The Salem Witch Trials w/Todd DePastino & Dormont Historical Society

Presented in partnership with the Dormont Historical Society. In time for Halloween, Todd DePastino tells the story of the Salem Witch Trials. It began on a cold January day in 1692 with two young girls telling fortunes in the kitchen of Rev. Samuel Parris. The girls began barking, twisting, writhing in pain, as if in the grip of an evil force. These Children were bitten and pinched by invisible agents, concluded a doctor. A clear case of witchcraft. By the time it was all over, 19 had been hanged, five had died in prison, and 200 others had been accused. Come hear the gruesome details and consider whether this was, in fact, a case of mass hysteria or something more sinister. Todd DePastino is founder and executive director of the Veterans Breakfast Club, which holds veterans' storytelling programs open to the public. He has a Ph.D. in American History from Yale University is author of the award winning BILL MAULDIN: A LIFE UP FRONT (W.W. Norton) and several other books.