Sarah Osborne was, some twenty years before the witch hunt, a prosperous member of Salem Village. She had married Robert Prince, the owner of a one hundred and fifty acre farm just outside of town. The village, however, was scandalized, when, upon her husband's death, she bought the indenture to Alexander Osborne, a young Irish immigrant, for fifteen pounds. As a mature woman living alone, the town immediately jumped to the conclusion that employer and employee were having an affair. Sarah eventually married Alexander, but the wedding did not lessen the wickedness of the act. Matters were made worse when Sarah contested her first husband's will, in an attempt to keep his lands for her own, although he had left them to his sons in her trust. By 1692, Alexander and Sarah were no longer prosperous, and she was bedridden. Sarah was among the first accused by Abigail Williams and Betty Parris.

Sarah Osborne was hanged on Gallows Hill, July 19, 1692.