Salem Witch Trials Daily

We are happy to introduce Salem Witch Trials Daily, our new podcast that follows the 1692 Salem Witch Trials in real time, day by day, court date by court date, through the documented record. In Salem, Massachusetts, 19 people were executed, one man was pressed to death for refusing trial, and more than a hundred others were accused and imprisoned, leaving a lasting mark on American history. Building on the extraordinary listener response to this series when it launched within The Thing About Salem, the show now has its own dedicated feed, available wherever you get podcasts. Each micro-episode is tied to the actual calendar of 1692 and draws directly from primary sources like court documents, examination transcripts, petitions, letters, and contemporary accounts, alongside established scholarship and our own research. We also provide weekly companion blog posts and downloadable worksheets on aboutsalem.com for deeper, self-paced learning.00:00 Salem Tragedy 169200:28 Meet The Hosts00:38 New Daily Podcast01:14 How Episodes Work01:34 Primary Sources Focus02:01 Learn At Your Pace02:34 Why Accuracy Matters03:00 Subscribe And Follow

Salem Witch Trials Daily – The Thing About Salem Podcast

In our March 29, 1692 episode, we track escalating turmoil in Salem Village and Ipswich as Elizabeth Proctor’s specter is said to assault Abigail Williams and Mercy Lewis, and Samuel Nurse and John Tarbell address the prior day’s dispute at the Putnam house over who named Rebecca Nurse as Ann Putnam Jr.’s spectral attacker. We also follow the Essex County Court session in Ipswich, where routine cases mixed with a serious rape accusation against Mordecai Larkin, drawing testimony from two of Sarah Good’s sisters. The court appointed new constables, including Joseph Fuller, and we examine the missing witchcraft complaint against Rachel Clinton—known only through a warrant—along with her same-day arrest and overnight custody. We close by noting how required prosecution bonds were often not collected in witchcraft cases, making accusations dangerously easy.00:00 Welcome and Date00:26 Spectral Attack Reported00:33 Putnam House Finger Pointing00:50 Ipswich Court Session01:02 Mordecai Larkin Case01:16 Constables and Missing Complaint02:03 Rachel Clinton Warrant Details02:26 Bonds and Easy Accusations03:01 No Bond for Earlier ArrestsLinks

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The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

We walk through Monday, March 28, 1692, highlighting a chilling behind-the-scenes look at how accusations formed—and how some family and community members pushed back. We focus on two confrontations: first, John Tarbell investigates who first named Rebecca Nurse at the Putnam household and finds the afflicted and Ann Putnam Sr. shifting blame and contradicting each other. Then, William Rayment and Daniel Elliot visit Ingersoll’s Tavern, where the girls seem calm until Elizabeth Procter’s name comes up, sparking claims of an apparition that Rayment challenges as false. We discuss the skepticism present from the start and how these inquiries expose inconsistencies and even admissions that some actions were “for sport.”

00:00 Welcome and Setup

00:42 Tarbell Questions Nurse Claim

01:30 Finger Pointing Fallout

02:52 Beverly Men Investigate

03:10 Tavern Fits and Procter

04:35 Sport Confession and Skepticism

05:24 Closing Takeaway

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

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The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

We revisit Sunday, March 27, 1692, when Reverend Samuel Parris led Salem Village through two Sabbath services shaped by the recent “dreadful witchcraft” crisis and the public suspicion of alleged witches. We cover how his sermon warned that Christ knows how many devils are in the church, prompting Sarah Cloyce—sister of Rebecca Nurse—to flee the meetinghouse, and we note later claims about what witnesses said happened after she left. We also discuss how, after dismissing non-members on sacrament Sunday, Parris addressed the congregation about Mary Sibley’s role in the witch cake incident, calling it seeking the devil’s help against the devil, while still allowing her to remain in fellowship if she humbled herself and promised greater caution.

00:00 Welcome and Hosts

00:11 Sabbath in Salem

00:41 Parris Targets Cloyce

01:13 Seven Sins Listed

01:48 Sacrament Sunday Dismissal

02:03 Condemning the Witch Cake

03:12 Mary Sibley Rebuked

03:54 Church Response and Closing

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

Find My Massachusetts Legislators

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

We revisit Mercy Lewis’s reported afflictions and connect them to later depositions involving Elizabeth Proctor and Martha Cory. We also discuss a pivotal event recorded by former Salem Village minister Deodat Lawson in A Brief and True Narrative, describing how magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin, along with minister John Higginson, examined the youngest witchcraft suspect at the prison keeper’s house. We explore Lawson’s account of what the child said about a “little snake” and what investigators claimed to observe, as well as the allegation that the familiar came from the child’s mother, Sarah Good, who was already jailed.00:00 Welcome and Date00:15 Mercy Lewis Afflictions00:36 Lawson’s Jail Visit00:54 Dorothy Good Examined01:24 Snake Familiar Accusation01:32 Wrap Up and Meaning

In this episode, we dig into Friday, March 25, 1692, as tensions surge in Salem Village and beyond. We discuss John Procter’s furious confrontation with Samuel Sibley at Walter Phillips’ Tavern over Mary Warren’s fits and his harsh skepticism toward the afflicted girls. Back in the village, we cover Ann Putnam Jr.’s reported violent spectral assault—attributed to Rebecca Nurse—with witnesses claiming visible bite marks and chain impressions, alongside Edward Putnam’s deposition against Nurse. In Salem Town, we examine Betty Parris’s severe seizures at Captain Stephen Sewall’s home and her account of a dark figure offering temptation, as well as the advice that seemed to end her fits. We also explore Rev. Samuel Parris’s discovery of Mary Sibley’s role in the witch cake and the church repentance he orchestrated.

00:00 Welcome and Date

00:23 Procter Confronts Sibley

01:34 Skepticism Turns Violent

02:08 Ann Putnam Chain Attack

02:49 Betty Parris in Salem Town

03:44 Temptation and Recovery

05:13 Parris Learns Witch Cake

06:20 Mary Sibley Public Rebuke

Deposition of Edward Putnam v. Rebecca Nurse

Deodat Lawson, Christ’s Fidelity the Only Shield

Deodat Lawson, A Brief and True Narrative

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

Find My Massachusetts Legislators

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

In our February 26, 1692 episode of Salem Witch Trials Daily, we look at the moment the Salem Witch Trials escalated when the first specific accusation of witchcraft was made. We discuss how neighboring ministers and gentlemen visited Samuel Parris at the Salem Village parsonage, witnessed Betty and Abigail’s afflictions, and concluded Satan’s hand was involved while advising caution. We also cover what was learned from Tituba during this visit, including her connection to the witch cake attempt and what she said about learning methods to discover witches. Finally, we follow how the afflicted girls’ finger-pointing began in the Parris household, setting the stage for arrests that would soon follow.

00:00 Late February Recap

00:45 Ministers Visit Parris

01:31 Tituba And The Witch Cake

02:00 First Accusations Begin

02:44 What Happens Next

02:49 Where To Follow

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims: https://change.org/witchtrials

Find My Massachusetts Legislators: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCliis4vjMIUgg3wcA0pXeYQ/

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

Salem Witch Trials Daily Course Week 7: Families, Geography, and the Machinery of Accusation, February 9-15, 2026: https://aboutsalem.com/week-7-blog-families-geography-and-the-machinery-of-accusation-february-9-15-2026/

⁠The Thing About Salem: 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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection: https://pem.quartexcollections.com/collections/salem-witch-trials-collection

In this episode, we revisit Thursday, March 24, 1692, when Salem Village’s packed meetinghouse witnessed chaotic examinations that sent Rebecca Nurse and the very young Dorothy Good toward jail. We follow how accusations and courtroom theatrics escalated under Magistrates Hathorne and Corwin, with Reverend Parris recording the proceedings and the afflicted reacting violently to the accused’s movements. We also discuss the troubling scrutiny of Dorothy Good, including claims about bite marks and a “snake” on her finger, and the decision to imprison her. After the examinations, we cover former Salem Village minister Deodat Lawson’s lecture, “Christ’s Fidelity the Only Shield Against Satan’s Malignity,” his warnings about Satan and spectral affliction, and his rejection of countermagic in favor of prayer. We end with how depositions and suspicions—reaching even Giles and Martha Corey—deepened the village’s panic.

00:00 Welcome and Setup

00:27 Rebecca Nurse Arrives

01:22 Accusations Erupt

02:51 Spectral Chaos in Court

04:37 Nurse Jailed and Defended

04:55 Dorothy Good Examined

06:04 Lawson Thursday Lecture

06:58 No Countermagic Warning

08:17 Evening Fallout and New Targets

08:49 Day Ends in Dread

Examination of Rebecca Nurse

Statement of Giles Cory Regarding Martha Cory

Deodat Lawson, Christ’s Fidelity the Only Shield

Deodat Lawson, A Brief and True Narrative

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

Find My Massachusetts Legislators

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

We focus on Wednesday, March 23, 1692, a day of intense spiritual conflict and the issuing of startling arrest warrants. We describe how Ann Putnam Sr. claims the specters of Rebecca Nurse and Martha Cory torment her, as Reverend Deodat Lawson observes the Putnam household during and after frightening fits and a dramatic confrontation with Nurse’s supposed apparition, including the use of a verse from Revelation. We also note that other afflicted persons report Nurse’s specter, adding to mounting accusations. We follow Edward and Jonathan Putnam as they travel to Salem Town to file complaints with magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin, leading to warrants for both Rebecca Nurse and four-year-old Dorothy Good. We also touch on guarded voyages from Boston involving Captains John Alden and James Converse and a hostage exchange mission to St. John, Canada.

00:00 March 23 Overview

00:27 Putnam Fit Begins

02:08 Scripture Versus Specter

03:08 Other Girls Afflicted

03:22 Warrants Issued

04:08 Coastal Ransom Mission

Deposition of Ann Putnam Sr. v. Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse, and testimony of Ann Putnam Jr. v. Rebecca Nurse, Martha Cory, and Sarah Cloyce

Warrant for the Apprehension of Rebecca Nurse

Warrant for the Apprehension of Dorothy Good

Deodat Lawson, A Brief and True Narrative

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

Find My Massachusetts Legislators

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection

In this March 22, 1692 episode of Salem Witch Trials Daily, we cover a Salem town meeting that resolves long-running tension between Salem and Salem Village by keeping the Village part of Salem while easing obligations on both sides: villagers no longer support the town’s ministers or maintain the town meetinghouse, and townspeople are no longer required to fund Village roads. We also discuss Ann Putnam, Sr.’s account of being tormented by the apparition of Rebecca Nurse, who urges her to sign a red book. Finally, we follow a committee visit to the real Rebecca Nurse, who is recovering from illness and praying for the afflicted, but is unaware of rumors accusing her until friends inform her she is a suspect, leaving her stunned as she insists on her innocence.

00:00 Daily Introduction

00:14 Town Meeting Compromise

01:02 Ann Putnam Specter Attack

01:58 Friends Visit Rebecca Nurse

02:42 Accusation Revealed

03:08 Nurse Proclaims Innocence

Deposition of Ann Putnam Sr. v. Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse, and testimony of Ann Putnam Jr. v. Rebecca Nurse, Martha Cory, and Sarah Cloyce

Deodat Lawson, A Brief and True Narrative

Sign the petition to exonerate Massachusetts witch trial victims

Find My Massachusetts Legislators

The Thing About Witch Hunts / About Salem YouTube channel

⁠Salem Witch Trials Daily Hub

⁠The Thing About Salem

⁠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

Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection