Accusation Scatter Plot
Perhaps even more vividly than the histogram, a scatter plot of accusations reveals the dramatic rise in accusations in April and May 1692, the pause in June, and the resurgence of accusations in August and September. In October, however, only one accusation was recorded, and unlike the first wave of accusations, October's drop was not followed by a third wave of new charges. While the chronological span of the Salem outbreak far surpassed previous colonial witchcraft incidents, its intensity was confined to a six-month period from April through September.
Those accused of practicing witchcraft were brought under the colony's legal system where they faced the possibility of execution for committing a capital crime. To explore the chronology of executions in 1692, click Next.