1634 – 1692 • Topsfield, Massachusetts Bay Colony
Mary Towne Easty (also spelled Esty or Eastey) was one of the most prominent and tragic victims of the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. A respected, 58-year-old Puritan mother from Topsfield, Massachusetts, her arrest, brief release, rearrest, and eventual execution stand out as a pivotal example of the hysteria that devastated the community.
Mary Towne was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, and baptized on August 24, 1634. Around 1640, her family emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony, eventually settling in Topsfield.
In 1655, she married Isaac Easty, a successful farmer and barrel-maker (cooper) who served as a town selectman. Together they raised seven surviving children. By all historical accounts, Mary was a deeply devout Christian, modest, and well-regarded by her neighbors—making her an unexpected target for accusations.
Mary was one of three daughters of William and Joanna Towne caught in the witchcraft trial wave:
On April 21, 1692, an arrest warrant was issued for Mary following accusations from several "afflicted" young girls, including Ann Putnam Jr., Abigail Williams, and Mercy Lewis.
During her initial examination on April 22, magistrates questioned her aggressively. The accusers performed dramatic physical fits in the courtroom:
Despite the intense hysteria, Mary maintained her dignity and composure, famously declaring:
"I will say it, if it was my last time, I am clear of this sin."
What distinguishes Mary Towne Easty in historical records is the selflessness of her final petition to Governor William Phips and the court judges. Written while awaiting execution, she did not plead for her own life, acknowledging that her death was already determined. Instead, she urged the court to stop relying on spectral evidence to save future victims.
"I petition to your Honors not for my own life, for I know I must die, and my appointed time is set... but, if it be possible, that no more innocent blood may be shed... The Lord above knows my innocency then, in the Great Day, know at last before His judgment seat that I am clear of this sin."
She offered practical advice to the court—such as questioning the afflicted girls separately to prevent collusive fits—which helped plant seeds of doubt among local ministers and officials, eventually contributing to the dismantling of the Court of Oyer and Terminer.
On September 22, 1692, Mary Easty was executed by hanging at Proctor's Ledge / Gallows Hill in Salem. Minister Cotton Mather infamously declared the group of eight executed that day as "eight firebrands of Hell," though observers noted Mary's calm, forgiving, and deeply religious farewell to her husband and children.