Thomas Putnam ( – , 1699)
Biography
Thomas Putnam was born on March 22, 1652 (new style March 12, 1651) in
Salem Village, Massachusetts Bay Colony, a son of
Lieutenant Thomas Putnam Sr. (1615–1686) and his first wife, Ann Holyoke. He was
baptism on February 16, 1652, at the First Church of Salem. He married Ann Carr on September 25, 1675, at Salem Village. Ann was born at Salem Village on June 15, 1661, the youngest daughter of George and Elizabeth Carr. They had twelve children: Ann Jr., Thomas, Elizabeth, Ebenezer, Deliverance, Timothy, Experience, Abigail, Susanna and Seth; two who died young. Thomas served in the military and held the rank of
Sergeant, fighting in King Philip's War. He also served as parish clerk.
Despite being the son of one of Salem's wealthiest residents, Putnam was excluded from major inheritances by both his father and father-in-law. His half-brother, Joseph, who had benefited most from their father's estate, married into the rival Porter family in Salem Town, fueling ill will between the clans. Putnam, his wife Ann, and their daughter Ann Jr. all levied accusations of witchcraft, many of them against extended members of the Porter family, and testified at the trials.
Both Putnam and his wife died in 1699, leaving their ten children orphans, two children having predeceased them.[Bower, Glenn. Just a Family History, books.google.com; accessed December 25, 2014.]
Arthur Miller's The Crucible
In
Arthur Miller's 1953 play,
The Crucible, Thomas Putnam is married to Ann Putnam, and together have a daughter, Ruth Putnam, who is afflicted with a grave illness, similar to that of
Betty Parris. They both have lost seven children in childbirth and point to witchcraft as the cause of it. Putnam appears in Act 1 and is apparent during Act 3. He manipulates
Samuel Parris into taking his side, urging him to see that it is witchcraft that is making Salem go mad. He uses the witch trials to get the other villagers' land, such as
Giles Corey's. Giles later takes Putnam to court regarding the issue.
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