The Salem witch trials took place mainly between early 1692 and mid‑1693 in colonial Massachusetts.

Key timeline

  • The crisis began in January–February 1692 , when young girls in Salem Village started showing strange behaviors and accusing local women of witchcraft.
  • Formal hearings and examinations of the accused started in the spring of 1692.
  • The special Court of Oyer and Terminer held most major trials and executions from June to September 1692.
  • By late 1692 , use of “spectral evidence” was curtailed and the court was dissolved, sharply reducing new convictions.
  • Remaining cases were resolved and the last trials wrapped up in early 1693 , effectively ending the Salem witch trials period.

In short, when people ask “when did the Salem witch trials take place?”, historians usually give the range 1692–1693 , with the most intense phase in 1692.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.