Does anyone think that any of the witches acused in the Salem Withcraft Trials were real witches?

Question

Most of the acused during the Salem witchcraft trials werent even real witches but do you think there were real ones who were acused? Do you know any names of any acused? My great ancestors wer acused to and Im just looking into the trials.

Answer 1

Yes, I believe some were witches.  Did you know that modern medical science came from the white witches?  That means they were using natural cures to heal people, not that they were putting evil spells on anyone.  If you have a town of any size, you are likely to have at least one white witch.  Sometimes a pharmacist who mixes his own medicines counts.  Do I believe in witchcraft?  Absolutely.

Answer 2

I don't think that any of those that were accused were really witches. Perhaps a few were herbalists or midwives or just plain acted oddly. Also there is a huge indication that a lot of the people accused were accused for political or selfish reasons. Ex: Hey I want that land next to mine... If I accuse the owner of witchcraft, it will be up for grabs and I can get it.

Stuff like that.

The most evil person in the whole Witchcraft trials to me is Cotton Mather who came to question and judge the witches. His methods were barbaric to say the least. Just look at the one accused man who was crushed by stones as Cotton Mather tried to get a confession out of him.

From my reading in the past, it was also suggested that the first accusations involving the young girls was due to wheat ergot that would make them ill and cause them to hallucinate. After they got better they may have continued the behavior either because they enjoyed the attention or didn't want to say anything about the illness.

The Tituba, the nurse maid of the first young girls, was among those first accused.

The witch trials ended when one of the accused was the Governor of Massachusetts wife.

Names of those accused

http://www.salemwitchtrials.com/accused....

Intersting interactive National Geographic Website regarding the witches and the trials

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/salem/

Also Wikipedia entry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch

As for witches being real, yes they are, just not in the sense of like Samantha on Bewitched or most of the other portrayals in movies and on television.

http://www.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/witch.comme...

Answer 3

well if witches are real then yes  

Answer 4

Not a chance.  There are no such things as witches.

Answer 5

I believe the deal was if you confessed you were a witch, you were allowed to repent and they didn't torture or kill you.  It was when you wouldn't that you were tortured and then hung.  so the whole point was - these were people who wouldn't back down from saying they were Christian and served God, not even to save their own lives.  Someone practicing witchcraft at the time would have to be very stubborn and determined to hang to follow through with the deception all the way to the bitter end.

as mentioned by someone above - most of the 'witches' were accused for political reasons that had nothing to do with witchcraft or anything suspicious at all.  Inclusive and isolated communities are funny things and the group mindset makes them a lot more likely to go along with everyone else automatically.  

on the odd side - isn't learning about ancestors fun?  I have a branch that got run out of Boston for supporting the king during the Revolutionary War.

Answer 6

One of my ancestors was also run out of town for practicing witchcraft in missouri a long time ago but he was actually doing it.   I'm sure that mass hystaria played a large role in the salem witch trails

Answer 7

I think that some may have been midwives and general healers, people with knowledge of plants to help people.

Once the accusers found something that wasn't Puritan, they would accuse people.

It is very possible that the accused were in touch with nature, and possible what could be called witches today, but either way the trials were stupid and inhumane.  

Answer 8

I doubt it. They were probably just non-conformers, which is what condemns you to h**l, apparently.

Answer 9

I do not think so, but I do not believe in witches, so I may be biased.

Answer 10

I think there were many midwives and herbalists (all female doctors) who were doing enough to be considered real witches.  

I think the "Real Witches"  were cunning enough not to get caught.

Answer 11

Yes but I doubt any full blown witch would refrain from defending themselves.

Answer 12

No, none of the accused nor punished during the Salem Witch Trials were actual witches. It was all basically open accusations on anyone who happened to do something odd (like write left handed, for example), or were people someone else didn't like.