts he’s a “conjurer,” even while the real man is under guard en route to Salem. Guards move Susannah Martin, Dorcas Hoar, Lydia Dustin, and Sarah Morrell from Ingersoll’s Tavern breakfast to Boston prison, pushing the total to 28 suspects. Hathorne and Corwin confront Deliverance Hobbs over new spectral harm; she denies it but stands by her confession and describes a feast with Bridget Bishop and three Sarahs. The day also spotlights the trials’ lone catch-and-release—Nehemiah Abbott Jr.—and a chilling family moment as young Daniel Wilkins turns on John Willard before falling ill and dying days later, while Mary Walcott later recalls Rebecca Nurse’s specter claiming multiple killings.00:00 Daily Intro and Date00:28 Burroughs Specter Visit01:10 Prisoners Sent to Boston01:43 Hobbs Questioned Again02:04 Wen Man Mystery02:33 Jail Feast Confession02:48 Willard and Wilkins Omen03:32 Nurse Specter and Wrap Up

May 2, 1692: Burroughs Captured, Hoar & Martin Clash with the CourtWe take you straight into Monday, May 2, 1692—one of the busiest days of the Salem witch-hunt—when arrests, examinations, depositions, and jail transfers collide. Reverend George Burroughs is seized in Wells, Maine as the net tightens, while Dorcas Hoar and Susannah Martin face John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin at Ingersoll’s Tavern amid chaos from the afflicted, sensational claims of spectral attacks, and taunting courtroom exchanges. Our close look at Martin’s sharp rebuttals raises the explosive question of whether the devil could wear an innocent person’s shape, a debate later taken up by Increase Mather and tied to the Witch of Endor. The day ends with Hoar, Martin, Lydia Dustin, and Sarah Morell ordered to Boston jail as the hunt accelerates.00:00 Welcome and Setup00:11 Arrests and Examinations Begin00:48 Dorcas Hoar Under Fire01:41 Dorcas Defies the Court02:39 Susannah Martin Examined03:43 Spectral Evidence Debate05:18 Courtroom Tests and Taunts06:34 Depositions and Copycat Claims07:59 Commitment to Boston Jail08:10 Burroughs Warrant Confirmed08:33 Wrap Up and Subscribe

Walpurgis Night, May Day, and a Spectral Attack: Salem’s May 1, 1692We open on May 1, 1692, as Elizabeth Hubbard claims an attack by the specter of Rebecca Jacobs, wife of George Jacobs Jr., with warrants soon to follow for George Jacobs Sr. and Margaret Jacobs and later complaints and arrests that send George Jacobs Jr. fleeing. From there, we trace how Walpurgis Night—rooted in Saint Walpurga’s May 1 canonization and older Northern European May Eve traditions—became linked with fears of witch power and sabbaths, including lore of gatherings on the Brocken. We connect those layered beliefs to New England’s own culture wars over May Day through Thomas Morton’s defiant Merry Mount maypole and William Bradford’s theological condemnation of revelers as “fairies or furies,” then follow the thread to John Endicott, his Salem Village land, and the still-fruiting Endicott pear tree near where Rebecca Nurse was arrested.00:00 May 1 1692 Update00:46 Walpurgis Night Today01:16 Origins and Traditions02:02 Witches and the Brocken02:57 Salem Echoes and May Day03:08 Merry Mount Maypole Clash05:09 Endicott and Salem Landmarks05:45 Podcast Teaser and Wrap

April 30, 1692: Six New Warrants and a Minister Hunted to MaineWe’re on Friday, April 30, 1692—day seven of Susannah Shelden’s afflictions—as the panic surges with fresh warrants for six new suspects: George Burroughs, Lydia Dustin, Susannah Martin, Dorcas Hoar, Sarah Morell, and wealthy merchant Philip English. Accusers Jonathan Walcott and Thomas Putnam tie these names to torments suffered by Mary Walcott, Mercy Lewis, Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam Jr., Elizabeth Hubbard, and Susannah Shelden, while Susannah reports Martha Cory choking her. The paperwork tells its own story: Major Elisha Hutchinson’s rare, non-magistrate warrant reaches into Maine to seize former minister Burroughs; other warrants send constables across county lines for 79-year-old widow Lydia Dustin and bring Susannah Martin in from Amesbury as Philip English slips away. The day ends with another chilling claim—Sarah Good’s specter attacking Sarah Bibber’s four-year-old child.00:00 Welcome and Date00:19 Six New Warrants01:10 Burroughs Arrest Order01:47 Lydia Dustin Case03:14 English Morell Hoar05:17 Susannah Martin Warrant06:07 Sarah Good Specter06:34 Closing and Subscribe

Susannah Sheldon’s Sixth Day of Torment and Repairs at Boston JailWe take you straight into Friday, April 29, 1692, as Susannah Sheldon endures a sixth consecutive day of torment and reports a terrifying night visitation by the specters of Bridget Bishop, Mary English, Giles Cory, and Martha Cory. We follow her account as Martha presses the devil’s book, claims to be in Boston Prison, and describes a grotesque scene involving the “black man” and a creature like a hairless black pig, before Bridget and the “black man” boast that Bridget killed four women, naming two Fosters’ wives and John Trask’s wife. We also track the real-world fallout in Boston Jail, where Jailer John Arnold buys boards, locks, and nails to mend the jail and keeper’s house at a cost of seven pounds, five shillings, and nine pence.00:00 Show Introduction00:14 Susannah Sheldon Tormented00:28 Martha Corys Dark Vision00:56 Bridget Bishops Confession01:20 Boston Jail Repairs01:44 Thanks And Subscribe