The Diary of Samuel Sewall, 1674-1729. 2 volumes

Samuel Sewall (1652-1730) was a judge, businessman, and printer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, 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. He served for many years as the chief justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature, the province's high court. Sewall's diary is considered a unique insight into the life of a pious Puritan, and an important historical record documenting the early days of the Massachusetts community.