Ergotism, The Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials

We’ve all heard the stories of the Salem Witch Trials that occurred in 1692 and 1693. During these harsh times, lives were lost due to the strong religious beliefs of the Puritans who full heartedly believed that the Devil was present in everyday life and that he lived in the woods. In contrast to their popular belief at the time, real scientific evidence has been presented that the reason behind the Salem Witch Trials was actually Ergot Poisoning, not the Devil. According to the article, ergot is a fungus, “that affects the rye grain,” (PBS 2016), which causes numerous side effects. Many factors contribute to the ergot poisoning idea, such as the climate and growing conditions that ergot thrives in, what wheat rye was infected in relation to where the accused and accusers lived as well as the time span, and the symptoms of this type of poisoning.

The salem witch trials hysteria of 1692 was caused by the Puritans strict religious standards and intolerance of anything not accepted with their scripture. The largest account of witch trials as well as deaths by witch trials occurred in Salem, a village heavily populated with the Puritans. Because most of the trials were occurring in Salem, this meant that the accusations were happening among the Puritans themselves, which could very well be anything as long as the Puritans found it as contradicting their bible. Not only did the strict religion intolerance fuel the accusations and trials, but also the possible factor of ergot being involved which has been known to cause symptoms leading to hysteria.

The Salem Witch Trials were a horrendous event in the history of America and was the first of its kind. A question that has risen up numerous times is what was the actual cause of the trials. We know that a few girls made the first accusations, but why. I will now explain how Salem became one of the most notorious towns in Massachusetts. Ergot poisoning was the cause for the witch trials as it caused the girls to become crazed and delirious.

The Salem Witch Trials are one of the most infamous events in American history, with Salem Massachusetts drawing thousands of visitors and generating millions of dollars every year, regardless of the fact that the trials did not actually take place in modern day Salem. The Salem Witch Trials took place between 1692 and 1693. By the time the court admitted that the trials had been a mistake, more than 200 people had been accused of witchcraft and 20 had been executed. What caused this mass hysteria has puzzled historians for years, with different theories flying around as people try to make sense of the trials. Three of these theories are that the rye crop was infected with ergot, that an oppressive

Life in the New England colonies during the 1600’s proved to be harsh with the constant fear of Native American attacks, scarce food, freezing winters, and conflicting opinions about religion. From this perpetual state of distress, the Salem Witch Trials were birthed, causing a wave of hysteria in Salem Village and Salem Town. Though the exact day and month is uncertain, historians can claim that the trials emerged in early 1692 and came to a close in 1693. The Salem Witch Trials started in 1692 with more than one hundred fifty people being accused of practicing witchcraft, and the trials finally ended with the courts declaring there was no evidence in the cases being tried, and the Governor stopped the trials because his wife was accused.

The poisonous fungus Ergot is the main cause of the Salem Witch Trials because in the 1500s, Rye bread was found to be a main staple of people’s diets, and the the spread of this fungus through the consumption of Rye is the only feasible explanation to the random outbreak of witch persecution.

Numerous hypotheses have circulated trying to explain why the Salem Witch Trials occurred. Some include the fungus ergot that had psychedelic consequences when consumed and the Puritans’ adamant belief in their religion. None of them, however, justify why over 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 more were executed. The Salem Witch Trials are a prime example of why theocratic societies fail and the effects can still be seen today. We can still see witches in other parts of the world, see memorials for the victims of the trials, and modern day witch hunts.

In 1692 Salem, Massachusetts, experienced death, dying crops, young girls doing strange dancing and barking like wild dogs. By most religious views witchcraft had ivated Salem. Witchcraft was the worst crime a person could commit. If caught experimenting witchcraft that person would be put on trial and given a sentence of life in prison, or death. This was the beginning of the Salem witch trials. The witch trials were caused by extreme religious views, economic division, and moldy bread.

In conclusion, I would say that the very first theory is why the Salem community reacted in a very brutal way . In the first theory it talked about ergot and that it could be why the accusations started, because the girls complained about biting, pinching, hitting, and those are symptoms associated with ergotism . But this is only one of the many reasons why i think ergot could be why all this ruckus happened, and it’s kinda the most rational reason, and it's the one that makes more sense and stands out of all three.Because the other theories were good but they didn’t really didn’t have explanations of why that could be,why the accusations started . So, after coming to a conclusion, i would say that the first theory out of all four were it

The main reason that innocent people of he 1690’s were accused of witchcraft is because of the moist, damp, living conditions that the people lived in. Food was scarce back then so their major source of food was rye bread. The damp conditions caused ergot to grow in the bread. Ergot is a drug that made people act stranger than usual. Some of the effects caused people to do things in which they do not remember.

In the year 1692, The Salem Witch Trials began in the little town of Salem Village. In these trials, hundreds were accused and 18 hanged. Many historians today still try and figure out what was the cause of the Salem Witch Trials with theories about family rivalries and boredom.  Even so, the most plausible theory of what caused the Salem Witch Trials was ergot poisoning.

What is ergot poisoning? Stated by Dick Ahlstrom, “ . . . fungal grain infections, known as ergots, leave highly dangerous toxins on the grain and these go on to poison those who eat the wheat, rye or barley which carries them.” When the people of Salem eat this grain with ergot on them they would experience hallucinations or pricking of the skin (Ahlstrom). What causes this fungus to grow on wheat, rye or barley? In the year of 1691, a year before the Salem Witch Trials imploded, it was a very cold winter. Followed by the cold winter, the harvest year in 1692 was drastically hot and humid. According to Alan Woolf, “These are conditions ripe for ergot contamination of rye grain.” In the harvest year of 1692, there was crop failure due to the conditions. The people of Salem had to eat the rye grain as soon as harvested in results of a bad harvest year. Not only were the people of Salem affected, the animals that grazed on the wheat or rye were affected. The animals that would eat the ergot, got a form of “retardation” or just killed them (Woolf). With that being said, the Salem Witch Trials is one of the most historical

The Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were the largest outbreak of witch hunting in colonial New England up to that time. Although it was the largest outbreak, it was not something that was new. Witch-hunting had been a part of colonial New England since the formation of the colonies. Between the years 1648 to 1663, approximately 15 witches were executed. During the winter of 1692 to February of 1693, approximately 150 citizens were accused of being witches and about 25 of those died, either by hanging or while in custody. There is no one clear-cut answer to explain why this plague of accusations happened but rather several that must be examined and tied together. First, at the same time the trials took place, King William's War was

In 1692, a great evil was cast upon Salem, Massachusetts. Twenty men and women were hanged under the accusation of performing witchcraft, and in turn created a mass hysteria within the citizens of Salem. Undoubtedly, the cause of these accusations and hysteria was ergotism, a disease caused by infected rye grain. The conditions of the region contributed to much of the growth of ergot. Ergotism had many distinct symptoms, which matched much of the testimony and accounts of those involved in the Witch Trials. All of these circumstances definitively caused the terror and panic found in the town of Salem in 1692.

Ergotism was the cause of the Salem Witch Trials due to how the climate of the salem helped ergot grow in the area. The conditions that help egrot thrive are a cold winter that is followed by a wet and humid spring (Lienhard). In Salem the winter of 1691 was a cold winter and the following spring and summer were both humid. This shows evidence of how the prime conditions in salem at the time could of lead to lots of the rye being infected with ergot. A crop failure in the area also forced the Salem settlers to eat freshly harvested rye that was infected. Their was also evidence of several cows that died during the trials and ergotism a common veterinary problem for grazing animals. This all helps to show how egrot was thriving and infested the Salem area and was consumed by not only the people but their livestock too (Woolf). From the conditions in Salem its easy to see that the ergot infested the area and the rye that people ate.