In May 1646 the settlement was incorporated as a town and was named Andover, probably in honor of the town of Andover in England. The first recorded town meeting was held in 1656 in the home of settler John Osgood. During the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, Andover, like other area villages, found itself in the midst of the hysteria. In fact, more people from Andover were accused and arrested for witchcraft than from any other town in New England.
What was the reason for the witch trials?
What were the three causes of the Salem witch trial hysteria?
- Strong belief that Satan is acting in the world.
- A belief that Satan recruits witches and wizards to work for him.
- A belief that a person afflicted by witchcraft exhibits certain symptoms.
- A time of troubles, making it seem likely that Satan was active.
What caused the Salem witch trials?
What Caused the Salem Witch Trials? The exact cause of the Salem Witch Trials is unknown but they were probably a number of causes. Some of the suggested theories are: conversion disorder, epilepsy, ergot poisoning, Encephalitis, Lyme disease, unusually cold weather, factionalism, socio-economic hardships, family rivalries and fraud.
What is the best book on the Salem witch trials?
What Is The Best Book About The Salem Witch Trials? Author Mary BethNorton chronicles the Salem Witchcraft Crisis during the 1692 year in her book The Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis. The Devil in Massachusetts: An Inquiry into the Salem Witch Trials by Marion L. Daniels. Arthur Miller’s Crucible.
What were the witch trials?
Witch trials were most frequent in England in the first half of the 17th-century. They reached their most intense phase during the English civil war of the 1640s and the Puritan era of the 1650s. This was a period of intense witch hunts, known for witch hunters such as Matthew Hopkins.
What happened in Andover during the witch trials?
During the course of the legal proceedings, more than 40 Andover citizens, mostly women, and children were formally accused of having made a covenant with the Devil. Three Andover residents, Martha Carrier, Mary Ayer Parker, and Samuel Wardwell, were convicted and executed.
How many witches were killed in Andover?
Three people from Andover were hanged for witchcraft in 1692. Two, Martha Carrier and Samuel Wardwell, lived in present-day Andover, while Mary Parker lived in present-day North Andover.
In what village did the witch trials begin?
Salem Village, MassachusettsThe infamous Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft.
Where did the witch trials take place in England?
Towards the end of the 16th-century, witch trials were starting to build momentum across the UK. Though the trials took place in East Lothian, Scotland, the origins of the Berwick witch trials find their roots across the channel in Denmark.
When was the last witch executed in America?
Salem Witch Trials Last Executions: Sept. 22, 1692 | Time.
What was the real cause of the Salem witch trials?
The Salem witch trials and executions came about as the result of a combination of church politics, family feuds, and hysterical children, all of which unfolded in a vacuum of political authority.
What cities had witch trials?
Beyond Salem: 6 Lesser-Known Witch TrialsValais: France/Switzerland, 1428–1447. ... Trier: Germany, 1581–1593. ... North Berwick: Scotland, 1590–1592. ... 7 Failed North American Colonies.Fulda: Germany, 1603–1606. ... Pendle: England, 1612–1634. ... Torsåker: Sweden, 1674–1675. ... 5 Notable Women Hanged in the Salem Witch Trials.More items...•
Are there any descendants of the Salem witches?
Three presidents--Taft, Ford and Arthur--also are descended from one of Salem's 20 executed witches or their siblings. So are Clara Barton, Walt Disney and Joan Kennedy. And, of course, our descendant in-the-making.
What is Salem called now?
Danvers(Salem Village is present-day Danvers, Massachusetts; colonial Salem Town became what's now Salem.)
Where were the most witches killed in England?
Scotland passed its own, even harsher, Witchcraft Act that same year. Essex was the heartland of the earliest witch trials under the new act, and it was the county that pursued witch prosecutions most vigorously over the next century. The first major trial in England was heard at the Chelmsford assizes in July 1566.
Where was the last witch executed in England?
The last execution for witchcraft in England was in 1684, when Alice Molland was hanged in Exeter.
Where was England's largest witch hunt?
Bury St. Edmunds – Suffolk County. Matthew Hopkins was paid to get rid of the witches in Suffolk and Norfolk, leading to the largest witch trial in England.
Is little hope based on a true story?
Little Hope is based on the Salem and Andover witch trials held in 1692, using some of the events that took place there in the game.
Who wrote a letter criticizing the witchcraft trials?
October 8 After 20 people had been executed in the Salem witch hunt, Thomas Brattle wrote a letter criticizing the witchcraft trials that had great impact on Governor Phips, who ordered that reliance on spectral and intangible evidence no longer be allowed in the trials.
Who founded Andover Massachusetts?
In order to encourage settlement, early colonists were offered three years' immunity from taxes, levies, and services (apart from military service). The first permanent settlement in the Andover area was established in 1642 by John Woodbridge and a group of settlers from Newbury and Ipswich.
What was the evidence of the Andover trials?
Central to the trials in Andover and elsewhere was “spectral evidence,” or the evidence of dreams and imaginings. Afflicted persons claimed that the accused had visited them in dreams or appeared as visions. Though it was only the victims’ testimony, these visions were submitted as evidence during the trials.
How many people were accused of witchcraft in Andover?
In July, August, and September 1692, more than fifty people were accused of witchcraft in Andover. That’s about one in twelve Andover residents! Many of the accused were members of the same family, and they were as young as seven and as old as seventy-two, both men and women. No one was safe. As the trials went on, more people were implicated as the accused tried to defend themselves. They even pointed fingers at fellow family members while fighting for their lives.
When was Andover’s witch hysteria? And where?
The story begins in 1692 , fifty years after Andover was settled. 1 With controversies in the church finally settled, it seemed like it would be a successful and untroubled year, but peace did not last long as the town was swept up in the dangerous fervor of the witch hysteria.
How did the witch trials end?
As is the nature of hysteria, as Andover’s fervor soon wound down, the trials ended and the voices of reason and logic settled the residents. Those accused were released from prison and returned to their lives as best as possible.
Why did Abigail Dane Faulkner avoid execution?
One such Andover resident, Abigail Dane Faulkner, avoided execution because she was pregnant when she was meant to be executed. After she was released from prison, the accusation of witchcraft remained. In 1703, she wrote to the Massachusetts General Court asking for her sentence to be lifted and to receive restitution for the damages to her reputation during her imprisonment.
Why were the witch trials so scary?
Though we know now that the paranoia at the heart of the witch trials was connected to religion and the town members’ social relationships, to be in the middle of it was terrifying. When town authorities began spinning accusations, it was easy to fall in line, especially because stories of witches and the fear of the Devil was already common. In the seventeenth century, most people believed that “witchcraft” was Satan working through a person and that the witches had made a deal with the Devil. Even a morally good person could be led astray or manipulated by the Devil, and as such, no one was safe.
Who was the first witch in Andover?
In May 1692, Martha Carrier moved back to Andover with her husband and four children. 2 Martha was the first Andover resident accused of witchcraft. She’s a good example of the kinds of people accused, who were usually on the outskirts of society for one reason or another. Martha and her husband, Thomas, lived in Billerica for several years, where Thomas worked as a poorly-paid laborer. Since Thomas could not support his family with his income, the town of Billerica forced them to leave. Martha brought the family to Andover, where she was born and raised.
Why is Little Hope based on the Andover Witch Trials?
As for why the Andover Witch Trials became the backdrop of Little Hope ‘s present-day narrative arc, I believe it’s due to Anthony’s hobby. In a couple of scenes, it’s shown that Anthony (as the bus driver) has a book about occult rituals. Then, in the 1972 prologue, teenage Anthony mentions that reading horror books and others about black magic became his “escape” from his troubles. Worrying about revisiting a town that filled him with dread, concussed after the accident, and still living with regrets, Anthony’s means of escape was his imagination that the witch trials from the distant past were still occurring.
What are the witch trials?
We know of a few major cases from the Andover Witch Trials: 1 In May 1692, Martha Carrier was accused of witchcraft. When she and her family had recently moved to Andover, they had smallpox (back then, diseases were thought of as brought upon by the wrath of God). Martha was also known as someone who was very outspoken, earning the ire of the conservative Puritan townsfolk. Martha was hanged in August 1692, but accusations of witchcraft continued to hound her family. 2 Next, William Barker was accused by girls in Andover. He ended up confessing and was made to serve a prison sentence. This became the catalyst for even more paranoia that followed. As additional people were accused and brought to trial, confession and the naming of their neighbors (probably someone who wasn’t even guilty) became the means of salvation. The refusal to confess led to harsher punishments and cruel execution methods. 3 The third and final wave of witchcraft accusations was started by Joseph Ballard. He brought girls from Salem — those who were thought of as afflicted or bewitched — to Andover so they can point out townsfolk who might be guilty.
What happened to Vince in Little Hope?
It’s revealed that Vince was actually Tanya Clarke’s boyfriend, the same man who was mourning at her funeral. His journey in town, now a shell of its former self due to the closure of businesses, also mirrors his regrets as he reminisces about his lost love.
What is the dark pictures anthology?
As mentioned earlier, The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope is inspired by real-life events from history — The Andover Witch Trials which occurred in 1692. These incidents caused by religious fervor, malicious accusations, and mass hysteria resulted in the deaths, imprisonment, and suffering of many inhabitants in New England.
What happens at the end of Surrounded?
At the end of “Surrounded,” he’s the one who grabs Taylor’s hand when she gets lost in the fog. Then, at the end of “Heavy Burden,” he bashes the demon that pounced on John. Your entire playthrough of The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope is Andrew’s/Anthony’s attempt to come to terms with his guilt.
When did the witches come to Andover?
In May of 1692 , after the witchcraft hysteria had branched out of Salem into surrounding areas, people from Andover and Andover Village fell under suspicion and were accused of being witches. And often the accused, to spare their own lives, turned into accusers.
Who is Kimberly Whitworth?
Next Tuesday, the North Andover Historical Society will host a local historian to shed light on Andover's involvement in the witch trials in a program called "The Witches of Andover and Beyond." Kimberly Whitworth, local historian and regent of the Old Concord Chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution, will present her research on this local history. She traced her own family history back to the witch trial era and has done extensive research on both North Parish and South Parish since Andover's founding.
Who was the driving force behind the end of the trials in Andover?
The Reverend Dane was the driving force behind ending the trials in Andover. He first arranged for the Andover children to be let out of jail on bond in October 1692. Husbands, brothers, and fathers of the accused witches then joined Dane in petitioning the General Court for the release of the Andover women on the grounds that they were needed at home and with the coming of winter would not fare well in the prisons.
Who was accused of witchcraft in 1658?
His views on witchcraft were well known, having come down against the concept in 1658 when John Godfrey of was accused of witchcraft, more than 30 years before the infamous witch trials of Salem. Godfrey was charged with injuring the wife of Job Tyler by “Satanic acts.” The Reverend Francis Dane testified on Godfrey’s behalf, judging against the probability of witchcraft and Godfrey was freed of all charges.
Where did the witch trials take place?
And while it is true that the trials took place in Salem, there were actually more accused witches, and more confessed witches, in Andover, which in those days bordered Salem, the county seat where all trials were held.
What happened to Martha and Benjamin Abbot?
Moreover, the family suffered from the dreaded smallpox. After Martha got into an argument with a neighbor, Benjamin Abbot, he fell sick, and accused her of having caused his illness. Her young children were sent to prison with her, apparently in hopes that their confinement would cause her to confess.
Why was Mary Parker sentenced to death?
Mary Parker, who went to the gallows in the fall of 1692, was sentenced in part because of the "touch test," which seems to have been unique to Andover. Accused witches were forced to touch the people whom they were charged with afflicting.
What did Ann Foster do to her daughter?
Ann Foster, a poor and senile widow, confessed to being a witch, but refused to confess that she had turned her daughter into one as well. Condemned to be hanged, she died in prison before the sentence could be carried out.
How many people were accused of murder in 1692?
As in Salem, the accusations increased and spread to more and more victims. By the summer of 1692, about 40 Andover residents had been accused. All the accused except Martha Carrier lived in the part of the town that later became the "North Parish" and, still later, North Andover. Many of the accused were closely related.
Who was the first witch in Salem?
The first accused witch in Andover was Martha Carrier. Martha was known as a strong-minded woman who had no trouble speaking out- not a condition Puritans admired in women.
Who was the minister of the Andover parish church?
Also accused were several members of Rev. Francis Dane 's family. Dane was the minister of the Andover parish church, who, unlike his assistant minister, Thomas Barnard, refused to take part in the rash of accusations.
