Witchcraft Suspect Sarah Osburn Dies Without Trial in Boston Jail: May 10, 1692

Spectral Evidence and the First Death: Salem, May 10, 1692We’re visit Salem and Boston on May 10, 1692, as warrants fly, accusations harden into “evidence,” and a single day reshapes lives. George Jacobs Sr. and Margaret Jacobs are hauled to Thomas Beadle’s Tavern, where Jacobs—an elderly man with two walking sticks—spars with Hathorne and Corwin while Sarah Churchill and Mercy Lewis describe chilling spectral attacks and pressure to sign the devil’s book. The theological fight over whether Satan can assume an innocent person’s likeness turns deadly in practice, especially when Jacobs falters on the Lord’s Prayer under scrutiny. John Willard bolts rather than face arrest. The day closes with a grim milestone: Sarah Osburn dies in the Boston jail after weeks of harsh confinement, becoming the first victim of the Salem witchcraft panic without ever being tried or convicted.00:00 Warrants and Arrests00:28 Willard on the Run00:51 Jacobs Examined02:36 Spectral Evidence Debate03:32 Prayer Test and Jail04:27 Mercy Lewis Deposition05:47 Abigail Names Names06:14 Sarah Osburn Dies