COTTON MATHER

Cotton Mather was a Puritan Minister, of Boston’s Old North Church, and a Puritan Writer. Mather was born on February 12, 1663, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the son of Increase Mather, who was the President of Harvard College. He not only was known for his Puritan writings, but also his scientific experiments. He is most frequently remembered for his influence on the infamous Salem Witch Trials. Mather was a true believer in witchcraft. In 1688, he had investigatedd the strange behavior of four children in Boston; he concluded that withcraft was responsible for their behavior. He presented his findings and conclusions in one of the best known of his 382 works, "Memorable Providences." Though his writings on witchcraft fed the hysteria the in Salem, he disapproved of some aspects of the trials. He died 1728.