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Paranormal Ghost filled tales of voodoo - hoodoo and zombies, Bigfoot, El chupacabra, Banshee's, witches, ghost hunting Cemeteries, the undead, the dead, Cryptids, Vampires, ghouls , Monsters, Ufo's, Haunted Locations, Haunted Buildings, People and objects, Paranormal Phenomena and strange Urban Legends perpetrate a type of folklore or "Fakelore," endlessly circulated by word of mouth through generations, repeated in television news stories, Documentaries, Radio Talk shows, Newspapers, Blogs, magazine articles and distributed by e-mail.
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Taken from first-person accounts and historical documents, this book chronicles more than 300 examples of alien encounters, conspiracy theories, and the influence of extraterrestrials on human events throughout history. Investigating claims of visits from otherworldly creatures, aliens living among us, abductions of humans to alien spacecraft, and accounts of interstellar cooperation since the UFO crash in Roswell, this discussion of the theories and mysteries surrounding aliens is packed with thought-provoking stories and shocking revelations of alien involvement in the lives of Earthling
I live in the "Witch City" Salem, Massachusetts.
I have been doing professional paranormal investigations
since becoming a licensed ghost hunter, while
living in New Orleans, back in 1999.
Now that I'm in Salem, I do a lot of my own
personal night ghost hunts up at Gallow's Hill.
This is where, back in 1692 they hung 19 innocent
people as "witches". Many people associate
the city with the Salem witch trials of 1692,
which the city embraces both as a source of tourism
and culture -- police cars are adorned with witch
logos, a local public school is known as the Witchcraft
Heights Elementary School, the Salem High School
football team is named The Witches, and Gallows
Hill, a site of numerous public hangings, is currently
used as a playing field for various sports.
The original witches hanging tree does not exist
anymore, and the deep crevasse where they tossed
the dead bodies of the poor wretches has closed
in upon itself.
Apparently the Witch Hysteria was just a way
to get even and settle old grudges with your enemies,
get rid of competitors, take over someone's property
and destroy political opponents.They even hung
two dogs for giving people the "evil eye",
crushed one old man to death under heavy stones,
over a period of several days, and hung the other
unfortunates from a tree, on the highest spot
overlooking old Salem Towne.
Witch Ghost
Several years ago, under a full moon, I was able
to capture this picture of a ghost walking by
me, very closely. I did not see this with my eyes,
only the camera picked it up. You can see the
torso, legs and head and one arm starting to take
shape.
Ectoplasm at Gallows Hill Park
According to many professional ghost hunters
when a person dies a violent sudden death, they
tend to stay "earthbound" for a very
long time, sometimes centuries. I am going back
tonight....wish me luck!
Why do ghosts linger? Why don’t they move
on? Are all ghosts only here if they are hostile?
Or are they here to protect loved ones? Do suicide
and murder victims tend to stay “earthbound”
more often than other spirits? What causes poltergeist
activity? These are the questions we try to answer
during our investigations. On our nightly ghost
tours in Salem, Massachusetts, we’ll answer
those questions, as well as explain paranormal
theories regarding ghosts. You might even photograph
spirits at various locations during this tour.
(We have actually had tour guests experience ghosts
touching them, pulling their hair, or sending
them screaming into the night!) We also have a
“Guest Ghost Gallery” of ghost photos
taken by our guests during these tours. These
are also posted onOfficial
Web Site www.spellboundtours.com.
If you feel you have an unwelcome “guest”
living in your home or place of business, call
us at (978) 745 – 0138 and we’ll listen
to your story, conduct an in-depth telephone interview
and see if it warrants a follow-up investigation.
No quack calls please! We take this very seriously,
conduct our research scientifically and don’t
like to have our valuable time wasted! Our clients
are assured complete privacy and actual locations
will be kept secret at the request of our clients.
Mollie
Stewart
Is a licensed ghost hunter through the International
Ghost Hunters Society, a member of the International
Society of Paranormal Investigators, and
the head of Paranormal Investigators of
New England, which specializes in paranormal
research and investigations and scientific
documentation of such. Using EMF meters,
infra-red non-contact thermometers, tape
recorders and cameras, she has recorded
ghost voices, (also called Electronic Voice
Phenomena) and documented various ghosts
in action! ).
Mollie travels to locations locally as well
as nationally to conduct paranormal research
and investigations. She has conducted investigations
at haunted cemeteries, haunted houses, a
haunted prison, haunted plantations.
Tells
of her personal Ghost Hunt and Ghost Photo
experience at Gallows' Hill Park
A Spellbound
Tours™
www.spellboundtours.com
Owned and operated by Mollie Stewart, who created
Absolutely Fabulous! Tours in New Orleans. She
has conducted Voodoo, Cemetery, Ghost & Vampire
tours in New Orleans for over four years. Now
she is offering the most unique tours in Salem!
Our New Orleans tours have been featured in national
publications including Arthur Frommer’s
Travel Guide. Our tours are rated “Five
Stars”!
Mollie Stewart, the "ghost lady of Salem",
or her tours or her museum, have been featured
on "Good Morning America", The Travel
Channel, Showtime's "XY TV-New England",
London's "Dead Famous" tv show, Australian
Entertainment TV, The Boston Globe, The Boston
Herald, , Where Magazine-Boston and dozens of
other publications as well as paranormal talk
radio shows across America.
Come join your knowledgeable tour guides, for
a great afternoon or night tour. Experience Salem’s
history as if it was happening to you! Folk history
and fact, woven together with great storytelling,
makes for an unforgettable adventure...
"Where Salem's history meets her spirit!"
Mollie Stewart is a certified parapsychologist,
a licensed ghost hunter with the International
Ghost Hunters Society and has written the chilling
book "Ghosts Among Us" about her personal
ghost investigations in New Orleans, Salem and
Alcatraz Island. You can now order this book on-line!
You can also order Mollie Stewarts' Video/DVD
"Ghosts of Salem" on-line. This fascinating
video features footage from Spellbound tours ghost
tour, ghost hunting equipment, Gallows Hill and
more.
See rare, authentic and fascinating
supernatural curious and oddities
from around the world! We're Salem's
most unusual and mysterious museum...catering
to "savvy" travelers!
190 Essex Street Salem, MA 01970
(978) 745-0138
Hours: October 1 through 31, Opens
10:00am www.spellboundtours.com
We invite you to visit our spirit-filled
Victorian parlour. Watch in amazement, as we
lift the veil between the physical and spirit
worlds! Listen as world-renowned Ghost Hunter,
Mollie Stewart, enthralls you with a ghost story,
full of horror and mystification. Journey back
in time, to a night that plunges two friends
into a terrifying world of the sinister and
supernatural. It will give you the shivers and
shakes! You will wonder if you really are alone
in the dark...See ghosts materialize before
your very eyes! It's spine-chilling, hair-raising,
flesh-crawling, unearthly fun!!!
This 25 minute show runs every
hour on the hour beginning at noon daily. Additional
show times are added in October. Please be in
front of Spellbound's Ghostly Parlour about
15 minutes prior to the beginning of the show.
Purchase tickets to our 8PM nightly "Vampire
& Ghost Hunt Tour' at:
Spellbound's Ghostly Parlour
31 Essex Street
or at the Spellbound Museum
190 Essex Street
(978) 745 - 0138
Admission Price: Adults $10.00
Students/Seniors/Military $7.00
Children under 13 years $5.00
***Purchase Combination Discount Tickets for
a two-way or three-way pass at either location***
Laurie Cabot is an American Wiccan
high priestess, and was one of the first people
to popularize Wicca in the United States. She
is the author of such books as The Power of the
Witch, and also founded the Cabot Tradition of
the Science of Witchcraft and the Witches' League
for Public Awareness. In the 1970s, Cabot was
declared the "official witch of Salem, Massachusetts",
by then-Governor Michael Dukakis, to honor her
work with special needs children.
She continues to reside in Salem, where she owns
a shop called The Cat, the Crow, and the Crown.
Cabot claims to be related to the prominent Boston
Brahmin Cabot family. She is perhaps the most
high-profile self-proclaimed witch in Massachusetts.
She is a part of Salem lore, and a bona-fide local
celebrity in that city and throughout Boston's
North Shore.
"Gallows Hill Park" From Highland Avenue
coming from Lynn take a left on to Proctor Street
(across from North Shore Children's Hospital)
follow Proctor Street until you come to a stop
sign. At the stop sign take a left and Gallows
Hill Park is straight ahead. If you are going
toward Lynn, Proctor Street would be on your right.
The events which led to the Witch Trials actually
occurred in what is now the town of Danvers, then
a parish of Salem Town, known as Salem Village.
Launching the hysteria was the bizarre, seemingly
inexplicable behavior of two young girls; the
daughter, Betty, and the niece, Abigail Williams,
of the Salem Village minister, Reverend Samuel
Parris.
The seeds of the hysteria that afflicted Salem
Village, Massachusetts were sown in January 1692
when a group of young girls began to display bizarre
behavior. The tight-knit community was at a loss
to explain the convulsive seizures, blasphemous
screaming, and trance-like states that afflicted
the youngsters. The physicians called in to examine
the girls could find no natural cause of the disturbing
behavior. This of course was not attributable
to a physical malady, the community reasoned that
it must be the work of Satan. Witches had invaded
Salem.
In February 1692 the village of Salem began praying
and fasting in order to rid itself of the devil's
and his influence. The girls were pressured to
reveal who in the community controlled their behavior.
Three women were identified and examined. One,
Tituba (a slave), confessed to seeing the devil
who appeared to her "sometimes like a hog
and sometimes like a great dog." Even more
troubling, Tituba confessed that a conspiracy
of witches permeated Salem Village in every nook
and krany..
Tituba was an Indian woman, not (as
commonly believed) a Negro slave. She
was originally from an Arawak village
in South America, where she was captured
as a child, taken to Barbados as a captive,
and sold into slavery. It was in Barbados
that her life first became entangled
with that of Reverend Samuel Parris.
She was likely between the age of 12
and 17 when she came into the Parris
household. She was most likely purchased
by Parris from one of his business associates,
or given to settle a debt. Parris, at
the time, was an unmarried merchant,
leading to speculation that Tituba may
have served as his concubine.
Caption: "Tituba
and the Children."
Description: Scene showing Tituba
performing acts of sorcery acts for
Betty Parris, Abigrail Williams, and
other children in the kitchen of the
Rev. Samuel Parris household.
Source: A Popular History of the
United States. Vol. 2. By William
Cullen Bryant, New York: Charles Scribner's
Sons, 1878, p. 457. Artist A. Fredericks
Tituba helped maintain the Parris household
on a day-to-day basis. When Parris moved
to Boston in 1680, Tituba and another
Indian slave named John accompanied
him. Tituba and John were married in
1689 about the time the Parris family
moved to Salem. It is believed that
Tituba had only one child, a daughter
named Violet, who would remain in Parris's
household until his death.
Caption: "I am
Tituba the Witch."
Description: Scene in Longfellow's
play "Giles Corey of Salem Farms"
showing Rev. Cotton Mather encountering
Tituba in the woods, as Mather travels
to Salem Village to investigate the
witchcraft accusations.
Source: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,
"Giles Corey of Salem Farms,"
in The Poetical Works of Longfellow.
Houghton Mifflin Boston, 1902. Artist
John W. Ehninger, 1880, p. 723.
Tituba made herself a likely target
for witchcraft accusations when shortly
after Parris's daughter, Betty, began
having strange fits and symptoms, she
participated in the preparation of a
"witchcake" (a mixture of
rye and Betty's urine, cooked and fed
to a dog, in the belief that the dog
would then reveal the identity of Betty's
afflictor). Parris was enraged when
he found out about the cake, and shortly
thereafter the afflicted girls named
Tituba as a witch. Parris beat her until
she confessed.
Tituba was the first witch to confess
in Salem, and she likely did it to avoid
further punishment. In her confession
she apologized for hurting Betty, claimed
she never wanted to hurt Betty, and
professed her love for the child. She
also wove a lively tale of an active
community of witches in Salem. She named
Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne as witches.
By confessing early on, Tituba avoided
the ordeal of going to trial, joining
with the afflicted girls in providing
key evidence against accused witches.
Her husband, John, would also fall into
fits, and become afflicted.
Tituba, what evil spirit have you
familiarity with?—None.
"Why do you hurt these children?—I
do not hurt them.
"Who is it then?—The Devil,
for aught I know.
"Did you never see the Devil?—The
Devil came to me, and bid me serve
him.
"Who have you seen?—Four
women sometimes hurt the children.
"Who were they?—Goody
Osburn and Sarah Good, and I do not
know who the others were. Sarah Good
and Osburn would have me hurt the
children, but I would not.
"(She further saith there was
a tall man of Boston that she did
see.)
"When did you see them?—Last
night, at Boston.
"What did they say to you?—They
said, 'Hurt the children.'
"And did you hurt them?—No:
there is four women and one man, they
hurt the children, and then they lay
all upon me; and they tell me, if
I will not hurt the children, they
will hurt me.[ii.24]
"But did you not hurt them?—Yes;
but I will hurt them no more.
"Are you not sorry that you
did hurt them?—Yes.
"And why, then, do you hurt
them?—They say, 'Hurt children,
or we will do worse to you.'
"What have you seen?—A
man come to me, and say, 'Serve me.'
"What service?—Hurt the
children: and last night there was
an appearance that said, 'Kill the
children;' and, if I would not go
on hurting the children, they would
do worse to me.
"What is this appearance you
see?—Sometimes it is like a
hog, and sometimes like a great dog.
"(This appearance she saith
she did see four times.)
"What did it say to you?—The
black dog said, 'Serve me;' but I
said, 'I am afraid.' He said, if I
did not, he would do worse to me.
"What did you say to it?—I
will serve you no longer. Then he
said he would hurt me; and then he
looks like a man, and threatens to
hurt me. (She said that this man had
a yellow-bird that kept with him.)
And he told me he had more pretty
things that he would give me, if I
would serve him.
"What were these pretty things?—He
did not show me them.
"What else have you seen?—Two
cats; a red cat, and a black cat.
"What did they say to you?—They
said, 'Serve me.'
"When did you see them?—Last
night; and they said, 'Serve me;'
but I said I would not.
"What service?—She said,
hurt the children.[ii.25]
"Did you not pinch Elizabeth
Hubbard this morning?—The man
brought her to me, and made pinch
her.
"Why did you go to Thomas Putnam's
last night, and hurt his child?—They
pull and haul me, and make go.
"And what would they have you
do?—Kill her with a knife.
"(Lieutenant Fuller and others
said at this time, when the child
saw these persons, and was tormented
by them, that she did complain of
a knife,—that they would have
her cut her head off with a knife.)
"How did you go?—We ride
upon sticks, and are there presently.
"Do you go through the trees
or over them?—We see nothing,
but are there presently.
"Why did you not tell your master?—I
was afraid: they said they would cut
off my head if I told.
"Would you not have hurt others,
if you could?—They said they
would hurt others, but they could
not.
"What attendants hath Sarah
Good?—A yellow-bird, and she
would have given me one.
"What meat did she give it?—It
did suck her between her fingers.
"Did you not hurt Mr. Curren's
child?—Goody Good and Goody
Osburn told that they did hurt Mr.
Curren's child, and would have had
me hurt him too; but I did not.
"What hath Sarah Osburn?—Yesterday
she had a thing with a head like a
woman, with two legs and wings.
"(Abigail Williams, that lives
with her uncle Mr. Parris, said that
she did see the same creature, and
it turned into the shape of Goodie
Osburn.)
"What else have you seen with
Osburn?—Another thing, hairy:
it goes upright like a man, it hath
only two legs.[ii.26]
"Did you not see Sarah Good upon
Elizabeth Hubbard, last Saturday?—I
did see her set a wolf upon her to
afflict her.
"(The persons with this maid
did say that she did complain of a
wolf. She further said that she saw
a cat with Good at another time.)
"What clothes doth the man go
in?—He goes in black clothes;
a tall man, with white hair, I think.
"How doth the woman go?—In
a white hood, and a black hood with
a top-knot.
"Do you see who it is that torments
these children now?—Yes: it
is Goody Good; she hurts them in her
own shape.
"Who is it that hurts them now?—I
am blind now: I cannot see.
"Written by Ezekiel Cheever
When public sentiment towards the accusers
and the trials began to change, Tituba
recanted her confession. This further
enraged Parris, who in retaliation,
refused to pay the jailer's fee to get
Tituba out a prison. As a result, she
spent thirteen months in jail until
an unknown person paid the seven pounds
for her release and bought her. It is
likely that the same person bought her
husband, John, because Puritans were
not inclined to split up married couples,
even slaves. It is unknown what happened
to her after she began her life with
her new owner.
In March the afflicted girls accused Martha Corey.
The three women previously denounced as colluding
with the devil were marginal to the community.
Martha Corey was different; she was an upstanding
member of the Puritan congregation - her revelation
as a witch demonstrated that Satan's influence
reached to the very core of the community. Events
snowballed as the accusatory atmosphere intensified
and reached a fever pitch. During the period from
March into the fall many were charged, examined,
tried and condemned to death.
The hangings started in June with
the death of Bridget Bishop and continued through
September. As winter approached, the hysteria
played itself out as criticism of the procedures
grew. In October, the colonial governor dissolved
the local Court of inquiry. The convictions and
condemnations for witchery stopped. Nineteen victims
of the witch-hunt had been hanged, one crushed
to death under the weight of stones and at least
four died in prison awaiting trial.
The Salem witchcraft authority, Charles W. Upham,
chose this hill as the probable site of the hangings
of the nineteen condemned witches in 1692. Executions
for witchcraft occurred here on Gallows Hill June
10, July 19, August 19, and September 22. After
the September hangings, the Reverend Nicholas
Noyes, turning to the eight bodies hanging from
the tree, remarked,
"What a sad thing it is to see Eight Firebrands
of Hell hanging there."
The county seat of Essex, Salem was the scene
of the witchcraft trials in 1692. Those condemned
were hanged on Gallows Hill. Giles Corey, who
refused to stand trial, was pressed to death in
a Salem field.
In 1692, the Salem jail stood on St. Peter Street
(then called "Prison Lane") near its
intersection with Federal Street. The traditional
route taken by the condemned from the jail to
Gallows Hill was through St. Peter Street, down
Essex Street, and then through Boston Street to
the point of its present intersection with Aborn
Street, and from there to the summit of Gallows
Hill. This roundabout path permitted the least
precipitous approach to the brow of the hill.
Some authoities now believe that the actual
site of the executions lies on a lower hill nearer
the town. The great height and rugged terrain
of this hill would have precluded transporting
the condemned to this site in a cart, which is
known to have occurred.
The June 10, 1692 hanging of Bridget
Bishop
By the time the hysteria had spent itself, 24
people had died. Nineteen were hanged on Gallows
Hill in Salem Town, but some died in prison. Giles
Corey at first pleaded not guilty to charges of
witchcraft, but subsequently refused to stand
trial. This refusal meant he could not be convicted
legally. However, his examiners chose to subject
him to interrogation by the placing of stone weights
on his body. He survived this brutal torture for
two days before dying.
It is remarkable 552 original documents pertaining
to the witchcraft trials have been preserved and
are still stored by the Peabody Essex Museum.
Eerie memorabilia associated with the trials,
such as the "Witch Pins" used in the
examination of witches and a small bottle supposed
to contain the finger bones of the victim George
Jacobs can be found there as well.
Native Americans called the area "Naumkeag,"
meaning "eel land." Salem was founded
at the mouth of the Naumkeag River in 1626 by
a company of fishermen from Cape Ann led by Roger
Conant, and incorporated in 1629. The name "Salem"
is related to the Hebrew word "shalom"
and Arabic word "salam," both meaning
"peace." Conant was later supplanted
by John Endicott, the governor assigned by the
Massachusetts Bay Company. Salem originally included
much of the North Shore, including Marblehead,
set off in 1649. Most of the accused in the Salem
Witch Trials lived in nearby "Salem Village,"
now Danvers. "Salem Village" also included
Peabody and parts of present-day Beverly. Middleton,
Topsfield, Wenham and Manchester-by-the-Sea, too,
were once parts of Salem.
On February 26, 1775, patriots raised the drawbridge
at the North River, preventing British Colonel
Alexander Leslie and his troops from seizing stores
and ammunition hidden in North Salem. During the
Revolution, the town became a center for privateering.
By 1790, Salem was the sixth largest city in the
country, and a world famous seaport -- particularly
in the China trade. Codfish was exported to the
West Indies and Europe. Sugar and molasses were
imported from the West Indies, tea from China,
and pepper from Sumatra. Salem ships also visited
Africa, Russia, Japan and Australia. During the
War of 1812, privateering resumed.
Salem Harbor in 1907Prosperity would leave the
city with a wealth of fine architecture, including
Federal style mansions designed by Samuel McIntire,
for whom the city's largest historic district
is named. Incorporated a city in 1836, Salem adopted
a city seal in 1839 with the motto "Divitis
Indiae usque ad ultimum sinum" -- "To
the farthest port of the rich East." Nathaniel
Hawthorne was overseer of the port from 1846 until
1849. He worked in the Customs House near Pickering
Wharf, his setting for the beginning of The Scarlet
Letter. In 1858, Salem Willows Park was established,
an amusement park on land jutting into the harbor.
But shipping would decline through the 19th century.
Salem and its silting harbor were increasingly
eclipsed by Boston and New York. Consequently,
the city turned to manufacturing. Industries included
tanneries, shoe factories and the Naumkeag Steam
Cotton Company. Large parts of the mill town were
destroyed in the Great Salem Fire of 1914, which
began in the Korn Leather Factory. More than 400
homes burned, leaving 3,500 families homeless.
But much of Salem's architectural legacy survived,
helping it develop as a center for tourism.
With the exception of Giles Corey, who was pressed
to death, the following accused wicthes were hanged:
Nineteen accused witches were hanged on Gallows
Hill in 1692:
June 10
Bridget Bishop
July 19
Rebecca Nurse
Sarah Good
Susannah Martin
Elizabeth Howe
Sarah Wildes
August 19
George Burroughs
Martha Carrier
John Willard
George Jacobs, Sr.
John Proctor
September 22
Martha Corey
Mary Eastey
Ann Pudeator
Alice Parker
Mary Parker
Wilmott Redd
Margaret Scott
Samuel Wardwell
One accused witch (or wizard, as male witches
were often called) was pressed to death on September
19 when he failed to plead guilty or not guilty:
Giles Corey
Other accused witches died in prison:
Sarah Osborn
Roger Toothaker
Lyndia Dustin
Ann Foster
(As many as thirteen** others may have died in
prison.)
**sources conflict as to the exact number of prison
deaths
Jurors and magistrates apologized; restitution
was made to the victims' families and a Day of
Fasting and Remembrance was instituted. Little
is known of the lives of the afflicted girls.
Tituba is believed to have been sold and taken
out of the Salem Village area. The 300th anniversary
of the trials served as an opportunity to bring
a sense of reconciliation and an appreciation
of the lessons of that time.
Caption: "Examination
of a Witch" Thompkins H. Matteson, 1853.
Description: Generally supposed to represent an
event in the Salem witch trials, an earlier version
of this painting was exhibited by the artist in
New York in 1848 with a quotation from John Greenleaf
Whittier's book Supernaturalism of New England,
1847: "Mary Fisher, a young girl, was seized
upon by Deputy Governor Bellingham in the absence
of Governor Endicott, and shamefully stripped
for the purpose of ascertaining whether she was
a witch, with the Devil's mark upon her."
See, "A Study of the Life and Work of the
Nineteenth Century Artist Tompkins Harrison Matteson
(1813-1884), by Harriet Hocter Groeschel, M.A.
thesis, Syracuse University, 1985, pp. 37-38.
Source: Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA
REMARKABLE THINGS CONFESSED BY
SOME SUSPECTED OF BEING GUILTY OF WITCHCRAFT.
1. It pleased God, for the clearer discovery
of those mysteries of the kingdom of darkness,
so to dispose, that several persons, men, women,
and children, did confess their hellish deeds,
as followeth:—
2. They confessed against themselves that they
were witches, told how long they had been so,
and how it came about that the Devil appeared
to them; viz., sometimes upon discontent at their
mean condition in the world, sometimes about fine
clothes, sometimes for the gratifying other carnal
and sensual lusts. Satan then, upon his appearing
to them, made them fair (though false) promises,
that, if they would yield to him, and sign his
book, their desires should be answered to the
uttermost, whereupon they signed it; and thus
the accursed confederacy was confirmed betwixt
them and the Prince of Darkness.
3. Some did affirm that there were some hundreds
of the society of witches, considerable companies
of whom were affirmed to muster in arms by beat
of drum. In time of examinations and trials, they
declared that such a man was wont to call them
together from all quarters to witch-meetings with
the sound of a diabolical trumpet.
4. Being brought to see the prisoners at the
bar upon their trials, they did affirm in open
court (I was then present), that they had oftentimes
seen[ii.536] them at witch-meetings, where was
feasting, dancing, and jollity, as also at Devil-sacraments;
and particularly that they saw such a man ——
amongst the rest of the cursed crew, and affirmed
that he did administer the sacrament of Satan
to them, encouraging them to go on in their way,
and they should certainly prevail. They said also
that such a woman —— was a deacon,
and served in distributing the diabolical elements:
they affirmed that there were great numbers of
the witches.
5. They affirmed that many of those wretched
souls had been baptized at Newbury Falls, and
at several other rivers and ponds; and, as to
the manner of administration, the great Officer
of Hell took them up by the body, and, putting
their heads into the water, said over them, "Thou
art mine, I have full power over thee:" and
thereupon they engaged and covenanted to renounce
God, Christ, their sacred baptism, and the whole
way of Gospel salvation, and to use their utmost
endeavors to oppose the kingdom of Christ, and
to set up and advance the kingdom of Satan.
6. Some, after they had confessed, were very
penitent, and did wring their hands, and manifest
a distressing sense of what they had done, and
were by the mercies of God recovered out of those
snares of the kingdom of darkness.
7. Several have confessed against their own mothers,
that they were instruments to bring them into
the Devil's covenant, to the undoing of them,
body and soul; and some girls of eight or nine
years of age did declare, that, after they were
so betrayed by their mothers to the power of Satan,
they saw the Devil go in their own shapes to afflict
others.
8. Some of those that confessed were immediately
afflicted at a dreadful rate, after the same manner
with the other sufferers.
9. Some of them confessed, that they did afflict
the sufferers according to the time and manner
they were accused thereof; and, being asked what
they did to afflict them, some said that they
pricked pins into poppets made with rags, wax,
and other materials: one that confessed after
the signing the death-warrant said she used to
afflict them by clutching and pinching her hands
together, and wishing in what part and after what
manner she would have them afflicted, and it was
done.
10. They confessed the design was laid by this
witchcraft to root out the interest of Christ
in New England, and that they began at the Village
in order to settling the kingdom of darkness and
the powers thereof; declaring that such a man
—— was to be head conjurer, and for
his activity in that affair was to be crowned
king of hell, and that such a woman ——
was to be queen of hell.
Thus I have given my reader a brief and true
account of those fearful and amazing operations
and intrigues of the Prince of Darkness: and I
must call them so; for, let some persons be as
incredulous as they please about the powerful
and malicious influence of evil angels upon the
minds and bodies of mankind, sure I am none that
observed those things above mentioned could refer
them to any other head than the sovereign permission
of the holy God,[ii.537] and the malicious operations
of his and our implacable enemy. I have here related
nothing more than what was acknowledged to be
true by the judges that sat on the bench, and
other credible persons there, which I have without
prejudice or partiality represented.
I therefore close all with my uncessant prayers,
that the great and everlasting Jehovah would,
for the sake of his blessed Son, our most glorious
intercessor, rebuke Satan, and so vanquish him,
from time to time, that his power may be more
and more every day suppressed, his kingdom destroyed;
and that all his malicious and accursed instruments
in those spiritual wickednesses may gnash their
teeth, melt away, and be ashamed in their secret
places, till they come to be judged and condemned
unto the place of everlasting burnings prepared
for the Devil and his angels, that they may there
be tormented with him for ever and ever.
SALEM WITCHCRAFT
With an Account of Salem Village
and A History of Opinions on
Witchcraft and Kindred Subjects
Tourists know Salem as a mix of important historical
sites, New Age and Wiccan boutiques, and kitschy
Halloween-witch-themed attractions. Controversy
arose in 2005 when TV Land—a cable television
network featuring old sitcom re-runs—erected
a bronze statue of Elizabeth Montgomery, who played
the comic witch "Samantha" in the 1960s
series Bewitched. A few special episodes of the
series were actually filmed in Salem, and TV Land
said that the statue commemorated the 35th anniversary
of those episodes.
Bewitched Statue - On Wednesday, June 15, 2005,
the folks from the nostalgia cable channel TV
Land unveiled a sculpture of the nose-twitching
witch, Samantha Stephens from the sitcom BEWITCHED/ABC/1964-72.
Located in Lappin Park at the corner of Washington
and Essex Streets in the heart of downtown Salem,
the 9-foot tall, 3,000 pound statue features the
bronze likeness of actress Elizabeth Montgomery
(died of cancer in 1995) sitting sidesaddle on
a broomstick in front of a crescent moon as her
skirt flutters behind in a breeze.
Larry W. Jones, president of TV Land, the cable
television network said, "'Bewitched' is
a timeless series...Today, we're here to honor
a character, an actress, and a show that remains
close to our hearts."
Among the 1500 in attendance at the ceremony
were the show's director William Asher, who was
married to Montgomery, and actors from the original
series, including Bernard Fox (who played Dr.
Bombay), Kasey Rogers (Louise Tate), and Erin
Murphy (Tabitha Stephens). Some fans in the crowd
wore pointy witch hats and T-shirts with the show's
logo.
Not everyone in attendance was "enchanted"
when the TV Land executives unveiled the statue
of Samantha the Witch amid a puff of smoke. Some
felt the timing of the TV LAND statue was just
a crass promotional gimmick to coincide with the
June 24th release of the movie remake Bewitched
(2005) starring Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell.
Other critics felt that the erection of the statue
in Salem, Massachusetts trivializes the tragic
murder of 20 people who were put to death in 1692
after they were falsely accused of witchcraft.
Some in the crowd carried signs and banners reading
"Tragedy is not a Joking Subject" "Is
There no limit to this schlock?", "Shame"
and "Elizabeth Who?
Mayor Stanley J. Usovicz Jr. accepted the statue
on behalf of Salem. ''We do, in fact, have a great
and rich history," Usovicz said. ''And there
is more than enough room for contemporary art
in modern culture."
The life-sized 'Bewitched' statue was created
by Studio EIS, a three-dimensional design and
sculpture studio in New York founded by brothers
Ivan and Elliot Schwartz. The same studio also
created 'The Andy Griffith Show' statue which
was unveiled in Raleigh, NC in October 2003 and
the statue commemorating Bob Newhart's role as
Dr. Robert Hartley on 'The Bob Newhart Show' in
July 2004.
On the original BEWITCHED series (set in Westport,
Connecticut), Samantha Stephens married a mortal
named Darrin Stephens and promised to love, honor
and "try" to keep her witch powers in
check so she could lead a "normal" life.
As much as Sam tried, there were times when she
just needed to fall back on her witchcraft to
get her husband or herself out of trouble. As
Sam would say "Witchcraft got me into this
mess, I see no reason why witchcraft can't get
me out of it."
Many felt the statue was good fun and appropriate
to a city that promotes itself as "The Witch
City," and contains a street named "Witch
Way." Others objected to the use of public
property for what was transparently commercial
promotion. Some felt that the statue trivialized
history by encouraging visitors to recall a sitcom
rather than the tragic Salem witch trials. Local
historian John Carr was quoted in Time Magazine
as saying "it's like TV Land going to Auschwitz
and proposing to erect a statue of Colonel Klink."
Bewitched Fisherman - This famous Gloucester,
Massachusetts statue was the focus of an episode
on the sitcom BEWITCHED/ABC/1964-72. While Samantha
the witch visited the New England area to attend
a Witches Convention in historic Salem, her husband
Darrin Stephens (Dick Sargent) was enchanted by
his mischievous cousin-in-law Serena the witch
(Elizabeth Montgomery in a dual role) who turned
him into the likeness of a local monument called
The Fisherman Statue (official title "The
Man at the Wheel"). While Darrin took the
place of the statue, Serena gallivanted around
town with the reincarnated image of the Fisherman
Statue. For the role, Dick Sargent was dressed
in a fisherman's raincoat and hat and then sprayed
all over with a rusty green color to simulate
the weather worn statue.
The real statue upon which the episode was based
stands at Stacey Boulevard in the town of Gloucester,
Massachusetts. It was created by Leonard Craske
in 1923 for a dedication ceremony honoring the
town's 300th anniversary. The inscription on the
statue reads: "They That Go Down To The Sea
in Ships."
The reason why the cast of BEWITCHED traveled
to New England was because their Hollywood stage
burned down in April 1970. While they rebuilt
the show's filming stage the production cast hit
the road filming episodes No. 202 "Salem,
Here We Come." (aired 10-1-70); No. 203 "The
Salem Saga" (aired 10-8-70); No. 204 "Samantha's
Hot Bed Warmer" (aired 10-15-70); and the
Fisherman's statue episode "No. 205 "Darrin
on a Pedestal" (aired 10-22-70).
Salem, Massachusetts Museums
& Attractions: Heritage, History & Culture
Eerie Legends of Salem
Hear Testimony of John Westgate who claims that
a giant black pig tried to devour him and his
dog. Meet the Dogtown Witch of Gloucester, who
had the power to change into another form. Listen
to tales of ghosts that haunt the City of Salem,
trying to contact the living. Based on actual
testimony and events!
Salem Willows Park
Discover family fun at its best! This Oceanside
Park features amusements, kiddie rides, restaurants,
picnic grounds, pier, beaches and wonderful scenic
ocean views. 5 minutes from downtown Salem; FREE
PARKING AND ADMISSION.
Open: April-Oct, Mon-Sat: 10am-11pm, and Sun:
11am-11pm
352 Lafayette Street, Salem, MA
(978) 745-0251
The Witch House
Visit the home of Salem Witch Trial Judge Jonathon
Corwin!
The Witch House is the only home still standing
in Salem with direct ties to the Witch Trials
of 1692.
Open March - November.
310 Essex Street Salem, MA 01970
(978) 744-0180; Fax (978) 740-9299
Museums & Attractions: Family Fun
The North Shore Children’s
Museum
A place for children and their parents to create,
play and learn in a hands-on, educational environment.
Open year-round, daily 9am – 5pm. $6. Group
rates available.
209R Essex Street, Salem, MA
(978) 741-1811
Dracula’s Castle
Travel through eerie chambers filled with Dracula's
creatures of the night waiting to make you their
next meal. Group tours available.
90 Lafayette Street, Salem, MA
(978) 745-4777 or 1-8-666-SCREAM
The Fright Pass
Museum of Myths & Monsters & Salem's Witch
Mansion If we don't scare you...you're already
dead! Group Tours available. Located on historic
Pickering Wharf.
59 Wharf Street, Salem, MA
978-745-7283; Fax (978) 745-8383
The Pentacle or the Pentagram is
a 5 pointed star, often, but not always, encircled
with the circle of Unity. It represents the domination
of Spirit or Divine Will over base matter, and
the elements of Spirit, Earth, Water, Fire, and
Air. The pentacle has been a symbol of protection
and spiritual growth for millennia. At its points
are the stages of Life: birth, initiation, consummation,
repose, and death, with the circle bringing us
back to birth in the cycle of reincarnation. Representing
the element of Earth in the Tarot, the pentacle
is also associated with prosperity and abundance
and groundedness. The pentacle is often confused
with the pentagram. The pentagram is the mathematical
design itself, while a the pentacle is an object
in the shape of a pentagram. The paten is a dish
for holding cakes and other offerings or for charging
material items and often has a pentacle or pentagram
inscribed upon it.
This is the ORIGINAL tour created
by Spellbound Tours in 2000!
Join supernatural expert Mollie
Stewart, for an in-depth look at the tragic events
that led to the Witchcraft Trials of Salem, in
1692. Find out what role Voodoo played in the
hysteria that allowed 20 innocent victims to be
executed. You’ll learn what Voodoo really
is and where it is practiced today. These people
were falsely accused of practicing witchcraft
and “cavorting with Satan”, either
by their neighbors or own family members! These
accusations became so rampant that eventually
over 150 people would be jailed in Salem, under
conditions so terrible, that some of them died,
before they were to be hung! Did you know that
you had to pay for your own food and incarceration?
Or that when you were accused of witchcraft, all
your property and possessions were seized by the
sheriff? You'll discover the use of "poppets"
by witches and doll sorcery used in rituals today.
You’ll hear the poignant
stories of many of these victims at the Witch
Trials Memorial that was dedicated to them in
August of 1992, as we walk past each memorial.
You’ll hear their last, heroic statements
before meeting their dark fates on Gallows Hill…and
how the crowd was so moved by the final prayer
of one victim, that they almost stopped his execution!
We’ll also visit the Old
Burying Point Cemetery, one of the oldest cemeteries
in Massachusetts, the site of the true "Witch
Dungeon", and where Giles Corey was pressed
to death. We’ll look at gravestone artwork
and the symbolism of gravestone engravings. You’ll
discover the eloquent epitaphs for the dead. You
will also learn the offensive “burial”
practices for those hung as witches.
Was the witchcraft hysteria a conspiracy
born of greed, envy, jealousy and petty squabbles
among neighbors? Or was it really the “Devil
come to Salem”? Come on this tour and find
out the truth!!!
- - This is a daytime tour only
- -
$13 Adults, $10 Students/Seniors
**Tickets are required!
Purchase tickets at the Spellbound Museum
190 Essex Street
3:00 PM DAILY
OCTOBER 1ST - 31ST ONLY
MEETS IN FRONT OF THE VISITOR CENTER BUILDING
*After October this is a private tour only, you
must have a minimum of 5 adults to book this tour*!
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