I chose to do my project on the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The Salem Witch trials in Masachusets in 1692 resulted in 19 innocent men and women being hanged, one man pressed to death, more than 17 deaths in jail. It all began at the end of 1691 when a few girls in the town began to play with magic by gathering around a crystal ball to try to find the answer to questions such as "what trade their sweet harts should be of ". This took place in the Parris household where a woman named Tituba, an Indian slave, headed the rituals. Soon after they had begun to practice these rituals, girls who had been involved, including the Master Parris' daughter and niece, became sick. They had constant fits, twitched, cried, made odd noises, and huddled in corners. The family called in doctors, and they were treated for many illnesses. Nothing helped. Many weeks later after running out of reasons for their strange behavior, all of their symptoms seemed to lead to one belief, "The evil hand is upon them." They were possessed by the Devil. At first the families of the children could not find anyone to accuse for being the witch responsible for possessing the children. Then, late in February of 1692, Parris' neighbor, Mary Sibley recommended that Parris' slaves, Tituba and John, should work a spell to try to find the culprits. Even after trying this sthe girls became even worse, and the people responsible still had not been found. The girls began to see hazy shadows and believed that these shadows were of the people who had done this to them. After more and more children became victims of this, the hunting for the witches who were to blame for the girls sickness began to get more serious. By the end of February 1692, not one, but three witches had been named. These women were Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba, all residents of Salem Village. Tituba was very poor. She worked as a servant in the Parris's house and was a Caribbean born in Barbados in the West Indies.
