The Rise of Witch Hysteria: Inside Salem's Darkest Days
10 Minute Murder | Bingeable True Crime Stories
Joe Kuner
4.8 • 614 Ratings
🗓️ 22 October 2024
⏱️ 13 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Alright, folks. Grab your broomsticks and buckle up—because we’re heading straight into one of the most paranoid, bonkers times in history: Salem, 1692. Imagine this: two young girls, Betty and Abigail, start doing their best impression of The Exorcist at a Puritan town hall meeting. But instead of a “maybe they’re just weird” diagnosis, the town’s like, “WITCHES! Definitely witches!” And thus begins the witch-hunting madness that spiraled faster than your latest TikTok rabbit hole.
In this episode of 10 Minute Murder, we break down how Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and the unlucky enslaved woman Tituba became public enemy number one—just for being, well, less than Puritan-perfect. Throw in some teenage drama, a few snobby rich families, and a pinch of “I don’t like your face,” and bam—you’ve got yourself a full-blown, hysteria-fueled disaster.
Oh, and did I mention they even accused a four-year-old of witchcraft? Yeah, the kids weren’t just alright—they were terrified. And for good reason. This episode covers the bad decisions, fear-based accusations, and the overly dramatic fashion sense that led Salem to hang witches—and almost a minister, just for lifting heavy objects. Because, apparently, strong arms = Satan.
Join us for this rollercoaster of human irrationality, served with a side of Puritanical finger-pointing. It's a quick, cringe-worthy trip into how fear can turn a town upside down—no crystal ball required.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | All right, so let's set the scene. |
| 0:25.7 | Salem, 1692. |
| 0:27.8 | It's a charming little Puritan village with all the usual suspects. |
| 0:31.9 | We've got churchgoers, farmers, and apparently witches. |
| 0:36.5 | Yeah, witches. |
| 0:37.7 | Or at least that's what some people thought. |
| 0:40.1 | Picture this, two young girls, Betty and Abigail, start acting weird. |
| 0:45.3 | We're talking full-on thrashing, growling, and crawling under furniture, like they're auditioning for the exorcist. |
| 0:51.9 | Naturally, the town doctor says, you know what, this has witchcraft written all over it. |
| 0:57.0 | Cue the chaos. |
| 0:59.0 | Suddenly, everyone's a witch expert, and three women, each an outcast in their own right, are dragged into the center of the supernatural mess. |
| 1:07.0 | There's Sarah Good, who's been down on her luck, Sarah Osborne, who dared to make her own |
| 1:12.5 | life choices, gasp, and Tatuba, a slave woman who is a slave. She wasn't born into the Puritan VIP |
| 1:20.3 | section. Before long, the accusations fly faster than you can say, is it really the devil or |
| 1:26.1 | just a really bad cold? |
| 1:32.7 | But trust me, it gets worse, because in Salem, if two little girls can set off a witch hunt, |
| 1:39.6 | no one is safe. So buckle up for a wild ride into the Salem witch trials, where gossip, fear, |
| 1:45.6 | and the occasional, she looked at me funny, accusation turned a quiet town into the original American horror story. Welcome to 10-minute murder. Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live, reads the Bible, and there was one infamous village in particular that was dead set on living by that doctrine. |
| 2:15.2 | It was in Salem, 1692, that nine-year-old Betty Paris and her 11-year-old |
| 2:20.8 | cousin, Abigail Williams, began suffering from a terrible and mysterious illness. The girls would |
| 2:27.8 | be struck down seemingly at any place at any time and began writhing and screaming in agony. |
| 2:34.1 | They would tremble and shake, convulse and cry, |
... |
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