The Salem Witch Memorial

Last summer, this blogger visited Salem, Massachusetts, a city with a dubious history dating back to 1692.  That year, a wave of "witch hysteria," started by two bratty schoolgirls, overtook the community, which ultimately sent 20 innocent people to their deaths for witchcraft.

In the years since, Salem has often sought to atone for its actions by remembering those whom it condemned.  One result is the Salem Witch Memorial, a serene park in the heart of the tourist district.  Designed by architect Jim Cutler and artist Maggie Smith, the memorial first opened to the public in 1992.

The park contains twenty individual stones like the one shown above, each one in tribute to the 13 women and 7 men who were put to death.  These include Alice Parker, Ann Pudeator, Bridget Bishop, Elizabeth Howe, George Burroughs, George Jacobs, Giles Corey, John Proctor, John Willard, Margaret Scott, Martha Carrier, Martha Corey, Mary Easty, Mary Parker, Rebecca Nurse, Samuel Wardwell, Sarah Good, Sarah Wildes, Susannah Martin and Wilmot Redd.

While Hollywood would tell you that these twenty were burned at the stake, the majority of them were actually hanged, the exception being Giles Corey, who was pressed to death in a pit of boulders.  It took him three days to die.

Rest in peace.

Trivia

• If you want to learn more about the Salem Witch trials, take a voyage to Amazon.  It's all in books.
  
  
• The two schoolgirls who started it all were Betty Parris (8) and Abigail Williams (11).  The two exhibited strange fits, which they attributed to being under the spell of a witch.
  
  
• Every November, an organization called Voices Against Injustice presents the Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice to an individual or organization who works to end discrimination.  The awards began in 1992 and the first recipient was actor GregAlan Williams, co-star of the underrated sit-com Baywatch Nights.  He was honored for helping to save a motorist who was being beaten during the Los Angeles riots that year.
  
  
• Hollywood has produced several adaptations of the trials, including 1996's The Crucible, an adaptation of Arthur Miller's celebrated stage production, which starred Winona Ryder and Daniel Day-Lewis.  Check out the trailer on YouTube.
  
  
• Salem is also home to a number of other attractions, many of them cheesy, that celebrate the town's history.  This blogger highly recommends the Salem Witch Museum, the Witch Dungeon Museum, and Count Orlok's Nightmare Gallery, among others.  Salem is also home to a statue, donated by TV Land, that honors the famed television sit-com Bewitched.
  
  
  

Happy Halloween!