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historyarch · 1637 days ago · link · · parent · post: Grace Sherwood, the Witch of Pungo, and witchcraft trials inEurope and Early America
For Halloween I thought I would offer a true witch story, well at least partially true. I wrote an article about Grace Sherwood, the "Witch of Pungo." In 1706, she became the only person to be ducked (submerged in water) in Virginia history as part of a witchcraft trial. Since then, layers of folklore have obscured what actually happened. So many inaccuracies have arisen that in 2006, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine exonerated Sherwood of a witchcraft conviction-- a conviction that may never have occurred. Read more about the history of witchcraft in Europe, New England and Virginia and what actually happened in 1706.