Good, Sarah (d. 1692)

One of the first women to be declared a witch in the famous proceedings at Salem Village, Massachusetts. Discovered using an egg white as a scrying (divining) instrument, the two young daughters of parish minister Samuel Parris began to complain of being victims of witchcraft. They accused Tituba, a slave who had showed them the scrying technique, Sarah Osburn, and Sarah Good of bewitching them. Good already had a reputation for possessing a sharp tongue and a short temper. Neighbors sometimes accused her of cursing them and causing various malevolent incidents, including the death of a cow.

Good was arrested on a warrrant issued on February 29, 1692. Her age is not known, but at the time of her arrest and trial she was the mother of a four-year-old daughter, Dorcas, and a recently born infant, whom she was still nursing. Before her trial, Sarah Osburn died in prison, but four others, including Rebecca Nurse, were arrested. The five were tried on June 30 and condemned together. Good and the others were executed by hanging on July 19, 1692.

Good is remembered not only for being the first of those killed at Salem Village (now Danvers, Massachusetts) but also for her last words to the crowd, "If you take away my life, God will give you blood to drink."

Sources:

Ericson, Eric. The World, The Flesh, and The Devil: A Biographical Dictionary of Witches. New York: Mayflower Books, 1981.

Hansen, Chadwick. Witchcraft at Salem. New York: George Braziller, 1969.