People the world over continue to be intrigued by what happened in Salem in 1692 and the years leading up to the tragic deaths of innocent people, most of whom were women.

The women who were put to death in Salem in 1692 were Bridget Bishop, Martha Carrier, Martha Corey, Mary Easty, Sarah Good, Dorcas Hoar, Elizabeth Howe, Susannah Martin, Rebecca Nurse, Alice Parker, Mary Parker, Ann Pudeator, Margaret Scott, and Sarah Wildes.

Among their final words are the following remarks: "If it be possible no more innocent blood be shed. I am clear of this sin" (Mary Easty), and "I will speak the truth as long as I live" (Dorcas Hoar).

What many Americans don't realize is that our present-day judicial system resulted from the Salem Witch Trials. The Court of Oyer and Terminer (to "hear" and to "speak"), which allowed spectral evidence to be presented at trial, was finally disbanded in favor of a court that evolved into today's Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Today, the SJC is headed by its first woman chief justice — the Honorable Margaret H. Marshall.

A reputable website on the Salem Witch Trials is the Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project at the University of Virginia.

The key places to visit in Salem are the Salem Witch Museum, the Salem Witch Trials Memorial, and the Witch House/Judge Jonathan Corwin House.

Original documents, and many secondary sources, may be found at the Phillips Library of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem. Paintings and objects relating to the Witch Trials may be found in the library's lobby.

In nearby Danvers (formerly Salem Village), where the hysteria originated, there are even more sites to visit.