The Salem Witchcraft Trial Connection

Excerpt from Genealogy of David Miles Goddard Sr. by Ashira Goddard

The Salem Witchcraft Trial Connection

Serving as a black mark on the history of Massachusetts were the Witchcraft trials of 1692-1693. Rebeca Nurse and Sarah Cloyce were victims of the witchcraft frenzy (related through the heritage of William and Elizabeth Miles Goddard and William and Keziah (Cloyces) Goddard).

Research has shown that a deep piety in this theocratic society intertwined with superstition, hysteria, fear and believe it or not economics all played a part in perpetuating this persecution and tragedy. A minister with limited education and after a year's deliberation was ired by a church committee, his name was Reverend Mr. Parris. Most of the upper economics liked ministers with Harvard degree's. His economic demands upon hire brought about a great deal of contention between the church members. He insisted that the church gifted him a parsonage and two acres of land. This was against the laws at the time. The Nurse family along with others, strongly opposed his views.

The Revered had also brought with him two Indian servants from Barbados where he had taken a year off from religion to trade in the colony of Barbados. Their names were Tituba and Indian Jones who would tell group of young women about conjuring spirits and holding 'pow wows'. The Puritan girls bored with their own life enjoyed the tales that were considered extremely sinful pagan practice.

It was not long after that the servants were caught in what was called practicing incantations. The local physician claimed that they were bewitched. Two of the Puritian girls began to have odd experiences that they claimed were fit, seeing specters and having hallucinations. The physician was called and declared that Tituba was the cause. Tituba named Sarah Osburne (who was bed ridden) and Sarah Good (a social outcast) as her counterparts in bewitching the Puritan girls. All three were held for trial and accused of witchcraft. That was only the beginning of what would become more than a simple line in a history book.

After some time, the Reverend began to claim that every incident of children "crying out" against the villagers was an act of girls being bewitched inciting the congregation from the pulpit. The Norse family, the Cloyce family and Joseph Putnam became so utterly disgusted with the Reverend and his pulpit antics that they stopped attending the Church all together. As in most disputes that may outwardly seem to be religious in motive, economics lay just beneath the surface.

There was a boundary dispute that was caused by an unintentional error by the Court house resulting in Villages of Beverly, Topsfield and Salem having to pay town and parish taxes to Tospfield. This land dispute would not be settled for over a century. Disputes and hard feelings developed between the Putnam's on one side and the Easty's and Townes on the other side. Rebeca was a Towne and the family sided with Topsfield. This angered the Putnam's and the hostility only escalated when boundary lines between the Nurses and the Putnam's farms arose. The Nurses had made a name for themselves economically and resided in one of the finest house in the parish that was set on 300 acres of land. They were considered to be a family of untainted character and moral people that lived by the teachings of the Church.

So when the Putnam's were the complainants on the arrest warrant for Rebeca Nurse, many were appalled. On March 23, 1692 a warrant was issued for the indictment of acts of witchcraft against Ann Putnam and unnamed others. At this time Rebeca was 71 years old, deaf, weak, bedridden and ill. Still she was arrested and taken to jail to await trial.

John Proctor was one of the few that stood up for Rebeca and her character. When his own servant Mary Warren also accused Rebeca, Mr. Proctor threatened her with a whip if she even moved from her spinning wheel. Until the day that Mary was called to testify against Rebeca there was not a single episode of fits. However, upon the stand miraculously the fits returned. On June 30 Rebeca appeared dressed in a proper gray gown, white collar and white-winged Puritan cap. Abigail Williams testified that she had been bewitched by Rebeca. Her reply was "I am innocent, and God will clear my innocence."

Ann Putnam's mother went on to claim that the spectral shape caused by Rebeca's bewitching caused her to do evil and further claimed that Rebeca was what caused the deaths of Ann's young children. The Court had decided that for these particular cases to allow spectral evidence. What this really meant that dreams, hallucinations and fancied imaginations would be accepted as factual proof. How does one defend themselves against 'you were in my dreams last night'.

Rebeca was convicted and taken to Salem jail. Sarah Cloyce was so angry and outraged that during a pulpit sermon ranting about witchcraft and insisting every witch should be destroyed, that she got up in the middle of the sermon and walked out of the church ensuring the door slammed behind her.

At the trial Rebeca was found guilty and sentenced to death. On July 3 she was officially excommunicated from her church. The men of the Nurse family got a petition together and went to the Governor. The Governor granted a reprieve being displeased with the judge's proceedings. The news of his reprieve of Rebeca caused such an outrage that the Governor feared of being deposed and rescinded his order. So on July 19, 1692 Rebeca Nurse at the age of 71 was hung.

On April 4, while the Rebeca case was going on, a complaint was made against Sarah Cloyce who was Rebecca's sister. A warrant was issued on April 8, followed by a trial on April 11. The servant Indian John testified that Sarah had chocked him and made him sign the Devil's book. Indian John was afraid of also being accused of being a witch as Tituba had been and decided it would be better to be one that had been bewitched. During the trial Mary Wolcott and Abigail Williams accused Rebeca, Sarah Good, Martha Corey and Sarah Cloyce had all been seen at witches meetings. At the same time Elizabeth and John Proctor were also tried and were remanded to a jail in Boston.

Sarah Cloyce was later transferred to confinement of her home, her husband Peter moved her to Framingham where she stayed until her death in 1703. Many were later released to the confinement of their homes never seeing the streets of Salem again.