Realism in The Scarlet Letter: Where are there examples in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter?

For his magnum opus, The Scarlet Letter,
Nathaniel Hawthorne chose a real historic setting: the years 1642-1649, the
period in which John Winthrop, whose death is represented near the middle of the novel,
established the Massachusetts Bay Colony. This Puritan colony had as its intent the
establishment of an ideal community with civil and religious perfection.  In order to
maintain this ideal, strict moral regulations were established; in fact, a prison was
constructed as a place of enforcement for the enforcement of these
regulations.

Another real person added as a character to
Hawthorne's narrative is Governor Bellingham, who represents Richard Bellingham, who
came to America from England in 1630, and who was governor of the colony in 1644, 1654,
and 1655.  Another real character is the governor's sister, Mistress Hibbins, who
represents Ann Hibbins, a Puritan woman executed in 1656 for witchcraft.  Still another
real character is John Wilson, an active and strong figure of Puritan intolerance, who
also arrived in America in 1630.

And, while Hawthorne's
discovery of the scarlet letter on the second floor of the Customs House is fabricated,
the author's re-creation of the stigma placed upon a woman such as Hester Prynne is lent
reality as similar ways of marking trangressors was certainly done by the Puritans. 
Certainly, placing this worn scarlet letter in the real, ancient Customs House where
Hawthorne actually worked, lends a realistic overtone to the
letter.

At the same time, however, the reader should
understand that Hawthorne takes authorial liberties with historical events and
characters.  For, his use of different events, while meaningful, is also powerfully
symbolic.  For instance, in his first chapter, "The Custom House," Hawthorne recreates
for the reader this ancient building and all that is associated with it in order to lend
both authenticity and the "Puritan guilt" which permeates his narrative.  Thus,
Hawthorne introduces his narrative as his moral parable as well as a retelling of some
real events and people.