Witches in Colonial America by Kory L



Witches in Colonial America  by Kory L. Meyerink, MLS, AG®, FUGA This list attempts to identify, as fully as possible, those persons formally accused as witches in Colonial America, or those who suffered (usually as little children) with accused witches. Generally this means that there was some formal action taken, usually in court, or that early writers (leaders, memorial writers, historians) discussed the accusation. Court action is not limited to trials, for some cases never came to trial, being dismissed for insufficient evidence (usually after an arrest and/or evidentiary hearing), or the flight of the accused. It also includes cases of slander by an accused witch against the accuser(s), even if no other court record exists. Most witches were married women, so maiden names are given, when known, after the first name, but in parenthesis. The object is to help family historians clearly identify each accused witch to determine if he or she fits on a family tree. Abbreviations for outcome:

• A = accused (or complaint filed), but apparently not brought to court *X = executed, method not given

• C = cleared of charges, dismissed (usually at a later date, often by higher court or governor)

• DP= died in prison * E = escaped from prison *H = hung (after imprisonment and trial)

• F = fled to another jurisdiction (colony), or in hiding (presumes an accusation, but not an arrest)

• I = imprisoned (sometimes indicted, which usually meant some imprisonment)

• NG = found not guilty (acquitted), implies some time in prison, and usually a trial

• R = released from prison (usually on bail), not necessarily cleared

• SS = accused sued accuser for slander

• V = convicted (but not executed, usually cleared)

Witches in Colonial America  by Kory L. Meyerink, MLS, AG®, FUGA This list attempts to identify, as fully as possible, those persons formally accused as witches in Colonial America, or those who suffered (usually as little children) with accused witches. Generally this means that there was some formal action taken, usually in court, or that early writers (leaders, memorial writers, historians) discussed the accusation. Court action is not limited to trials, for some cases never came to trial, being dismissed for insufficient evidence (usually after an arrest and/or evidentiary hearing), or the flight of the accused. It also includes cases of slander by an accused witch against the accuser(s), even if no other court record exists. Most witches were married women, so maiden names are given, when known, after the first name, but in parenthesis. The object is to help family historians clearly identify each accused witch to determine if he or she fits on a family tree. Abbreviations for outcome:

• A = accused (or complaint filed), but apparently not brought to court *X = executed, method not given

• C = cleared of charges, dismissed (usually at a later date, often by higher court or governor)

• DP= died in prison * E = escaped from prison *H = hung (after imprisonment and trial)

• F = fled to another jurisdiction (colony), or in hiding (presumes an accusation, but not an arrest)

• I = imprisoned (sometimes indicted, which usually meant some imprisonment)

• NG = found not guilty (acquitted), implies some time in prison, and usually a trial

• R = released from prison (usually on bail), not necessarily cleared

• SS = accused sued accuser for slander

• V = convicted (but not executed, usually cleared)

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Witchcraft in the American Colonies

Michael Streich Sep 6, 2009

Monument in Salem Commemorating the Trials - Salem Witch Museum Tour Photo

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1835 story “Young Goodman Brown,” the pious Goodman Brown ventures into the “haunted forest” to converse with the devil. A resistant Brown is told, “Wickedness or not…I have a very general acquaintance here in New England.” Hawthorne reminds the reader of the Puritan preoccupation with evil as a very real and constant threat to the theocracy of the “godly communities.” It was what prompted Cotton Mather to write “Memorable Provinces relating to witchcraft and Possessions” one year before the outbreak of the 1692 witch trials. Witchcraft, magic, and superstition played a unique role in 17th Century New England.

Origins of New England Belief in Witches and Magic

Oxford historian Keith Thomas’ classic study of religion and magic in England states that the Reformation had placed “an unprecedented stress upon the reality of the Devil and the extent of his earthly dominion.” New England Puritans were well aware of the prolonged period of the European witch-craze that lasted from the 15th into the 17th century and claimed over half a million lives, mostly women. Their worldview accepted the active role of the devil. Even John Calvin, the theological founder of their doctrines, had burned witches.

Puritan Beliefs in Witches and Magic

Puritan views of witchcraft and evil were based on a literal interpretation of the Bible: “thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” (Exodus 22.18) New England Puritans were Old Testament Christians, modeling their social structures on the Old Testament patriarchal system and appropriating the “covenant” promises for themselves. Thus, if one member of the community sinned, the entire community was punished. The first execution for witchcraft occurred in 1647 when Alice Young was convicted; between 1662-1663, a minor witch “panic” resulted in more executions.

Omens and Natural Wonders Fed New England Beliefs in Witches

Prior to the 1692 witch hysteria in Salem, three eclipses occurring in 1680, 1682, and 1686 were perceived as evil omens. It was these celestial events Cotton Mather referred to as “Memorable Provinces” in his 1691 treatise warning New England that the devil was preparing a final onslaught to disrupt the Puritan theocracy.

Secularism and the fruits of the Scientific Revolution and the emerging Enlightenment threatened the decades old belief systems of Calvinist New England. Additionally, by 1692, the trained clergy were less literate than their forerunners had been. These men tended to rely more on the accepted conventions of post-medieval cosmologies. Historian David Hawke writes that, “the supernatural was the basis of their piety.”

Witchcraft in the Other English Colonies

By the mid-17th century, it was a crime in Virginia to accuse someone of witchcraft and the charge itself was never considered a capital crime. A 1706 witchcraft trial in Virginia as well as a 1712 trial in North Carolina resulted in acquittal, despite that fact that the accused woman in Virginia confessed to witchcraft.

The absence of other accusations and trials – even in other colonies founded on the basis of “religious freedom,” suggests that the belief and treatment of witchcraft in New England was unique to Puritan views and entrenched within specific Biblical and Reformation interpretations. Additionally, Puritans resisted the prevailing European changes in intellectual thought that ultimately replaced medieval cosmology with pre-modern models of rationalism.

Aftermath of the Salem Witch Trials in Puritan New England

The Salem trials exposed the Puritan theocracy and in the process severely weakened theological belief and the ability to communicate effective sermons pointing toward an authentic Christian lifestyle. This would be remedied by the early 18th-Century Great Awakening that, through the articulate preaching of men like John Wesley and Jonathan Edwards, placed Christian responsibility on the individual rather than the community.

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