The Witches of the New World

10/09/17 • 73 min

In 1692, two little girls started acting strangely. After examining them, the town's doctor gave a diagnosis that sent shockwaves through the community: witchcraft. Soon, a local slave woman was put on trial as a suspected witch. She pleaded guilty. And in her testimony, she admitted not only was she a witch, but others lurked in the town as well. Fear gripped Salem and the paranoid hunt was on. Soon, former friends and neighbors were being marched to the gallows to hang as convicted witches.

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The Mayflower Mythology

The story of the Pilgrims of the Mayflower is steeped in American lore. We know they fled Europe seeking religious freedom, but what did they believe? Who was persecuting them? And why is their story the one we remember over other colonists who preceded them? This week in Backtrack History, we look at the Puritan Separatists of Scrooby, England, and why they eventually risked everything to set foot on the famous Mayflower.

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