As a descendant of two of the most influential Puritan colonists in Massachusetts and son of a very accomplished political and religious leader, Cotton Mather was raised to follow in his family's footsteps. He graduated at age sixteen from Harvard College, where his father, Increase Mather, was president. He later went on to become the pastor of Old North Church, a position his father had previously held for many years. At this point, however, the similarities between Cotton Mather and his father ended. Cotton both supported and participated in Salem's witch trials while his father could n…
