Show Notes
We’re joined by Daniel Clark of Moyses Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds and Rachel Christ-Doane of the Salem Witch Museum for a transatlantic conversation linking English witch trials to Salem through documented precedents like spectral evidence, the touch test, and witch teats—along with Cotton Mather’s use of the Bury St Edmunds case and Sir Matthew Hale’s authority. Dan shares Moyses Hall’s famed Crime and Superstition collection, from ritual deposits and mummified cats to a book bound in human skin, and reveals an actual 300+ year-old elder wand live. Rachel explains Salem Witch Museum’s immersive approach, expanding collections (including a 1693 Wonders of the Invisible World and Malleus Maleficarum), and how Salem’s history evolved alongside modern Halloween culture. We also highlight a new memorial in Bury St Edmunds honoring witch trial victims and preview a co-hosted online museum event with behind-the-scenes exhibits.
Chapters
- 00:00 Show Teaser and Guests
- 02:11 Moyses Hall Museum Tour
- 03:44 Salem Witch Museum Overview
- 06:53 Salem in the Spotlight
- 08:47 Where Bury St Edmunds Is
- 09:53 Pumpkin Map and Halloween
- 11:54 Where Salem Is Located
- 13:02 Bury Case Shapes Salem
- 16:26 Cotton Mather and Precedent
- 19:36 Museum Partnership Event
- 23:21 Shared Afflictions and Evidence
- 25:41 Witch Marks and Gendered Fear
- 28:36 Pins Curses and Ritual Finds
- 30:56 Wand Lore Reveal
- 31:56 Elder Wand Spotlight
- 33:26 Wand Woods and Pagan Power
- 34:08 Mummified Cats in Walls
- 36:39 Apotropaic Finds and Skulls
- 37:58 Ritual Deposits Explained
- 40:42 Shoes and Modern Traditions
- 44:29 Moyses Hall Memorial Unveiled
- 48:37 Why Memorials Matter
- 52:06 Public Response and Lost Sites
- 53:48 Event Info and Farewell
Links
- Salem Witch Museum: https://salemwitchmuseum.com
- Moyses Hall Museum: https://moyseshall.org
- Register for Witch Trials: Bury to Salem: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__Jk9Eh2SRXeLd7AJcZwM9g
- Salem Witch-Hunt Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/salemwitchhunt
- Salem Witch Trials History YouTube: https://youtube.com/@aboutwitchhunts
- The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials: https://aboutsalem.com
- Salem Witch Trials Daily: https://aboutsalem.com/salem-witch-trials-daily/
- The Thing About Witch Hunts: https://aboutwitchhunts.com
- High Quality Scans of Salem Witch Trials Records (Peabody Essex Museum Salem Witch Trials Collection): https://pem.quartexcollections.com/collections/salem-witch-trials-collection
- Bernard Rosenthal, ed., Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt: https://bookshop.org/a/90227/9781107689619