February 1692
Day-By-Day chronicle of events during the Salem Witch Trials
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
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10
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29
February 2nd
Sarah Good and her 4-year-old daughter, Dorothy, visited the Parsonage seeking charity. Reverend Parris offered something to Dorothy, but Sarah left muttering, dissatisfied with what he provided. Though he didn’t hear what she said, he later reported that Abigail and Betty’s condition worsened after his encounter with Sarah.
February 16th
On this day, Dr. William Griggs Sr. acquired a homestead at the foot of Leach’s Hill from farmer Jacob Barney for £71. He had relocated to Salem Village two years earlier, having previously lived in Boston, Roxbury, and Rumney Marsh.
February 24th
For two months, the Parris family tried every home remedy they could think of to cure Abigail and Betty of their baffling ailments. They used parsnip seed in wine, a draft of blood mixed with hartshorn, and even an elixir of dew refined into dust. But none of these treatments brought relief, and the girls’ conditions only worsened with time.
The family consulted several doctors before Dr. William Griggs provided them with an answer: the girls were “under an evil hand.” Their neighbors insisted the girls had been bewitched, prompting the Parris family to abandon their search for cures and instead turn to prayer.
February 25th
On this day, Reverend Parris and his wife traveled to a neighboring town for a lecture day, seeking counsel from other ministers about their girls’ condition and inviting those interested to observe the girls’ behavior.
While they were away, Tituba and her husband, John Indian, prepared a witch cake under the guidance of their neighbor, Mary Sibley. The cake was made by mixing rye meal with a dash of the sick girls’ urine, shaping it into a small loaf, and baking it in hot ashes. Once cooled, it was fed to the family dog. The belief was that the evil afflicting the girls would be present in the urine, and by giving it to the dog, the witch responsible would be harmed, revealing their identity.
Instead, the opposite occurred. The girls began to see apparitions of those tormenting them and reported being pinched and struck by these spectral figures. Later that day, Ann Putnam and Elizabeth Hubbard also showed signs of affliction.
February 26th
As Betty and Abigail’s afflictions worsened, they blamed Tituba for their pain, which had intensified ever since the Witch Cake was fed to the dog. The Parris family demanded the girls reveal who tormented them. However, the persistent questions only frightened them further. Eventually, the girls pointed to Tituba as being one of their tormentors. After making this accusation, the girls’ necks, arms, and backs twisted in unnatural ways, and they gasped for air as if being strangled by invisible hands.
February 27th
Since Thursday, Ann Putnam had been plagued by mysterious apparitions, and today, she was tormented by a specter of Sarah Good. This spectral figure pinched Ann and tried to coerce her into signing a book.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth Hubbard was on her way home from her uncle Griggs’s house when she was pursued by a wolf. She believed that Sarah Good had either transformed into a wolf or commanded the animal to chase her. Elizabeth also claimed that the spirits of Sarah Osborn and Sarah Good had harassed her throughout the day.
February 28th
As wind and rain flooded rivers and roads, drowning cattle and inundating crop fields, Sarah Good continued to torment Elizabeth Hubbard and the other girls on this stormy Sabbath day.
February 29th
After the girls suffered severe afflictions on the Sabbath, Ann’s father, his brother Edward, Joseph Hutchinson, and Thomas Preston decided to travel to Salem Town to file formal complaints with magistrates John Hathorn and Jonathan Corwin. They reported that over the past two months, Elizabeth Parris, Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam, and Elizabeth Hubbard had all been grievously harmed. They accused Sarah Good, Tituba Indian, and Sarah Osborn of practicing witchcraft and being responsible for the mischief.
The magistrates promptly issued arrest warrants for all three women, instructing the constables to apprehend them and bring them to Ingersoll’s Ordinary in Salem Village by 10 a.m. the next day for questioning.
As Tituba went about her daily chores at the parsonage, the man-devil and his four witches appeared before her. They ordered her to harm the children again and meet them in Boston for further dealings, threatening dire consequences if she refused. Tituba defied them, firmly declaring she would not comply with their demands.
During prayer time, the same spectral figures returned. She only recognized the man-devil and Sarah Good, who was accompanied by a cat at her side and a bird perched on her hand. They were joined by a swarm of familiars. Little yellow birds fluttered above the Parris family as they prayed while red and black cats pawed at Tituba, mewing, “Serve us.”
Reverend Parris and his wife noticed nothing, but Betty and Abigail saw it all.
