Thomas Putnam was a participant in the Salem witch trials

Salem witch trials

The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...

. He was the son of Lt. Thomas Putnam (1615–1686) and Ann Holyoke (1621–1665). He was also a nephew of Elizur Holyoke

Elizur Holyoke

Captain Elizur Holyoke of Springfield, Massachusetts was the namesake of the mountain, Mount Holyoke, and , of the city of Holyoke, Massachusetts.-Background:...

 and great uncle of General Israel Putnam

Israel Putnam

Israel Putnam was an American army general and Freemason who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War...

.

Thomas was the husband to Ann Carr, and father of Ann Putnam, Jr.

Ann Putnam, Jr.

Ann Putnam, Jr. , along with Elizabeth "Betty" Parris, Mary Walcott and Abigail Williams, was an important witness at the Salem Witch Trials of Massachusetts during the later portion of 17th century Colonial America. Born 1679 in Salem Village, Essex County, Massachusetts, she was the eldest child...

. Thomas' brother, Edward, also participated in the witch trials.

Arthur Miller wrote the play "The Crucible" using composite characters from actual records of the Salem witch hysteria. To these composite characters he assigned real names, including Putnam's. In the 1957 and 1996 film adaptations of the play, he was portrayed by Alfred Adam

Alfred Adam

Alfred Adam was a French character actor, who usually played weak or villainous roles.-Partial filmography:*La Kermesse Héroïque *Au service du Tsar *La Glu *Carnet de Bal...

 and Jeffrey Jones

Jeffrey Jones

Jeffrey Duncan Jones is an American actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman’s Amadeus, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice, and Dean of Students Edward R...

, respectively.