Halloween theme

With today being Halloween and witches being associated with the holiday, I thought I would take the opportunity to pay tribute to an ancestor.

Rebecca Nurse, daughter of William Towne and Joanna Blessing, and wife of Francis Nurse, was accused of witchcraft on 19 March 1692 at Salem Village in Massachusetts.

Rebecca was one of many innocent victims who found themselves on the wrong side of a community dispute and the irrational actions of a group of teenaged girls. The Nurses and other families had grown dissatisfied with the local minister, Samuel Parris. Among the supporters of Parris were the Putnams.

Parris proclaimed that those who opposed him were in league with the Devil. His niece, Abigail Williams, and daughter, Betty began behaving strangely, with Ann Putnam and other girls following suit. A local slave, Tituba, was charged with being a witch. Other accusations followed, nearly all in the anti-Parris camp. Rebecca, 71 years old, and two of her sisters were among those accused.

On 29 June 1692, Rebecca and others were tried and convicted of witchcraft and sentenced to hang. On the 19th of July, Rebecca and others were hanged for being witches. One of Rebecca's sisters was also hanged.

Those convicted of witchcraft were eventually pardoned, posthumously. Salem Village eventually became Danvers.

Superstition and politics had been the primary factors in the "Salem Witch Trials."