[SALEM WITCH TRIALS]. HATHORNE, JOHN. (1641-1717). Massachusetts Bay Colony magistrate remembered for his role in the Salem Witch Trials and great-great-grandfather of Nathaniel Hawthorne. ADS. (“John Hathorne”). 1p. 8vo. (7” x 6”). Salem, December 21, 1691. Countersigned by JONATHAN CORWIN (1640-1718, “Jonathan Corwin”), a Massachusetts Bay Colony magistrate similarly involved in the Salem Witch Trials.

“To the Marshall of Essex or his dep[uty] or to Either of ye Constables in Salem

You are in their majesty’s names hereby required to apprehend and forthwith bring before the … paule Woodbrig and Eleazer Cooke, both servants or apprentices to Mrs. Sarah Price, Widdow of Salem forthwith or as soon as may be [?]; to answer the complaint of John Rogers late & Marshall of the County of Essex on behalf of their Majest[ie]s for breach of the peace &c according to his Complainte Exhibited Dated Wedensday [sic] the 2 of December 1691 Contrary to … of our Sovereign L[or]d & Lady Wm & Mary King & Queen of England &c. falle not Dated Salem Decem[be]r the 21st 1691. [Signed by Hathorne & Corwin]

You are likewise required to summone & warne Geo. Herrick Thomas Mould and Joseph Glower all & every one of them to appear at the same time [?] to greet [?] in Mr. Doddsner [?] shall know in … case falle not Dated 21st 10bre 1691 John Hathorne Mgsts [?]”

A wealthy merchant and the son of a Salem magistrate, Hathorne was one of the most vocal participants in the Salem Witch Trials. “From his first questioning of Tituba, during which he attempted to force her to confess to witchcraft (which she finally did under his relentless pressure), to the end of the trials, Hathorne played a starring role in the witchcraft events. He presumed guilt, took a lead in questioning, backed the accusers, believed in the ‘touch test’ and spectral evidence, and was a crucial figure in the execution of 20 innocent individuals,” (Salem Witch Museum, salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/john-hathorne-home-site-of/). Remembered for his overzealous stance against the accused, his great-great-grandson, American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, is said to have added the “w” to his surname to distance himself from this ancestor.

Corwin was a merchant and Hathorne’s brother-in-law and, like Hathorne, signed arrest warrants and participated in the initial hearings of those accused of witchcraft beginning in February 1692. Corwin’s home in Salem, where interrogations took place, is the only building still standing related to the trials, known today as the “Witch House.”

Our document pertains to accusations against servants of a widow, likely Sarah (née Wolcott) Price (1649-1698), the wife of Captain John Price who died in August of 1691, and resembles the arrest warrants signed by Hathorne and Corwin at the beginning of the witch trials on February 29, 1692.

George Herrick (1658-1695) served as marshal to the Court of Oyer and Terminer, the body which condemned the accused to be executed and which included Hathorne. Documents signed by Hathorne and Corwin are scarce, especially when paired with the signature of Herrick.

Hathorne figures prominently in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible as well as works by Steven Vincent Benet and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Written on paper with irregular edges. Lightly foxed with a small ink burn affecting one word. Some show through from the verso. Elegantly framed in a double-sided frame. Scarce.