Samuel Sewall
Samuel Sewall (March 28, 1652 – January 1, 1730) was a Massachusetts judge, best known for his involvement in the Salem witch trials, for which he later apologized, and his essay The Selling of Joseph (1700), which criticized slavery.
Sewall was born in Bishopstoke, Hampshire England, on March 28, 1652, the son of Henry and Jane Sewall and grandson of Henry Sewall, the mayor of Coventry, England. He emigrated with his parents from England to the Massachusetts colony in 1661. It is there the young Samuel "Sam" grew up along the Parker River and Plum Island Sound. Like other local boys he attended school at the James Noyes House. A devout Puritan, he later moved to Boston to attend Harvard University (graduating in 1671), hoping to study for the ministry, but he eventually left to pursue a career in business. He also entered local politics, and was elevated to the position of assistant magistrate in the judiciary that in 1692 judged the people in Salem accused of witchcraft.
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