Betty Parris
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Elizabeth "Betty" Parris (November 28, 1682 – March 21, 1760) was the nine-year-old daughter of the Salem villages' reverend Samuel Parris (1653–1720) and was the first to become ill after being "bewitched" as most people thought. Her contortions, convulsions and outbursts of gibberish at first baffled everyone, especially when other girls began to show similar symptoms. Shortly after her illness, the Salem witch trials began, with the girls accusing neighbors of witchcraft.
Although she initially played a large part in the accusations, Betty Parris's role soon diminished as she was sent to live with relatives of magistrate Samuel Sewall, after which her afflictions seem to have subsided.
Supposedly, she and her cousin, Abigail Williams, were taught some methods of fortune-telling by Tituba, an African, (or possibly native American Indian) servant from Barbados. Many recent historians have since dismissed this theory, perhaps most vehemently Mary Beth Norton, author of "In The Devil's Snare", since primary source documentation is slim to non-existent, and the tale largely stems from the extremely slanted and sometimes wholly inaccurate writings of 19th century historian Charles W. Upham.
According to the play The Crucible, "Betty" and other girls start to act like they were being bewitched because they were scared. The night before "Betty" fell sick, Abigail Williams, other girls, and she were dancing in the woods only to be discovered by Reverend Parris.
| Salem witch trials | |
|---|---|
| Authorities | Thomas Danforth | John Hale | Increase Mather | Samuel Parris | William Phips | William Stoughton |
| Accusers | Elizabeth Hubbard | Mercy Lewis | Betty Parris | Ann Putnam, Jr. | Susannah Sheldon | Mary Walcott | Abigail Williams |
| Accused | John Alden | Edward Bishop | Sarah Bishop | Mary Black | Mary Bradbury | Sarah Cloyce | Rebecca Eames | Mary English | Phillip English | Abigail Faulkner | Dorcas Good | William Hobbs | Mary Lacy | Sarah Morey | Benjamin Proctor | Elizabeth Proctor | Sarah Proctor | William Proctor |
| Confessed and Accused Others | Dorcas Hoar | Abigail Hobbs | Deliverance Hobbs | Margaret Jacobs | Tituba | Mary Warren |
| Executed | Bridget Bishop | George Burroughs | Martha Carrier | Martha Corey | Mary Eastey | Sarah Good | Elizabeth Howe | George Jacobs, Sr. | Susannah Martin | Rebecca Nurse | Alice Parker | Mary Parker | John Proctor | Ann Pudeator | Wilmot Redd | Margaret Scott | Samuel Wardwell | Sarah Wildes | John Willard |
| Died in Prison | Lydia Dustin | Ann Foster | Sarah Osborn | Roger Toothaker |
|
Died During Interrogation |
Giles Corey |
