A brief overview (1368 words) of the Salem Witch Trials. Very informative.

—Salem Witch Trials— The Puritans were a group of Christian extremists living in Massachusetts in the seventeenth century. The Puritans were very set in their ways, traditions, and beliefs. The Puritans believed in witches, and their ability to do harm unto others. The Puritan definition of witchcraft was entering into an agreement with Satan in return for abilities to do evil. Thusly, the Puritans considered witchcraft a sin because it negated God's supreme authority and …

…that God was now punishing them for hanging the innocent. They fasted on January 13, 1697. Parris and his family left Salem in 1693. Abigail Williams did not fully recover from her affliction, and died young. Betty Parris married and died at 78 in Concord, survived by her husband and five children. The Salem witch trials were that last of any great religious persecution in America. To this day, no one has been prosecuted in America for witchcraft since 1692.