Richmond Haunts long-form
Witch Tales, Volume 2: Accusations, Graves and American Lore
Episode notes
About this episode
| Stories about witchcraft often reveal more about social fear, religious conflict and community memory than they do about supernatural power. Volume 2 approaches its subjects as history and folklore, examining how accusations and grave legends continued long after the people involved had died.
The episode begins with Old World witchcraft and the grave of Meg Shelton, remembered as the Fylde Hag, in Woodplumpton, England. It then visits the Torryburn witch grave in Scotland before crossing to the United States for the White Witch of York Harbor, the Aurora witch grave, the Chesterville Witch, Liberty Hill and St. Omer cemetery legends, the Old City Cemetery in Tallahassee and the 1648 execution of Margaret Jones near Boston. The cases differ widely in date, evidence and local tradition. The episode keeps documented accusations and executions distinct from later cemetery lore, avoiding the assumption that those labeled witches possessed supernatural powers while preserving the stories communities continued to tell. |