The Witchcraft Victim’s Memorial is a memorial in Danvers, Massachusetts that is dedicated to the victims of the Salem Witch Trials.
The memorial is dedicated to the 19 people who were hanged, the one person who died under torture, and the five people who died in jail.
Located at 176 Hobart Street, it is directly across the street from the original site of the Salem Village meetinghouse where many of the witch examinations took place.
The memorial was erected by the Salem Village Witchcraft Tercentennial Committee of the Town of Danvers. It was designed by committee members Marjorie C. Wetzel, Robert D. Farley, and Richard B. Trask and was carved by the Lawson Granite Company of Barre, Vermont.
It is a two-part memorial. The first part is a 4 by 4 by 8-foot granite altar with a lectern carved out of rosy granite. On top of the lectern is a granite bible box with the Book of Life. On both sides of the lectern are a pair of iron shackles with broken chains.
The second part is a three-panel granite memorial wall. The main panel is inscribed with the names of those who died, the date and circumstance of each death, and the town each victim was from, while the side panels are inscribed with the words of eight of the victims.
The memorial was dedicated on May 9, 1992, which is one day before to the 300th anniversary of the death of the first victim, Sarah Osborne.
In honor of that anniversary, the Danvers Board of Selectmen declared May 8, 1992, a day of remembrance for the victims of the Salem Witch Trials.
The memorial is one of three in the area that are dedicated to the Salem Witch Trials. The others are the Salem Witch Trials Memorial and the Proctor’s Ledge Memorial, both located in Salem.
Sources:
“Salem Village Witchcraft Victims’ Memorial at Danvers.” Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, salem.lib.virginia.edu/Commemoration.html
“Witchcraft Victims’ Memorial.” MACRIS, mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=DAN.938