Salem, Massachusetts
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Featured notably in Arthur Miller's The Crucible, much of the city's cultural identity is reflective of its role as the location of the Salem witch trials of 1692: Police cars are adorned with witch logos, a local public school is known as the Witchcraft Heights Elementary School, the Salem High School athletic teams are named the Witches; and Gallows Hill, a site of numerous public hangings, is currently used as a playing field for various sports. |
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Salem is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. Located on Massachusetts' North Shore, Salem is a New England bedrock of history and is considered one of the most significant seaports in Puritan American history.
One of the most widely known aspects of Salem is its history of witchcraft allegations, which in many popular accounts started with Abigail Williams, Betty Parris, and their friends playing with a Venus glass (mirror) and egg. Salem is also significant in legal history as the site of the Dorthy Talbye trial, where a mentally ill woman was hanged for murdering her daughter, because at the time Massachusetts made no distinction between insanity and criminal behavior.
