Rebecca Towne Nurse: The Trial Of John Hathorne

Rebecca Towne Nurse was executed for witchcraft by the government of the Province of Massachusetts Bay in New England during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. She was the wife of Francis Nurse, with several children and grandchildren, and a well-respected member of the community. Although there was no credible evidence against her, she was convicted and hanged as a witch on July 19, 1692. At age 71, she was one of the oldest accused. Her ordeal is often credited as the impetus for a shift in the town's opinion about the purpose of the witch trials. The examining magistrates, John Hathorne who normally regarded the guilt of the accused as self-evident, took a notably different attitude in Rebecca's case, as they also did in the case of her sister
Mary Eastey. They told Rebecca openly that if she was innocent, they prayed that God would show her innocence, for "it is a sad thing to see church members accused". Hathorne was no doubt influenced by the fact that his sister Elizabeth Porter was a close friend of Rebecca, and one of her staunchest defenders.