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A Witch In The Family
Not all of the drama was in Salem.
It seems that almost everyone in the United States, and probably much of the world, has heard the story of the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts. For those who are unfamiliar, in 1692, there was mass hysteria in the town of Salem because of the fear of witches. Almost 200 people were accused of being witches within a few months, resulting in nineteen hangings and one man being pressed to death with giant rocks, not to mention many others who languished and sometimes died in jail awaiting their trials. It was a horrible time in our nation’s history and I highly recommend reading about it for the bigger lessons and also visiting Salem and Danvers (originally Salem Village)where it all happened. However, it was not the only place in the world where things like this took place.
In my family history journey, I have come across a few ancestors who suspected to be witches in Scotland. I even had direct ancestors who lived in Salem for five generations who would have experienced the witch hysteria first-hand in 1692, even though they were not among the accused or accusers. But I had another ancestor in Massachusetts who was accused of being a witch not once, but twice during her lifetime, the second time resulting in an actual trial for witchcraft.
