Francis Nurse was an early settler, and had lived for some forty years, 'near Skerry's,' on the North River, between the main part of the settlement in the town of Salem and the ferry to Beverly. He is described as a 'tray-maker.' The making of these articles and similar objects of domestic use was an important employment in a new country remote from foreign supply.

On 29 April, 1678 Francis Nurse became at one stroke a major Salem Village landowner by purchasing, on credit, a rich 300-acre farm located near Salem. Francis Nurse paid off his mortgage right on schedule. His economic rise after 1678 is documented in the Village tax lists; his 1690 tax went up 39 percent from that of 1681, and in 1695 it rose by another 16 percent.

Francis Nurse had been involved during the 1670's in a protracted timber dispute with Nathanial Putnam over some mutually bounded acreage. He was elected to a Village Committee which took power at the end of 1691. These were factors that contributed to Ann Putnam's accusation of Francis' wife of witchcraft.

Source: 'Salem Possessed, The Social Origins of Witchcraft', 1974, Paul Boyer & Stephen Nissenbaum, p 149, 200.
'A Genealogy of the Nurse Family for Five Generations', 1892, John D. Ames, p 96-100.

Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England., p.299, Vol. 3
[p.300] Nurse, Benjamin, Framingham, s. of Francis, by w. Thomasine had Thomasine, b. 13 Nov. 1691; Benjamin, 20 Jan. 1694; William, 8 Mar. 1696; Eliz. 18 Sept. 1698; Ebenezer, 27 Mar. 1701; Margaret, 24 Apr. 1703, Moses, Mar. 1705; and Aaron, 11 Jan. 1708. He m. sec. w. 16 Feb. 1714, Eliz. wid. of Joseph Morse; and prob. d. late in 1747, or early in 1748, for Barry found his will pro. 13 Feb. 1748. FRANCIS, Salem, in that part now Danvers, by w. Rebecca, d. of William Towne, had
John; Samuel; Rebecca; Mary; Francis, b. 3 Feb. 1661; Benjamin, 26 Jan. 1666; Michael; and ano. d. who m. William Russell. Rebecca m. 15 Apr. 1669, Thomas Preston; and Mary m. 1678, John Tarbell. The unhappy mo. of these ch. suffer. death in the stupendous fanaticism of 1692, wh. began the investig. of her case, 24 Mar. tho. twice the jury fail. to find a verdict, to wh. at last they assent. from her not giv. satisfact. answers to their questions in open Court, that from her deafness
she fail. to understand. Sir William Phips, the Gov. upon hearing this, prepar. a reprieve, but by solicit. of those who had less responsibility, weak. withheld it, and the dreadful sentence was execut. on 19th July; and he surv. until 22 Nov. 1695, aged 77. Her sis. Sarah Cloyce, not less guilty, perhaps, aft. longsuffer. having better hearing, escaped with life. Felt, in Ann. of Salem, I. 484, well sums up the cases.
She was excommunicated. bef. trial, but that opprobrious deed was cancl. 20 yrs. aft. the sufferer was hung.

Rebecca Towne Nurse was hung for 'Witchcraft' in Salem, July 19, 1692 at the age of 71.