The 19 victims' names are carved in stone in a semi-circle around a "single oak tree, as a symbol of endurance and dignity," according to the city's website. The crooked sign in the upper left is a reminder to wear masks during covid times/Photo by Patricia LeslieProctor's Ledge, the memorial to the witch victims in Salem, MA/Photo by Patricia LeslieProctor's Ledge, the memorial to the witch victims in Salem, MA, where from the left, victims' names are Bridget Bishop, hung on June 10, 1692, and Sarah Good, Elizabeth Howe, Susannah Martin, and Rebecca Nurse, the latter four hung on July 19, 1692. Outside the picture is the name of Sarah Wildes, also hung on July 19, 1692/Photo by Patricia Leslie
Proctor's Ledge stones are dedicated, from the left, to the memories of George Jacobs, Sr., whose granddaughter, Margaret betrayed him, John Proctor, Sr., and John Willard, all of whom were hung on August 19, 1692/Photo by Patricia LeslieProctor's Ledge, the memorial to the witch victims in Salem, MA/Photo by Patricia LeslieProctor's Ledge, the memorial to the witch victims in Salem, MA/Photo by Patricia Leslie
A day ends in Salem, Massachusetts which my sister says is a haunted and crowded place at Halloween/Photo by Patricia Leslie
Just when you think you've heard it all,
a Michigan politician calls female competitors in his state, "witches" to be burned at the stake.
Like me, he must have been the only person older than 50 years who lives east of the Mississippi River who has not visited Salem, Massachusetts, the location of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 and 1693 where 25 persons were killed or died as the result of mass hysteria.
Nineteen of the witch victims
were hung; one man, Giles Corey, was literally "pressed" to death with heavy weights as punishment for his "craft"; five victims died in jail.
One was an infant, Mercy Good, who never knew life outside the prison where she was born and where she died before her mother, Sarah Good, was hanged.
Mercy had a sister, Dorothy, who was also confined to the jail with inadequate circulation, a dirt floor, and crude sanitary facilities. Dorothy was incarcerated for more than eight months, chained to prison walls and although she wasn't put to death like her mother, family members said she suffered from the effects of her imprisonment for the rest of her life.
Dorothy was five years old when she was jailed.
The witchcraft scare in Salem began with the telling of tall tales by a slave, Tituba, to young girls, confined to their home prisons during the harsh winter and having nothing better to do than to listen and spin yarns of their own.
As a child of about nine years old, I recall stumbling across this sad chapter in American history in an encyclopedia which I never forgot. I can still recall the illustrations and as an adult, the absurdity of it all and man's inhumanity to man, much like Ron Weiser.
Thanks to an
excellent display at the Peabody Essex Museum right in the heart of
Salem, visitors can become better educated about the hysteria, rumors, and seizures which can overtake crowd behavior and expand. The Peabody is hosting two exhibitions about the witches this year, with remnants and artifacts from the trials and the people involved.
I was at Salem about the time Ron Weiser was spewing his female hatred like a snake. For him, I highly recommend a visit to Salem and to the Peabody Essex Museum to see this fall's shows which may cause Mr. Weiser to shed his snake skin and rethink his poison and what it can become.
May I be so bold to suggest "GoFund Me" for his visit with excess funds to be donated to female candidates?
The Peabody Essex Museum was founded in 1799, only 37 years after the trials, and prides itself as the country’s oldest continuously operating museum. On a different note, at Turner's Seafood Restaurant, my pal, Maureen, and I had an excellent dinner outdoors in 37 degrees, but the wind was calm, we were dressed warmly (made comfortable by the restaurant's nearby standing heaters), and the warm chocolate lava cake provided its own pleasures.
Salem is about 30 minutes north of Boston's Logan Airport.
What: The Salem Witch Trials, Sept. 18, 2021 through March 20, 2022.
When: Open Thursday-Sunday, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m.
Where: Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, 161 Essex Street, Salem, MA 01970
Tickets: Adults, $20; seniors (65 and older), $18; students (with i.d.), $12, youth 16 and under, Salem residents, and members, no charge.
For more information: 978-745-9500, 866-745-1876 and visit pem.org.
patricialesli@gmail.com
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