John Proctor
(1632 - 19 Aug 1692)

John Proctor  (1632,  London, England  - 19 Aug 1692,  Salem, Essex, Massachusetts, USA )     --Cause of Death: hanged -- Salem Witch Trials
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John  was the child of John Proctor and Martha Harper

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John Proctor, a character in Arthur Miller's play: 'The Crucible', was a real person who lived in the 1600s. He was born in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and when he was around the age of 30, in the year 1666, he bought a large farm called Groton in the town of Salem, Massachusetts. However, farming was not John Proctor's only occupation. He also operated a tavern about a mile south of the Salem Village boundary. This job allowed him to come into contact with many people on a regular basis. The Salem selectmen would only allow Proctor to serve people in his tavern who were not local residents. This made Proctor's tavern a central meeting place for strangers.



John Proctor was married to Elizabeth Bassett Proctor. They had two sons, Benjamin and William, and one daughter, Elizabeth. John Proctor's wife and daughter would often tend to the tavern while he spent his days working on the farm. The Proctors disliked the Reverend Parris, and were included in an "Anti-Parris Network" led by Israel Porter. When his father died, Proctor inherited a portion of an estate worth 1,200 pounds. He was fairly wealthy, but not fully accepted or respected by the townspeople of Salem. He was called"Goodman", which is a title not quite as respectable as "Mr". Proctor attended church in Salem and sat in the fourth row of seats. He was equally comfortable in Ipswich, Boston, and Salem. However, he seems to have had closer ties to Ipswich than to Salem, because citizens of Ipswich signed a petition asking for his release from jail after he was imprisoned in 1692.



John Proctor and his wife were jailed for witchcraft in 1692. Joseph Bayley was a witness who provided evidence against Proctor. Bayley claimed that Proctor caused painful blows to his chest as he was riding by the tavern. John and Elizabeth Proctor were hanged on August 19, 1692. In 1711, John Proctor's family received much more compensation money from the Massachusetts General Court than most families of accused witches.

Source: http://www.rootsweb.com/~macsalem/narrativ.htm

Ancestor's Life Events

Source: Title The Salem witch trials: a reference guide Author K. David Goss Edition illustrated, annotated Publisher Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008 ISBN 0313320950, 9780313320958 Length 189 pages Page 99

Added: 12/16/1999 12:00:00 AM - 1

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my mother is norma g proctor from stoneham ma, then from salem and beverly ma rainy0780@gmail.com 10/16/2011 5:14:53 PM

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