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Certain Detestable Arts Called Witchcraft & Sorceries

“Oh Lord, help me! It is false. I am clear. For my life now lies in your hands….” ~ Rebecca NURSE, hung for witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692.

[Note to reader: On 3/5/2024 I updated this post due to some broken links and other issues. This is the updated version.]

Today’s theme is ‘cemetery’. In May of 2011 Bart and I traveled to Massachusetts for a few weeks. I never wanted to travel to the eastern part of the country. I don’t know why- I just didn’t. In 2011, I fell in love with it. It was probably the best trip we’ve taken. I was so fortunate to have enough time to really delve into the history of our families while I was there. One of the things I did while there was to visit Salem. I spent two or three days wandering the streets and learning the history.

In 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts many men and women were accused of witchcraft. Twenty of those people (both men and women) were tried, convicted, and executed. I believe (but I’m not certain because I’m depending on the research of others and I have not verified the research myself) that we have both an ancestor as well as another distant relative that were accused in the 1692 Salem witch trials but not executed. Below I will post my photos of the Salem Witch Memorial as well as some links to learn more about the memorial. I will post a photo of the indictment of Sarah BASSETT whom I believe I may be related to. I also believe I am related to Rebecca NURSE and her two sisters- Mary ESTY and Sarah CLOYSE, other accused Salem residents. If I can verify these relationships, we are related to these women through both the DRAKE and HUBBARD lines.

You can learn more about the Salem Witch Memorial at SalemWeb here and here.

Salem Witch Memorial, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial - Rebecca Nurse, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial – Rebecca Nurse, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial - Mary Easty, Salem, Massachusetts.
Salem Witch Memorial – Mary ESTY, Salem, Massachusetts.

Photos of some of the memorials.

Sarah Bassett's Indictment.
Sarah Bassett’s Indictment.

Transcription of Sarah BASSETT’s indictment:

The Jurors for o’r Sov’r lord & Lady the King & Queen pr’sent
The Sarah Bassett wife of William Bassett of Lyn in the County
of Essex aforesaid Upon or about the 23’rd day of May last Anno: 1692 aforsaid
And Divers other Days & Times as well before as after Certaine
Detestable Arts Called Witchcraft & Sorceries Wickedly Mallitiously
& felloniously hath used practised & Exercised at & in the Towne
of Salem, in the County of Essex aforesaid Upon & Against One
Mary Walcott of Salem Single Woman By Which Wicked Arts The
Said Mary Walcott is Tortured aflicted Tormented Consumed Wasted
& Pined the Day & yeare aforesaid & Divers other Days & times as
well before as Contrary to the peace of o’r Sov’r lord & lady the King
& Queen their Crowne & Dignity & the Laws in that Case made
& provided
Wittness
An Putnam
Marcy lewis

Sarah Bassett indictment, https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n11.html.

You can find the Sarah BASSETT documents and more at University of Virginia’s Salem Witch Trials site. I highly recommend it.

The Three Sisters

The three sisters – Mary ESTY (aka EASTY or EASTIE), Rebecca NURSE, and Sarah CLOYSE – were the daughters of William Towne, of Yarmouth, Norfolk County, New England. Mary was baptized on August 24, 1634, in Yarmouth. Sisters Rebecca Nurse and Sarah Cloyse were also accused of Witchcraft during the Salem outbreak, although there is ample evidence that all three of the sisters were innocent.

At the time of her questioning, ESTY was about 58 years old. She was married to Isaac ESTY, with whom she had seven children. Isaac owned a large, valuable farm. Mary’s examination followed the pattern of most in Salem: the girls had fits, they were speechless at times, and the magistrate reprimanded Mary for not confessing. He assumed her guilt based on the behavior of the “afflicted” girls.

Court: “How far have you complied with Satan?”

Mary: “Sir, I never complied with him but pray against him all my days. What would you have Easty do?”

Court: “Confess if you be guilty”

Mary: “I will say it, if it was my last time, I am clear of this sin.”

Examination of Mary ESTY, https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n45.html#n45.2.

During the exam, when Mary ESTY clasped her hands together, the hands of Mary LEWIS (aka Marcy LEWIS, aka Mercy LEWIS – one of ESTY’s accusers) were clenched. When ESTY’s hands released, LEWIS released her hands. When ESTY inclined her head, the allegedly afflicted girls cried out that their necks were breaking.

ESTY was put in prison after her examination. For reasons no longer known, Mary ESTY was discharged after spending two months in prison. She and her family thought the ordeal was over and Mary was now safe. They couldn’t have been more wrong. The “afflicted” girls increased their efforts to get Mary put back in prison and they succeeded. On the 20th of May, Mary LEWIS spent the entire day experiencing severe fits and saying she was being strangled. Several of the other “afflicted” girls said it was ESTY afflicting Mary LEWIS. LEWIS drew a large crowd over her “fits”. That evening, another warrant was issued for Mary ESTY’s arrest. At midnight, after experiencing two days of liberty and being reunited with her family, Mary was raised from her sleep by the marshal, torn from her husband and children, and taken back to prison where she was put in chains. Of course, once ESTY was back in prison, LEWIS’ fits stopped.

Mary ESTY was condemned to death on September 9th and executed on September 22nd, despite pleas to the court to reconsider and not spill any more innocent blood. The court had long since ceased to pay any attention to anything that was said by the condemned. Mary’s final conversations with her family were said to have been “as serious, religious, distinct, and affectionate as could be expressed, drawing tears from the eyes of almost all present.” On the gallows, she prayed for an end to the witch hunt. (https://www.anamericanfamilyhistory.com/Towne%20Family/TowneMaryEstey.html)

In November after Mary ESTY’s execution, Mary HERRICK testified that ESTY’s apparition visited her and told her she’d been wrongfully executed and was innocent of witchcraft, and that she’d come back for vindication. Years later, ESTY’s family was compensated with 20 pounds from the government for ESTY’s “wrongful execution.” (https://www.anamericanfamilyhistory.com/Towne%20Family/TowneMaryEstey.html)

If You Ever Get to Salem

I hope you’ve enjoyed this. If you ever get to Salem, take time to look around the cemeteries and memorials. They’re very interesting.

After asking a lot of locals and doing some research I *think* this is where the Salem witch hangings took place. I could be wrong but this is as close as I could get in the three days I was there. It’s a local park now.

Gallows Hill Park, Salem, Massachusetts.
Gallows Hill Park, Salem, Massachusetts.
I placed my memorial flowers at the base of a tree on the hill at Gallows Hill Park, Salem, Massachusetts.
I placed my memorial flowers at the base of a tree on the hill at Gallows Hill Park, Salem, Massachusetts.

UPDATE: I’ve added an addendum post to this. You can view it here.


Until next time,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives

Resources:

In early blog posts, I didn’t record my sources. Since I had to update this post, I tried to re-locate the sources I used and document them here for you.

https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/

https://www.anamericanfamilyhistory.com/Towne%20Family/TowneMaryEstey.html

http://www.salemweb.com/memorial/memorial.php

http://www.salemweb.com/memorial/

https://www.anamericanfamilyhistory.com/Towne%20Family/TowneMaryEstey.html

Life is Hard…But Worth It

This week’s theme is “good deeds” and can be interpreted as good acts or deeds of sale, etc. I decided to write about my fourth great-grandmother, Lavina (PILGRIM) DRAKE. I previously analyzed a Deed of Sale she and her husband (Ervin Alonzo DRAKE) were involved in so I thought this might be a nice spinoff. The previous deed analysis can be found here: Anatomy of a Move Using a Deed of Sale. Whereas that blog was “research-y” as my daughter would say, this one will be more of a story, I hope. (The previous blog entry does have some interesting links to information so if you don’t read the research, you might want to click the links.)


The Main Parties:
Ervin and Lavina were the paternal grandparents of Poppy Lonzo DRAKE (Ervin Alonzo “Poppy” DRAKE). Ervin’s pension records describe him as 6’1 with black hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion. Lavina was born in Dubois County, Indiana in December, 1821. I don’t know exactly who her parents were. Neither do I know anything about her life prior to her marriage to Ervin. On 1 October 1839, she married Ervin Alonzo DRAKE. Together they had 9 children that I know of- Martha, Silas, Mary Ann (called Polly), George Washington, Margaret, William (my ancestor), Nancy, Henry Arthur, and Jefferson. In 1870, a 6 year old girl named Martha Young lived with the family but I am uncertain of this girl’s connection to the family.
Their Story:
Lavina lived in Orange County, Indiana from 1839 until sometime between the 1860 and 1870 census dates. All her children were born there. The majority of her life was lived there.
Ervin and Lavina were blessed with their first child, Martha, right away. Martha was born in 1840. The following year Silas was born. Two babies under the age of two must have been exhausting. By 1845 Lavina had four children ages 5 and under with the additions of Mary Ann (called Polly) in 1843 and George Washington in 1845. It was shortly after this time that the Mexican American War began. And so it was that about June of 1846 Lavina watched Ervin march away with a group of men that would become Company B, 2nd Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. The men assembled in Paoli, Orange County, Indiana and marched to New Albany, Floyd County, Indiana- a distance of about 42 miles on today’s roadways. One account says the men were escorted out of town by “the brass band of Paoli and a large delegation of sorrowing relatives and friends” some of whom went with the men all the way to New Albany. (Indiana in the Mexican War).
I can only imagine what she must have felt as she watched her husband march away while trying to keep four toddlers by her side or in her arms. She did have family in the area to help her but I’m sure that didn’t replace her husband. The DRAKE, PILGRIM, and FLICK families intermarried frequently and all lived in the same general area so Lavina would have had a large extended family to call on in times of need. Nonetheless, it must have been a long and difficult year without him. Ervin mustered in on 19 June 1846 at New Albany, Indiana. He mustered out a year later on 23 June 1847 at New Orleans, Louisiana. I have not been able to find much information online about the 2nd Indiana Volunteers. One post I found online stated that this is because of the disgrace of their actions during the war- those actions being that many of them abandoned the battle instead of fighting. I am sure not everyone ran away and I would assume that Ervin did not since he was not given a dishonorable discharge or anything like that. I encourage you to learn more about this war at http://www.dmwv.org or, if you want the short version look it up on Wikipedia.

Battle of Monterey.
Battle of Monterey.

One of the battles fought while Ervin was enlisted was the Battle of Monterey (20-24 September 1846), a depiction of which is seen in the painting above by Carl NEBEL. It was fought in Monterey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. It was said about this battle, “The battle ended with Americans fighting door-to-door within the city of Monterey…”. It was a “bloody three-day battle”. (http://www.umich.edu/~ac213/student_projects06/magsylje/battle.html)
The Battle of Buena Vista was fought 22-23 February 1847 in Buena Vista, Coahila, Mexico, between American General Zachary TAYLOR (among others) and Mexican General Santa ANNA (among others). It was an intense battle. Here is an image depicting the battle:

Battle of Buena Vista.
Battle of Buena Vista.

and a painting by CURRIER and IVES depicting the battle:

Battle of Veracruz.
Battle of Veracruz.

On the eastern coast of Mexico in the city of Veracruz, the Battle of Veracruz was fought for nearly the entire month of March, 1847. Mexico was forced to surrender Veracruz to the Americans. Here is a painting by Henry WILLIAMS depicting the battle:

Battle of Cerro Gordo.
Battle of Cerro Gordo.

On 18 April 1847, 20 miles east of Jalapa, the Battle of Cerro Gordo was fought between American General Winfield SCOTT and Captain Robert E. LEE (among others) and Mexican General Santa ANNA (among others). Over 3,000 Mexican soldiers were captured in this battle. Below is one more painting by Carl NEBEL depicting this battle:

Battle of Cerro Gordo.
Battle of Cerro Gordo.

Paintings and battle information can be found at http://www.umich.edu/~ac213/student_projects06/magsylje/battle.html.
Finally, in June of 1847 Ervin arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana, and made his way home. I wonder if Lavina ever knew of the battles he fought and the horrors he must have witnessed in this hand-to-hand combat. On 1 July 1863, Ervin signed up for the Civil War Draft. I have not found any evidence that Ervin fought in the Civil War so perhaps the Mexican War was his only combat experience. In any case, Ervin arrived home and in 1848 Ervin and Lavina had Margaret and two years later they had my ancestor, William. The family can be found in the 1850 census in Jackson Township, Orange County, Indiana, where Ervin was farming and owned $100 in real estate. In the years between 1850 and 1860, Ervin and Lavina would have their last three children- Nancy (1854), Henry (1857), and Jefferson (1859).
In Orange County, Indiana during the time that Ervin and Lavina’s children were of school age, the schools were “subscription schools”. There was no free public education in the area. If children attended school at this time and in this area, parents paid $1.50 per pupil for a 3-month term of education. The first “free schools” weren’t opened until about 1856-1857 in Orange County, Indiana. A school year during this period was considered 4-5 months per year. If the DRAKE family went to church, they likely went to Cane Creek Christian Church, although I have found no records to support this. Ervin’s brother, Charles DRAKE, and many of the FLICK family attended church here. The church was organized in 1825. Like the schools of the time, the first church building was also a log building built by the area residents.
On 1 April 1859 Ervin filed a land patent for 80 acres in Section 19 of Township 1N, Range 1W in Orange County, Indiana. In 1860, the family was enumerated for the census at French Lick, Orange County, Indiana, where Ervin was still farming. He now owned $400 in real estate and his personal estate was worth $250. French Lick, Indiana, is now a resort area.
In the fall of 1868 the family owned 80 acres of land in Orange County, Indiana, which they sold to John J. CONDRA on 19 September 1868**. Shortly afterward, they moved to Kingsville, Johnson County, Missouri, which is now a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. Sometime between 1870 and 1875, the family moved on to McDonald County, Missouri.
I wonder if Lavina ever regretted the move to Missouri. What lay ahead of the family would not be easy. In Missouri they would survive the economic panic of 1873, followed by an unusually harsh winter in 1873-1874, followed by a very hot and dry Spring in 1874, followed by the Great Locust Invasion in 1874. An interesting account of the locust invasion can be found at http://www.historynet.com/1874-the-year-of-the-locust.htm. It was said the locusts “…beat against the houses, swarm[ed] in at the windows, cover[ed] the passing trains. They work[ed] as if sent to destroy.” This succession of events sent many settlers scurrying back east where they had come from. The DRAKE’s chose to stay. In addition to these hardships, there was a nationwide Influenza epidemic from 1873-1875. Lavina died in Coy, McDonald County, Missouri, on 1 September 1875. I don’t know whether the Influenza epidemic claimed her life or she died of other causes. It is said she is buried at South West City Cemetery in South West City, McDonald County, Missouri, but there is no grave marker there and no record or her burial there. Ervin would go on to remarry and the family would carry on but Lavina’s personal story ends here- even though a part of her lives on in her many descendants.
Don’t forget to check out my sister-in-law’s genealogy blog where she is also doing the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Blog Challenge. This week she talks about her ancestor, Zula Jane ACORD STEPP.
**NOTE: I am presuming that Ervin and Lavina stayed in Indiana until 1868. Ervin’s second wife, Elizabeth MITCHELL DRAKE, stated (in her papers requesting a widow’s pension for Ervin’s military service) that the family moved in 1866. However, time has a way of shifting memories and Elizabeth was not at that time a part of the family so I am going with 1868 as the date Ervin and Lavina left Indiana.
Also, Ervin’s pension paperwork noted that he lived in Echo, Delaware County, Oklahoma. There was a town called Echo. It is currently under what is now Grand Lake. You can read about this in my blog post at The Dam Drakes.
On Ervin’s Civil War Draft registration it says he was blind in one eye. This would likely account for why he did not fight in the Civil War.

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We Tree’s 52 Weeks to Better Genealogy

Week 5’s genealogy challenge was to search through WorldCat online and see if you find anything that will be helpful to your genealogy.


With just a brief search, I found one book that I will be requesting through Interlibrary Loan through my local public library. The volume is “Our Drake Family History and the Descendants of the Three Drakes Who Married Three Talbots” by Mildred Talbert Petitt. I’m looking forward to receiving the book and will review it on my blog when I’ve had a chance to review it.


Reflecting on previous posts, I have received my copy of “The Imposter” by Kip Krieling which I won from www.goodgollymissblondie.com. I have not had a chance to read it yet, but will review it on this blog when I’ve read it. My ultimate goal is to donate it to my school library.

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