A tree with hammock chairs overlooks the small hill where Rebecca Fowler was hanged in 1685 on the present-day campus center lawn of St. Mary’s College of Maryland. St. Mary's, MD. 2019
Echoes of the Witch
2019 Present-day America
In collaboration with visual artist Margaux Crump, Echoes of the Witch is a photographic documentary project exploring cultural memory, power, and the land as they manifest through the history of American witch executions.
Throughout 2019, we travelled around present-day America to document the locations where records indicate fifty-four individuals were accused of witchcraft and executed by the state. In each location, this project investigates how the land and the people in these sites have honored, altered, hidden, perverted, or neglected the memories of these persecutions. The images featured below comprise a small edit of a much larger body of work.
This project operates on the premise that places hold memory, and that cultural memory can be deeply political. What we choose to remember—and how—has a profound impact on how we understand ourselves and our world. The goal of this work is to help bring these memories back into awareness in order to encourage healing, (un)learning and collective evolution.
To learn more about the full project,
visit the official Echoes of the Witch website
or download the project PDF
Throughout 2019, we travelled around present-day America to document the locations where records indicate fifty-four individuals were accused of witchcraft and executed by the state. In each location, this project investigates how the land and the people in these sites have honored, altered, hidden, perverted, or neglected the memories of these persecutions. The images featured below comprise a small edit of a much larger body of work.
This project operates on the premise that places hold memory, and that cultural memory can be deeply political. What we choose to remember—and how—has a profound impact on how we understand ourselves and our world. The goal of this work is to help bring these memories back into awareness in order to encourage healing, (un)learning and collective evolution.
To learn more about the full project,
visit the official Echoes of the Witch website
or download the project PDF
Two dumpsters behind a gas station at the old Gallows Brook execution site where Goody Bassett was hanged in 1651. The brook disappeared in 1848 and is now buried beneath a railroad track. Stratford, CT. 2019
An overgrown bush on the grounds of the abandoned Westbrook Village. The exact location of the gallows where Alse Young (1647), Mary Johnson (1648), Joan & John Carrington (1651), Lydia Gilbert (1654), Mary Barnes (1663), Nathanial & Rebecca Greensmith (1663), and Mary Sanford (1662) were hanged is unknown. This is one of four possible execution sites. Hartford, CT. 2019
Researchers at the Fairfield Museum and History Center examine old town homestead maps of the families involved in the trial and execution of Goody Knapp in 1653. Fairfield, CT. 2019
The current church at Abiquiu stands on the site of the original Spanish mission church. This was the epicenter of the decade long Abiquiu witchcraft outbreak. Abiquiu, NM. 2019
Interior of Goody Bassett’s Ice Cream shop. Years after opening the parlor, the shop owner learned that the remains of Gallows Brook—where Goody Bassett was executed in 1651—runs directly beneath the building. Stratford, CT. 2019
A community garden on what was formerly known as Try’s Field, where Goodwife Knapp was hanged in 1653. Her memorial is dedicated here as of August 2019. Fairfield, CT. 2019
The corner of Albany Ave. and Vine St. in Hartford’s North End. The exact location of the gallows where Alse Young (1647), Mary Johnson (1648), Joan & John Carrington (1651), Lydia Gilbert (1654), Mary Barnes (1663), Nathanial & Rebecca Greensmith (1663), and Mary Sanford (1662) is unknown. This is one of four possible execution sites. Hartford, CT. 2019
A visitor to the Jonathan Corwin House looks over replicas of witch trial documents. Also known as The Witch House, this was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin who was one of the magistrates presiding over the Salem Witch Trials. Salem, MA. 2019
An original apotropaic mark carved into the stairway of the Jonathan Corwin House. Marks like this were understood as an acceptable form of magic intended to protect the home from witches. Salem, MA. 2019
Two white roses are left atop memorial bricks inscribed for Alse Young (1647) and Lydia Gilbert (1654) at the north end of Windsor’s town green. Windsor, CT. 2019
A placard designates a meeting room in the Windsor City Hall building. This is one of several small overtures acknowledging the executions of Alse Young (1647) and Lydia Gilbert (1654), who were posthumously pardoned by Windsor’s Town Council in 2017—largely due to the efforts of local activists. Windsor, CT. 2019
Mary Lee was found guilty of witchcraft and hanged aboard the Charity of London in 1654 somewhere en route between England and the Province of Maryland. In 1658, Elizabeth Richardson and Katherine Grady were also accused and hanged for witchcraft aboard similar vessels respectively bound for present-day Maryland and Virginia. Atlantic Ocean. 2019
A man walks down the aisle to pray at The Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston, which sits atop the location of the former Boston Neck Gallows—one of three possible execution sites where Ann Glover (1688), Margaret Jones (1648), Alice Lake (1650), Mrs. Kendall (1651), and Ann Hibbins (1656) were hanged. Boston, MA. 2019
Five members of the History Alive theater company alternate playing the role of Bridget Bishop during interactive productions of her historic arraignment, in which she stands accused of witchcraft. In these productions of “Cry Innocent: The People vs. Bridget Bishop”, the audience participates by cross examining witnesses, reviewing historical evidence, and ultimately deciding whether she should be released or stand trial. Today, Bridget's acquittal rate hovers around 50%, with results often correlating with the weather, the time of day (e.g. before or after lunch), and which member of the company plays the character of Bridget Bishop. Salem, MA. 2019
Ticket booth advertises tourist attractions next to the Old Burying Point Cemetery and the Salem Witch Trials Memorial. Salem, MA. 2019
A life-size diorama in The Witch History Museum imagines the apocryphal scene of young women dancing in the woods, where they were thought to commune with the Devil (pictured in the background). Salem, MA. 2019
After leading the Haunted Happenings parade, the Honor Guard of the Salem Police Department furl their flags, which feature their departmental crest of a flying witch silhouetted against a crescent moon. Salem, MA. 2019
Onlookers regard the facade of The Salem Witch Museum. Salem, MA. 2019
A personalized card left by a descendant of Susannah Martin (hanged in 1692) at the Salem Witch Trials Memorial reads: "Proudly remembered by your eighth great-granddaughter." Salem, MA. 2019