is believed to be the first 'witch' put to death in new england. she was hanged right here in connecticut in 1647. what makes me think of this? an entry on neil shakespeare's blog entitled 'fear of christians part 2, from january 27th. i am getting more and more frightened as the beliefs of others are THRUST upon us whether we want them to be or not. if we don't hold these same beliefs are we to be bound and tossed in a pond? are we to be hung? are we to be stoned? eventually my fear subsides and once again my anger takes over. i start foaming at the mouth and my head turns 90 degrees (uh oh)
(a while ago i saw a pbs special putting forth the theory some of these 'witches' were under the effects of ergot, a type of mold that grew on grains they used to make breads. )
connecticut's heritage gateway
research guide connecticut state library
alse young
from cotton mather: The New Englanders are a People of God settled in those,council on spiritual practices, Poisons of the Past: Molds, Epidemics, and History
which were once the Devil's Territories; ... The Devil thus irritated,
immediately try'd all sorts of methods to overturn this poor plantation: .... I
believe, that never were more satanical devices used for the unsettling of any
people under the sun, than what have been employ'd for the extirpation of the
vine which God has here planted, ... But, all those attempts of hell, have
hitherto been abortive, .... Wherefore the Devil is now making one attempt more
upon us; .... We have been advised by some credible Christians yet alive, that a
malefactor, accused of witchcraft as well as murder, and executed in this place
more than forty years ago, did then give notice of, an horrible plot against the
country by witchcraft, ... which if it were not seasonably discovered, would
probably blow up, and pull down all the churches in the country. And we have now
with horror seen the discovery of such witchcraft!
words on witche trials from our state historian
"Most people know about the Salem trials, but what most do not know is that
when New England began to prosecute these cases, Connecticut was the most
aggressive witch prosecutor,” says Walt Woodward, state historian and an
assistant professor of history at UConn. Between 1647 and 1655, in the colonies
of Connecticut and New Haven “every single person tried and found guilty was
executed.”
connecticut state library resources on witchcraft (thank you sharon c for the correction)
2 comments:
Just a quick correction on the link to the CT State Library resources about Witchcraft - the URL is http://www.cslib.org/witchbib.htm
thanks, i posted the correct one!
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