Communicating Authentically

On Thursday, May 25, senators in my birth state of Connecticut voted 33-1 in favor of a resolution absolving individuals convicted of witchcraft between 1647 and 1697. They were only 326 years late.

The Connecticut Witch Trials 

The witch trials in Connecticut preceded those in Salem, Massachusetts, which began in 1692. The 1647 hanging of Alyce Young, the first person hanged for witchcraft in the American colonies, took place in Windsor, Connecticut, ushering in one of the darkest eras of American history.

Other victims of the Hartford Witch Panic included Lydia Gilbert, convicted in 1654 for bewitching a gun that someone else used to kill someone in 1651, even though Lydia wasn’t even present at the time. Because guns don’t kill people. Bewitched guns do.

Mary Sanford was hanged for attending a Christmas party in Hartford, Accusers claimed it was a coven meeting with Satan. But, I guess if you’re going to have a party, you may as well do it right.

Katherine Harrison of Wethersfield was tried multiple times for witchcraft. One such complaint involved a hat she and another woman both wanted to purchase. The other woman prevailed, but later found that the hat gave her a headache when she wore it. Clearly, the issue wasn’t her own fat head, it was that witch, Katherine. A cut-and-dried case if I ever heard one. 

Until 1697, the Connecticut Witch Trials indicted 34 individuals, executed 11 and ruined countless innocent lives. The majority of these were women, many of them poor, single mothers. Go figure.

Resolution Exonerating The Women And Men Convicted For Witchcraft In Colonial Connecticut

The recent victory exonerating these victims was due to years of effort by the CT Witch Trial Exoneration Project. Its goals were to clear the names of the accused through state legislation and establish a permanent memorial to the Connecticut Witch Trial victims.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that all of the formally convicted and executed are absolved of all crimes of witchcraft and familiarities with the devil. The legislature specifically absolves the following people believed to have been convicted and executed for the crimes of witchcraft and familiarities with the devil: Alice Young in 1647, Mary Johnson in 1648, Joan Carrington in 1651, John Carrington in 1651, Goodwife Bassett in 1651, Goodwife Knapp in 1653, Lydia Gilbert in 1654, Mary Sanford in 1662, Nathaniel Greensmith in 1663, Rebecca Greensmith in 1663, and Mary Barnes in 1663; and one Elizabeth Seager convicted and reprieved in 1665.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that those who were indicted for the crimes of witchcraft and familiarities with the devil, forced to flee, banished or even acquitted continued to live with their reputations destroyed and their family names tarnished, will have their reputations restored and no longer have disgrace attached to their names, now, being in good standing in the state of Connecticut. The following indicted for the crimes of witchcraft and familiarities with the devil who were not convicted but still suffered greatly after indictments were: Goodwife Bailey in 1655, Nicholas Bailey in 1655, Elizabeth Godman in 1655, Elizabeth Garlick in 1658, Margaret Jennings in 1661, Nicholas Jennings in 1661, Judith Varlet in 1662, Andrew Sanford in 1662, William Ayers in 1662, Judith Ayers in 1662, James Wakely in 1662, Katherine Harrison in 1668 and 1669, William Graves in 1667, Elizabeth Clawson in 1692, Hugh Crosia in 1692, Mercy Disborough in 1692, Mary Harvey in 1692, Hannah Harvey in 1692, Mary Staples in 1692, Winifred Benham in 1697, and Winifred Benham Jr. in 1697.

Word about a permanent memorial is pending, but in the meantime, we can thank Connecticut state Senator Saud Anwar for introducing the resolution.  

Who Could Disagree With That?

So who cast that one “no” vote? According to this article, it was Republican state Senator Rob Sampson, who said it was wrong and childlike to suggest “somehow we have a right to dictate what was right or wrong about periods in the past that we have no knowledge of.” 

Senator Sampson didn’t clarify his beliefs about whether hanging accused witches was ever “right,” but If I were a witch (oh wait, I am), I sure wouldn’t want to get caught putting a hex on him or contacting him here to let him know just what I thought of him.

Sampson explained his reasoning thusly: “I don’t want to see bills that rightfully or wrongfully attempt to paint America as a bad place with a bad history. I want us to focus on where we’re going, which is a brighter and better future. And I don’t want to see anyone try and put a stain on the country that I love.” (Cue the maudlin tones of “God Bless the U.S.A.” by Lee Greenwood.)

So by Rob’s logic, if I were to spill red wine on my living-room rug, and he later came to visit me and suggested a good stain remover, I could blame him for the stain, right? Are you trying to tell me my home is a “bad place”? Are you implying that I have a “bad history” with red wine, Rob? I can quit any time I want! Focus on the future, Rob! THE BRIGHTER AND BETTER FUTURE!

I’m not sure if ol’ Rob bothered to do any research, but if he had, he would find that we actually do have some knowledge of the colonial period. For example, we know that Alyse Young was a botanist and known to impart plant-based cures to her friends and family. Scholars believe townspeople in Windsor, Connecticut, blamed her for a pandemic that led to the deaths of many children. 

Boy, it’s a good thing we’ve learned our lesson and don’t go around blaming people for pandemics anymore. The future sure is bright.

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆

Did you enjoy this post? Please like, comment or share below. And check out other posts on my blog, “The Good Witch of the North Country.”