Salem To Dedicate Witch Trials Memorial This Month

SALEM, MA – Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll has issued a proclamation calling for a Day of Remembrance on June 10, 2017 – 325 years after Bridget Bishop became the first of 25 people to die as a result of Salem's witch hunt.

The city will formally dedicate the new Proctor's Ledge memorial on July 19, at noon. Proctor's Ledge is now believed to be the site where 19 innocent people were hanged in 1692 for the supposed crime of witchcraft, according to a statement from the city.

The first of three mass executions took place at the site on July 19, 1692. Five people were hanged, Sarah Good, Elizabeth Howe, Susannah Martin, Rebecca Nurse, and Sarah Wildes.

"Salem is constantly looking to the lessons of its past," said Driscoll. "Whether it was through the formation of our No Place for Hate Committee and our landmark non-discrimination ordinance, or through the good work of the Salem Award Foundation, the lessons we learn from our history directly inform the actions we take today. Having this site memorialized, especially as we mark the 325th anniversary of that tragic event, presents an opportunity for us to come together as a community, recognize the injustice and tragedy perpetrated against those innocents in 1692, and recommit ourselves to the values of inclusivity and justice."

The design and construction of the memorial, as well as improvements to the streetscape and the parcel itself, were funded primarily through a $174,000 Community Preservation Act grant, and dozens of small donations, many from descendants of those wrongfully executed at the site. The design of the memorial and landscaping plans for the site were developed by landscape architect Martha Lyon through a participatory public process and multiple meetings on site with abutters.

The memorial plans call for a landscaped slope down from the ledge where the executions are believed to have taken place. At the base of the slope, on Pope Street, there will be a semi-circular area surrounded by a stone wall. Stones with the names of the nineteen individuals who were hanged near the site will be set into the wall and lit from the ground below with a single light on each name. While trees will be planted along the perimeter of the parcel itself, at the center of the memorial on Pope Street there will be a single oak tree, as a symbol of endurance and dignity.

Read the text of the proclamation here:

WHEREAS: 325 years ago on this date of June 10th in 1692 Bridget Playfer Bishop of Salem Town was wrongfully and unjustly executed for the supposed crime of witchcraft, becoming the first of 25 innocent people to die as a result of the hysteria; and

WHEREAS: All of the dozens of individuals were each wholly innocent and convicted based on spectral evidence, lies, and hysteria; and

WHEREAS: Salem continues to shine a light on its history in order that all may learn from the lessons and legacies of this city’s past; and

WHEREAS: The values of inclusivity, tolerance, open mindedness, and kindness are central to who we are as a community and are directly informed by the events of our past;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Kimberley Driscoll, Mayor of the City of Salem, do hereby proclaim June 10, 2017 as:

A DAY OF REMEMBERANCE in recognition of the tragic events that unfolded 325 years ago commencing on this date, and do call upon the residents of Salem and all places to mark this occasion with reflection on the lessons and legacies of our community’s past and with acts of kindness and generosity to strangers and neighbors alike.

Image via City of Salem