Mary Walcott
Encyclopedia
Mary Walcott
was one of the witnesses at the Salem Witch Trials
of Salem, Massachusetts
in the years 1692 and 1693.
She was the daughter of Captain Jonathan Walcott (1639–1699), and his wife Mary Sibley (1644–1683), both of Salem, and was about seventeen years old when the allegations started in 1692. Her aunt, Mary Woodrow, the wife of Samuel Sibley (1657–1708), was the person who first showed Tituba
and her husband John Indian how to bake a witch cake to feed to a dog in order that she and her friends might ascertain exactly who it was that was afflicting them. Joseph B. Felt quotes in the The Annals of Salem (1849 edition) vol. 2, p. 476 [from the town records]:
At the trials, she was said to be calm, but subsequently critics have accused her of everything from compromise to actually being a witch who foiled her potential adversaries by distracting their attention away from herself onto innocent persons . She married Isaac Farrar on April 29, 1696. Isaac was the son of John Farrar of Woburn, Massachusetts
. They had several children, and eventually moved to Townsend, Massachusetts
. Mary Walcott also married David Harwood in 1701 in Sutton, Massachusetts
. They had nine children. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 Record Name: Mary Walcott Gender: female Birth Place: MA Birth Year: 1675 Spouse Name: David Harwood Marriage Year: 1701 Number Pages: 1
. Litz told the press, "I was one of the girls who denounces people as witches. I had a great screeching scene- I cried for 18 hours and they cut it to 30 seconds. I lost my voice and I was lit on fire, saving a calf from a fire." For the role, she also inherited a costume from a film version of The Crucible.
In the play of The Crucible, there is a character called Susanna Walcott, who is of the same age as Mary Walcott. This character is the fictional person of the real Mary Walcott, but called Susanna in the play to avoid confusion between the characters Mary Walcott and Mary Warren
. It is also possible that Miller meant the character to be a hybrid of Mary Walcott and Susannah Sheldon
.
was one of the witnesses at the Salem Witch Trials
Salem witch trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
of Salem, Massachusetts
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
in the years 1692 and 1693.
Tituba
Tituba was a 17th-century slave belonging to Samuel Parris of Salem, Massachusetts. Tituba was one of the first three people accused of practicing witchcraft during the Salem witch trials which took place in 1692. Tituba was the first person accused by Betty Parris and Abigail Williams of...
and her husband John Indian how to bake a witch cake to feed to a dog in order that she and her friends might ascertain exactly who it was that was afflicting them. Joseph B. Felt quotes in the The Annals of Salem (1849 edition) vol. 2, p. 476 [from the town records]:
March 11, 1692 – "Mary, the wife of Samuel Sibley, having been suspended from communion with the church there, for the advices she gave John [husband of Tituba] to make the above experiment, is restored on confession that her purpose was innocent."
At the trials, she was said to be calm, but subsequently critics have accused her of everything from compromise to actually being a witch who foiled her potential adversaries by distracting their attention away from herself onto innocent persons . She married Isaac Farrar on April 29, 1696. Isaac was the son of John Farrar of Woburn, Massachusetts
Woburn, Massachusetts
Woburn is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. The population was 38,120 at the 2010 census. Woburn is located north of Boston, Massachusetts, and just south of the intersection of I-93 and I-95.- History :...
. They had several children, and eventually moved to Townsend, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. Mary Walcott also married David Harwood in 1701 in Sutton, Massachusetts
Sutton, Massachusetts
-Library:The Sutton Free Library was established in 1876. In fiscal year 2008, the town of Sutton spent 0.7% of its budget on its public library—some $18 per person.-Education:...
. They had nine children. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 Record Name: Mary Walcott Gender: female Birth Place: MA Birth Year: 1675 Spouse Name: David Harwood Marriage Year: 1701 Number Pages: 1
Portrayals
Mary Walcott appeared (as "May Walcott") in the television film Salem Witch Trials, portrayed by Canadian actress Nadia LitzNadia Litz
-Biography:She was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. A former child actor, she has described herself as somewhat ambitious. She is of Russian, Polish and British descent, and the press has noted her small physical stature...
. Litz told the press, "I was one of the girls who denounces people as witches. I had a great screeching scene- I cried for 18 hours and they cut it to 30 seconds. I lost my voice and I was lit on fire, saving a calf from a fire." For the role, she also inherited a costume from a film version of The Crucible.
In the play of The Crucible, there is a character called Susanna Walcott, who is of the same age as Mary Walcott. This character is the fictional person of the real Mary Walcott, but called Susanna in the play to avoid confusion between the characters Mary Walcott and Mary Warren
Mary Warren
Mary Ann Warren was the oldest of the accusers during the 1692 Salem witch trials, in her teens. She was a servant for John and Elizabeth Proctor. Renouncing her claims after being threatened to be hanged, she was later arrested for practicing witchcraft herself, but did not confess...
. It is also possible that Miller meant the character to be a hybrid of Mary Walcott and Susannah Sheldon
Susannah Sheldon
Susannah Sheldon, a refugee from Maine, was eighteen years of age during the time of the witchcraft crisis at Salem Village. As one of the core group of allegedly afflicted girls, Sheldon made claims of afflictions for the first time during the last week of April of 1692...
.
Sources
- Sidney Perley, The History of Salem Massachusetts (1924–1928, 3 volumes)
- Essex Institute, Vital Records of Salem Massachusetts (1918–1927, 6 volumes)
- Melindi Lutz Sanborn, Essex County Massachusetts Probate Records, 1630–1840 (1987, 2 volumes)
- Ithamar B. Sawtelle, editor, History of the Town of Townsend, Middlesex County, Massachusetts ... 1676–1878 (1878)
- Henry C. Hallowell, Vital Records of Townsend, Massachusetts (1992)
- Ezra S. Stearns, editor, Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire (1908, vol. II) p. 591 [Family of Isaac Farrar]