George Burroughs

George Burroughs ( 1652 – August 19, 1692) was a non-ordained Puritan preacher who was the only minister executed for witchcraft during the course of the Salem witch trials. He is remembered for reciting the Lord's Prayer flawlessly moments before his execution, something that was believed a witch could never do.

Early life and ministries

George Burroughs was born in Suffolk, England in 1652, although one source lists his birthplace as Virginia, while another claims he was born in Scituate in 1650.

He was raised by his mother in the town of Roxbury, Massachusetts. In 1670, he completed his ministerial studies at Harvard College. In 1673, he married his first wife, Hannah Fisher; they had four children, three of whom survived. He and his family fled to Massachusetts and, after a series of moves, he became the minister of Salem Village (now Danvers) in 1680 (where he would eventually be convicted of witchcraft and hanged). But he grew disillusioned with the community when they failed to pay his wages. When his wife Hannah died in childbirth in 1681, he resorted to borrowing money from community member John Putnam in order to cover her funeral expenses.

Accusation and trial for witchcraft On April 30, 1692, Thomas Putnam and Jonathan Walcott submitted a complaint against Burroughs "for sundry acts of witchcraft". The minister was arrested in Wells and brought to Salem Village on May 4.

Among Burroughs' accusers were personal enemies from his former congregation who had sued him for debt. At his trial later in May, the evidence presented against him included his extraordinary feats of strength, such as lifting a musket by inserting his finger into the barrel (such feats of strength were presumed impossible without diabolical assistance). His failure to attend communion was also cited as proof of guilt. Moreover, he was suspected of killing his first two wives by witchcraft, and although clearly witchcraft was not involved, there is some historical evidence that he treated them poorly. During the trial, Cotton Mather, a minister from Boston, said that Burroughs "had been famous for the barbarous use of his two late wives, all the country over"; and a girl accuser described a nightmarish vision she had in which "she stared into the blood-red faces of his dead wives." He admitted during cross-examination that on multiple occasions he had failed to take the sacrament at Sabbath services, and that only his eldest child was baptized.

Execution and aftermath Although the jury had discovered no witches' marks on his body, George Burroughs was nonetheless found guilty of witchcraft, and of conspiring with the Devil. He was the only minister to suffer this fate during New England's witchcraft hysteria. This feat stirred misgivings among the spectators. After the hanging, Cotton Mather from atop his horse sought to smother any sparks of discontent by reminding everyone that Burroughs had never been ordained,

Later, the government of the Massachusetts colony recognized Burroughs' innocence and awarded 50 pounds damages to his widow and children, though this led to disputes over the division of the award among his heirs. The musket reportedly used for demonstration purposes at the trial was for a time located at Fryeburg Academy in Fryeburg, Maine, having been taken there in 1808 for display in the Academy museum; but it was said to have been destroyed in the Academy fire of 1850.