Witch Hunt Victim Stories: John Willard

In this episode of 'Witch Hunt', Mary Bingham tells the story of Salem Witch Trial victim John Willard's pre-trial examination as recorded by Samuel Parris on May 18th, 1692. Willard, accused of witchcraft and the murder of his cousin through magical means, faced a court where his mere presence seemed to induce fits in the afflicted. The episode details the procedural and dramatic moments of the examination, the testimony against Willard, and his staunch denial of guilt. Despite his resistance, Willard was hanged on August 19, 1692, but his name was legally cleared years later. Emerson W. Baker, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience Mary Beth Norton, In the Devil's Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692 Bernard Rosenthal, editor, Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt Daniel A. Gagnon, A Salem Witch: The Trial, Execution, and Exoneration of Rebecca Nurse Marilynne K. Roach, The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-By-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege Emerson W. Baker, The Devil of Great Island: Witchcraft and Conflict in Early New England Stacy Schiff, The Witches: Suspicion, Betrayal, and Hysteria in 1692 Salem