Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft

Salem Village and Salem Town evolved to represent two conflicting ways of life. The Village was populated primarily by landholders who farmed large tracts. The Town, along with Boston, was the colony’s only port of entry, and it controlled a large import-export trade. As overseas trade expanded, the merchants of the Town grew prosperous from their commercial ventures, but only some residents of Salem Village shared in that prosperity. Farms located at the western edge of the Village couldn’t transport products easily to the Town for purchase and envied the prosperity enjoyed by villagers who could straddle the line.

The ideological differences between the two groups were as great as the geography that separated them. The farmers of the Village supported traditional ways. They wanted to work the land in an unchanging landscape that mirrored the unchanging nature of their society. In contrast, Town residents embraced change and exploited it. They grew rich by adapting to the needs of the marketplace, both in the colony and overseas. Their newfound wealth allowed them to purchase fine houses and other luxuries that the villagers viewed with suspicion and envy.

The tense situation between the agricultural and commercial interests of Salem was aggravated by the fact that the Town didn’t want to allow independence to the Village.