Invisible Agents: Witchcraft in Congregational Church Records

A haunted house, an unusual illness, the intervention of a minister–each could lead to an accusation of witchcraft in early New England. Today, people typically think of the Salem witch trials and little else when the history of witchcraft is mentioned.

In fact, the belief in magic, witchcraft, ghosts, and other invisible agents of Satan continued to impact congregations beyond Salem well into the eighteenth century.

Dr. Tricia Peone, Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories at the CLA, explored two lesser-known cases of witchcraft that took place in Massachusetts and New Hampshire in the decades after Salem. Drawing from examples in Congregational church records, she discussed how people determined whether or not witchcraft was the cause of their problems and how they dealt with this continuing threat to their communities.

SPEAKER BIO

Dr. Tricia Peone is the project director of New England’s Hidden Histories at the Congregational Library & Archives. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science. Prior to joining the CLA in 2022, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project and has previously worked as a lecturer and historical consultant. Dr. Peone’s scholarship focuses on early modern magic and witchcraft and her work on these subjects has appeared in journals, books, blogs, and on radio and television.