Often dismissed as little more than the hysterical fancies of a group of young girls, the Salem Witchcraft trials were one of the most infamous episodes in U.S. history. The incidents at Salem Village began with accusations by several young women—including the daughter of the village’s minister—and then quickly spread to include almost everyone in Salem village and many people who lived miles away. At that time, belief in witchcraft was widespread, with respected ministers such as Cotton Mather writing books on the subject. Because of the nature of the supposed crimes, normal court procedures did not apply, as judges relied heavily on supernatural (spectral) evidence. The results of these trials proved devastating: In less than a year, nearly 300 persons were accused of witchcraft, dozens were imprisoned, and at least 20 were executed. The following selection comes from the examination of one of the young women, Ann Foster, before a judge.

After a while Ann Foster conffesed that the devil apered to her in the shape of a bird at several Times, such a bird as she never saw the like before; & that she had had this gift (viz. of striking ye afflicted down with her eye ever since) & being asked why she thought that bird was the devil she answered because he came white & vanished away black & that the devil told her that she should have this gift & that she must believe him & told her she should have prosperity & she said that he had apeared to her three times & was always as a bird, and the last time was about half a year since, & sat upon a table had two legs & great eyes & that it was the second time of his apearance that he promised her prosperity & that it was Carriers wife about three weeks ago that came & perswaded her to hurt these people.

16 July 1692. Ann Foster Examined confessed that it was Goody Carrier that made her a witch that she came to her in person about Six years ago & told her it she would not be a witch ye devil should tear her in pieces & carry her away at which time she promised to Serve the devil that she had bewitched a hog of John Loujoys to death & that she had hurt some persons in Salem Village, that Goody Carier came to her & would have her bewitch two children of Andrew Allins & that she had then two puppets made & stuck pins in them to bewitch ye said children by which one of them died ye other very sick, that she was at the meeting of the witches at Salem Village, that Goody Carier came & told her of the meeting and would have her go, so they got upon Sticks & went said Journey & being there did see Mr. Buroughs ye minister who spake to them all, & this was about two months ago that there was then twenty five persons meet together, that she tied a knot in a Rage & threw it into the fire to hurt Tim Swan & that she did hurt the rest that complained of her by Squeezing puppets like them & so almost choked them.

18 July 1692. Ann Foster Examined confessed that ye devil in shape of a man apeared to her wth Goody Carrier about six years since when they made her a witch & that she promised to serve the devil two years, upon which the devil promised her prosperity and many things but never performed it, that she & Martha Carrier did both ride on a stick or pole when they went to the witch meeting at Salem Village & that the stick broke: as they were carried in the air above the tops of the trees, & they fell but she did hang fast about the neck of Goody Carrier & were presently at the village, that she was then much hurt of her Leg, she further saith that she heard some of the witches say there was three hundred & five in the whole Country & that they would ruin that place ye Village, also said there was present at that meetting two men besides Mr. Burroughs ye minister & one of them had gray hair, she saith that she formerly frequented the public meeting to worship god but the devil had such power over her that she could not profit there & that was her undoing: she saith that about three or four years ago Martha Carrier told her she would bewitch James Hobbs child to death & the child died in twenty four hours.

21 July 92. Ann Foster Examined Owned her former confession being read to her and further confessed that the discourse amongst ye witches at ye meeting at Salem village was that they would afflict there to set up the Devils Kingdom. This confession is true as witness my hand.

Ann Foster Signed & Owned the above Examination & Conffesion before me

Salem 10th September 1692. John Higginson, Just Peace.