Show Notes
Episode Description:
In May 1692, one of Boston’s most respected citizens walked into a Salem courtroom—and the accusers couldn’t even identify him. Captain John Alden Jr., son of Mayflower passengers and decorated war hero, seemed an unlikely target for witchcraft accusations. But his connections to Native Americans and the French made him dangerous in the eyes of wartime Massachusetts.
What happened when Salem’s witch hunt reached beyond the village to pull in a prominent Bostonian with impeccable colonial credentials? This episode examines how Captain Alden’s examination revealed the absurdity and danger of the spectral evidence system and how his escape became one of the trial period’s most dramatic moments.
From his parents’ legendary Plymouth courtship to his own flight from justice, Captain Alden’s story shows us who could be accused, who could survive, and what it took to navigate Salem’s machinery of suspicion.
Episode Highlights:
- John Alden Sr. and Priscilla: The last surviving Mayflower passenger and the marriage that inspired Longfellow
- Captain Alden’s controversial fur trading and the rumors that made him a target
- The chaotic May 31st examination where accusers needed prompting
- The touch test, the sword, and the claims of “Indian Papooses”
- His September escape to Duxbury and surprising return
Key Figures:
Captain John Alden Jr., John & Priscilla Alden, Judges Bartholomew Gedney and John Richards, Rev. Samuel Willard, Robert Calef
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Links
The Thing About Witch Hunts YouTube
The Thing About Salem website
Sign the Petition to Exonerate the Boston 8
The History of Witch Trial Exonerations in Massachusetts
About the MA Witch Hunt Justice Project