A handwritten document by lawyer Thomas Newton, first prosecutor in the Salem witch trials (1692-1693), will star in a sale at RR Auction.
Newton travelled to the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1688, following a desperate request from the colony’s governors for England to “send some honest lawyers, if any such in nature”.
This document dates to 1718, long after the witch trials were over, and relates to a different case
He found himself one of only three trained lawyers in New England. When things started to get weird in Salem, he was placed in charge of prosecuting the women accused of witchcraft.
Newton opened the trials with Bridget Bishop, as the case against her was the strongest.
She was found guilty and executed soon after.
Bidding stands at $700 ahead of the February 7 close date, already above the $600 valuation.
In June last year an original testimony from the Salem witch trials sold for $137,000.
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