Gary Hylander Presentation on Salem Witch Trials – 1692,

The Needham Public Library will present on Tuesday, January 22nd, Dr. Gary Hylander and his presentation on Salem Witch Trials – 1692, at 7:30 PM, in the Community Room.

“An army of devils,” warned Reverend Cotton Mather, was on its way to af­flict the men and women of the Massa­chusetts Bay Colony for their sinfulness and wicked ways. New Englanders believed in the “Old Deluder” and the malevolent powers of his “Invisible World.” When rumors of Tituba’s conjuring of spirits in the household of Reverend Parrish surfaced, power­ful witchcraft hysteria seized Salem Village and neighboring towns. By the time the Salem witchcraft trials were suspended, 19 of the accused, mostly women, had been hanged for the crime of witchcraft.

Dr. Gary Hylander, adjunct professor at Framingham State University and Stonehill College, will discuss this case, the first in a series of five lectures on famous trials in American history. This program is sponsored by the Library Foundation of Needham. For further information, please call the Library at 781-455-7559.