Trial of bridget bishop summary

I am innocent to a witch. I know not what a Witch is. That same day, Bridget Bishop was indicted and arraigned on five separate charges of witchcraft. The amount of evidence against Bishop was overwhelming. And some time after that I being not very well stayed at home on a Lords day and on the afternoon of said day the doors being shut I did see a black pig in the room coming towards me so I went towards it to kick it and it vanished away.

Louder claimed to see the monkey on another occasion flying in the apple orchard and said he knew that it was real because it knocked apples off the trees as it flew over them. Other witnesses, such as Samuel Gray, testified that Bishop bewitched his child to death 14 years before when her spirit suddenly appeared at his house one night, according to court records:. John Bly and his wife Rebecca also testified that Bridget Bishop sold them a bewitched pig.

John Bly and William Bly also testified that they were hired by Bishop to do some construction work on her home and found poppets hidden in the walls of her cellar, according to court records:. At about 10 a. The women were all examined again about six hours later, after which the examiners reported that Bridget Bishop and Elizabeth Proctor were clear of any witch marks and that as far as the other women were concerned, the unusual bit of flesh only appeared to be dry skin.

It was a one-day affair. Seven judges headed by Deputy-Governor William Stoughton comprised the court. Bridget was allowed no counsel; at least no one is known to have risked their skin to defend her. The evidence produced was but a rehash of the scurrilous stories that long circulated about her. Bridget Bishop was not the first victim accused during the Salem Witch Trials of , but it is believed that officials chose to hear her case first because they felt, given her prior history and reputation, it would be an easy win.

They were right and a string of other convictions and executions followed hers before the hysteria came to an end in In , the Massachusetts legislature passed a bill clearing the names of some of the accused and granted restitution to their families.

List of Partners vendors. Share Flipboard Email. Jone Johnson Lewis is a women's history writer who has been involved with the women's movement since the late s. She is a former faculty member of the Humanist Institute. Learn about our Editorial Process. Featured Video. Cite this Article Format. Lewis, Jone Johnson. Bridget Bishop.

History of Witches Signing the Devil's Book. Mary Easty: Hanged as a Witch in Salem, Tituba and The Salem Witch Trials of Profile of Mary Lacey Sr. George Burroughs and the Salem Witch Trials. Samuel Gray, another victim of Bishop, testified that about fourteen years ago he was disturbed by Bishop during the nighttime.

On a Night Bishop visited him and terrified his sleeping child. John Bly and his wife, a couple of Salem village, testified that he bought a sow of Edward Bishop, the Husband of the prisoner; and was to pay the price agreed, unto another person.

This Prisoner being Angry that she was thus hindered from fingering the money, Quarreled with Bly. Soon after which, the Sow was taken with strange Fits, Jumping, Leaping, and knocking her head against the Fence; she seemed Blind and Deaf, and would neither eat nor be sucked.

Whereupon a neighbor said, she believed the Creature was Over-Looked; and sundry other circumstances concurred, which made the Deponents Believe that Bishop had Bewitched it. Richard Coman , another victim, testified that eight years ago, as he lay awake in his bed, with a Light Burning in the Room, he was annoyed with the apparition of this Bishop, and of two more that were strangers to him, who came and oppressed him so, that he could neither stir himself, nor wake any one else, and that he was the night after molested again in the like manner.

He also said that Bishop took him by the Throat, and pulled him almost out of the Bed. The arguments put forward by the so-called victims seem to be fictitious and groundless to the modern readers. But to the puritans, who strongly believed in the existence of the witches, these evidences were absolutely true.

Share to Twitter Share to Facebook. When asked if she thought they were bewitched, she answered that she did not know what to think about them.

Cotton Mather, using the court records, wrote about the trial of Bridget Bishop in his book Wonders of the Invisible World. The trial was held on June 2, in the Court of Oyer and Terminer. Even Mather admitted that it was hard to prove the witchcraft, even though "it [was] evident and notorious to all beholders. It seemed that by casting her eye upon them, Bishop could strike them down into fits.

The only thing that would stop these fits was the touch of her hand upon the girls. Abigail Hobbs, a woman who had already confessed to being a witch, played into this drama by testifying that Bishop's specter tormented her because of her confession.

She also affirmed that Bishop had been present at a meeting of witches, in a field at Salem Village, and took part in a diabolical sacrament. In addition to this evidence, evidence of other previous witchcraft was brought to light.

Bishop was accused of murdering children, bewitching pigs, and coming to various townsmen during the night. In further evidence, "poppets" were found in the wall of her cellar.