Massachusetts descendants and historians seek justice for those accused in witch trials

In 1648, Margaret Jones, a midwife, became the first person in Massachusetts — the second in New England — to be executed for witchcraft, decades before the infamous Salem witch trials. Nearly four centuries later, the state and region are still working to come to grips with the scope of its witch trial legacy.

The Massachusetts Witch-Hunt Justice Project, made up of history buffs and descendants, is hoping to persuade the state to take a fuller reckoning of its early history, according to Josh Hutchinson, the group's leader. Hundreds of individuals were accused of witchcraft in what would become the Commonwealth of Massachusetts between 1638 and 1693. Most escaped execution.

The witch justice group helped successfully spearhead a similar effort in Connecticut, home of the first person executed for witchcraft in the American colonies in 1647 -- Alse Young. The last witchcraft trial in Connecticut happened in 1697 and ended with the charges being dismissed.

That effort began almost immediately when Samuel Sewall, a judge in the 1692-1693 Salem witch trials, issued a public confession in a Boston church five years later, taking 'the blame and shame of' the trials and asking for forgiveness. In 1711, colonial leaders passed a bill clearing the names of some convicted in Salem.

In Pownal, Vermont, a town that borders Massachusetts and New York, a dedication ceremony was held last month for a historical marker recognizing the survivor of Vermont’s only recorded witch trial. Widow Krieger was said to have escaped drowning in the Hoosic River when tried as a witch in 1785, according to the Legends and Lore marker. Accusers believed witches floated but Krieger sank and was saved, the marker states. The Sept.

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