jul 21, 1653 - Sarah Good, age 39

Description:

Born: July 21, 1653, Wenham, MA

Died: July 29, 1692, Danvers, MA
Cause of death: execution by hanging

Occupation:
housewife

Spouses:
Daniel Poole, died 1682
William Good

Children:
Dorothy Good
Mercy Good

Parents:
John Solart
Elizabeth

Sarah was the daughter of John Solart, a well-to-do tavern owner in Wenham, Massachusetts and in 1669 he committed suicide.

His 70-acre estate was valued around 500 pounds and he didn't leave a will. At the time of his death, the Solarts were one of many families involved in land disputes around Salem. The estate was divided mostly between his widow and two sons, with only a small allotment to be shared among seven daughters, however, even this was denied to the girls by their mother's new husband. Sarah was left with no dowry and no prospects beyond marriage to an indentured servant named Daniel Poole who left her heavily in debt when he died soon after.

The small portion of land that Sarah had received from her father's estate was lost in a suit filed by Poole's creditors. She and her new husband sold the remainder leaving them impoverished and homeless and were forced to beg from the households of Salem. It was rumored that she walked off "muttering" after Samuel Parris gave her charity, and she developed a reputation for being unpleasant whether she received charity or not.

When Samuel and Mary Abbey gave her lodgings for a-time they said she was "so turbulent a spirit, spiteful and so maliciously bent" that they put her out. Her husband told the examiners that she was "an enemy to all good". When accused of never attending church she said it was because she hadn't any proper attire for the services.

Sarah was accused of witchcraft on March 6, 1692, when Abigail Williams and Elizabeth Parris, related to the Reverend Samuel Parris, claimed to be bewitched under her hand. The young girls asserted they had been bitten, pinched, and otherwise abused. They would have fits in which their bodies would appear to involuntarily convulse, their eyes rolling into the back of their heads and their mouths hanging open. When the Rev. Samuel Parris asked, "Who torments you?" the girls eventually shouted out the names of three townspeople: Tituba, Sarah Osborne, and Sarah Good.

Sarah was of a lower economic status, and accusers often cited jealousy and envy as explanations for witches' discontent and anger. Her dependency on neighbors and others perpetuated suspicions of her practicing witchcraft.

Another theory behind the accusations was explained by her relationship with her husband and her neighbors. William Good claimed he feared that his wife was a witch due to "her bad carriage to him", indicating he disliked her demeanor or how well she met his expectations for a wife. She was accused by her neighbors because she challenged Puritan values, and she was accused of possessing two women; the afflictions were often sporadic and inexplicable.

On March 25, 1692, she was tried for witchcraft and accused of rejecting the puritanical expectations of self-control and discipline when she chose to torment and, "scorn [children] instead of leading them towards the path of salvation". When she was brought in, the accusers immediately began to rock back and forth and moan, seemingly in response to her presence.

Later in the trial, one of the accusers fell into a fit. When it had stopped, she claimed Sarah had attacked her with a knife; she even produced a portion of it, stating the weapon had been broken during the alleged assault. However, upon hearing this statement, a young townsman stood and told the court the piece had broken off his own knife the day before, and that the girl had witnessed it. He then revealed the other half, proving his story. After hearing this, Judge William Stoughton simply scolded the girl for exaggerating what he believed to be the truth.

Sarah argued her innocence, proclaiming Tituba and Osborne as the real witches. The Rev. Nicholas Noyes was persistent, in his attempts to force her to confess but she firmly proclaimed her innocence until the time of her execution.

Sarah was pregnant at the time of her arrest and gave birth in her jail cell in Ipswich, Mass.
The infant died before Sarah was hanged.

In 1710, William Good successfully sued the Great and General Court for health and mental damages done to Sarah and Dorcas. He was awarded and received thirty pounds sterling, which was one of the largest sums granted to the families of the witchcraft victims

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