Normally, when one thinks of the tragic witch hunts in Colonial New England, one thinks of Salem, Massachusetts. Unfortunately, this mass hysteria fed by superstition affected western New England as well.
On Friday, October 17, the Sheffield Historical Society will present "In a Preternatural Way:" 17th-Century Witchcraft in Connecticut and Western Massachusetts, a talk by Lisa Johnson, Executive Director of the Stanley Whitman House in Farmington, Connecticut. This lecture and media presentation will take place at 7:30 p.m. at Dewey Hall in Sheffield.
17th-century New England was a world apart from our contemporary lives. The belief in witches and witchcraft was born out of early New Englanders' cultural history and how they viewed themselves and the world around them. In her talk, Ms. Johnson will examine the culture and religion of 17th-century New England, the practice of trying people for witchcraft, and the personal traits and circumstances that made a person a likely target of a witchcraft accusation. The complex relationships between people that fueled witchcraft accusations will be explored, using cases of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts people who were both accused and accusers.
Lisa Johnson has served as Executive Director at the Stanley Whitman House, a museum of Early American history in the heart of historic Farmington, Connecticut, for 17 years. Her interest in the witchcraft trials of the 17th century was spurred by her research into the case of Farmington's Mary Barnes, who was executed for witchcraft in 1663. Her play about Barnes, "In a Preternatural Way: The Witchcraft Trial of Mary Barnes," has been performed at Connecticut's Old State House, the Simsbury Historical Society, and in Farmington. A video of the production is used in local college and high school history classes. She was project co-director of a 2009 survey of primary materials related to Connecticut's witchcraft trials, funded by the Connecticut Humanities Council.
Dewey Hall is located on Route 7, on the Sheffield Green. Programs by the Sheffield Historical Society, sponsored by Dewey Hall, are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For further information, call (413) 229 – 2694.
On Friday, October 17, the Sheffield Historical Society will present "In a Preternatural Way:" 17th-Century Witchcraft in Connecticut and Western Massachusetts, a talk by Lisa Johnson, Executive Director of the Stanley Whitman House in Farmington, Connecticut. This lecture and media presentation will take place at 7:30 p.m. at Dewey Hall in Sheffield.
17th-century New England was a world apart from our contemporary lives. The belief in witches and witchcraft was born out of early New Englanders' cultural history and how they viewed themselves and the world around them. In her talk, Ms. Johnson will examine the culture and religion of 17th-century New England, the practice of trying people for witchcraft, and the personal traits and circumstances that made a person a likely target of a witchcraft accusation. The complex relationships between people that fueled witchcraft accusations will be explored, using cases of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts people who were both accused and accusers.
Lisa Johnson has served as Executive Director at the Stanley Whitman House, a museum of Early American history in the heart of historic Farmington, Connecticut, for 17 years. Her interest in the witchcraft trials of the 17th century was spurred by her research into the case of Farmington's Mary Barnes, who was executed for witchcraft in 1663. Her play about Barnes, "In a Preternatural Way: The Witchcraft Trial of Mary Barnes," has been performed at Connecticut's Old State House, the Simsbury Historical Society, and in Farmington. A video of the production is used in local college and high school history classes. She was project co-director of a 2009 survey of primary materials related to Connecticut's witchcraft trials, funded by the Connecticut Humanities Council.
Dewey Hall is located on Route 7, on the Sheffield Green. Programs by the Sheffield Historical Society, sponsored by Dewey Hall, are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For further information, call (413) 229 – 2694.