16 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE 
THE WITCH OF WENHAM 
By Mary Taylor Falt 
PART I 
Fascinating and dramatie poetic history is inter- 
woven about the North Shore, particularly about 
Danvers, Salem and Wenham, through Whittier’s poem, 
“Phe Witeh of Wenham.’’ It immortalizes the old 
Prince house at Danvers, also Wenham, Wenham Lake 
and the present new and flourishing summer locality 
of the North Shore, Beaver Dam. 
This house, about whose past Whittier found such 
romance worthy of his muse, is said to have confined 
Danvers. In the morning, when the constable came to 
remove the witch to Salem for trial, she was missing. 
She had been confined behind bolted doors. Her es- 
eape was doubtless aided by friends, but at the time 
it was attributed to ‘‘Satanic interference.”’ 
The dramatic personnae, who acted their immortal 
parts in this legendary drama of historical North Shore 
localities, were Andrew, the son; his mother, the 
golden-haired, blue-eyed witch of Wenham, who 
‘‘tended her mother sick and blind, supplied her every 
want, whose voice was glad with holy songs, her lps 
sweet with prayer.’? Andrew loved this beautiful 
eolden-haired girl of Wenham and _asserted——‘{o 
where you will in ten miles round is none more good 
and fair.’’ 
dramatic poem. 
The love Andrew professed for the Wenham maid 
engendered a deep hate for her in his mother. To- 
vether with many other prejudiced women, they ac- 
eused the young girl of that colonial sorcery known as 
witch eraft. Their colonial pastor was likewise preju- 
diced and said: ‘‘The witch shall perish in her sins.”’ 
Ann Putnam, traditionally famous as a star witness 
in colonial witchcraft trials, stated that she heard her 
‘chanting the Hebrew refrain’’ and ‘‘making water 
to flow amain around a dried-up water well, as bare- 
armed, loose-haired at full moon she wove her spell.’’ 
Ann was followed by other women of Wenham, who 
said, she ‘‘made buttereups take wing and turn to 
vellow-birds. Meek as she sits in meeting-time, the 
ecdly minister noted the spell that doth compel the 
young men’s eyes to her. The mole on her chin was 
Satan’s sign and her lips were stained with unblest 
wine.’’ ere ae 
At the last dramatic scene between Andrew and 
his mother, he eried, ‘‘Nay mother, hold thy cruel 
tongue God knows he never made a whiter soul than 
hers hy Wenham side,’’ but the mother through her 
strong antipathy criticised her thus: ‘‘The wickedest 
witch in Salem jail is to that girl a saint. Son Andrew, 
for the love of God and of thy mother stay.’’ The 
mother’s tears could not stay Andrew. He mounted his 
horse and rode away to Wenham to see the accused 
maiden he loved and for whose fate he had grim fore- 
bodings. 
The daughter of Marshal Herrick, the Salem con- 
stable, who knew the accused young girl maintained 
her innocence eryinge: ‘‘They lie, they lie my father. 
dear! 
erystal pure, as Wenham waters be.”’ 
Despite her plea Marshal Herrick rode to Wenham 
Andrew’s wooing of the girl developed a- 
No foul old witch is she, but sweet and good and _,, territory. 
i 
je 
to arrest the accused young girl. She is pictured in 
the poem near the trees of Wenham Lake shaping her 
bridal dress from one of her mother’s and awaiting 
Andrew’s coming. A girl beautiful, with tender mouth 
and dreaming eyes, yellow hair blowing in the breeze, 
happy in her youth and love. Suddenly writ in hand 
the marshal rode toward her down ‘‘ Alford Hill’’ 
hard of face. He stopped, approached her and grasped 
her hands:—‘‘Come with me to Salem town for so the 
law commands!’’ Her piteous demands to be released 
were of no avail. She was carried to the old Danvers 
house, put in the bolted garret for safe-keeping to be 
called for trial. 
It was at that point her lover proved her rescuer. 
Learning of her pending fate and whereabouts, he 
came to the house in the night. Under the garret win- 
dow he whistled a familiar love ditty. She forced the 
scuttle of the old garret back. He whispered: ‘‘Slide 
down the roof to me so softly none may hear.’’ She 
obeyed and dropped into his outstretched arms. He 
shared with her his saddle on the waiting horse. Noise- 
lessly they rode away. 
When they reached the open way, he gave free 
rein. Wildly they rode through the murky midnight — 
through Ipswich. At high noon the next day they 
were being ferried across the Merrimac by an old 
ferryman, who ‘‘many times let his oars lie idle’’ to 
gaze at the beautiful young woman. When they left 
the ferry his last farewell was: ‘‘God keep her from 
the evil eye and harm of witch.’’ She whispered to her 
lover: ‘‘He does not know a little witch am I,’’ and 
laughed for all her fears were passed. 
Andrew rode all the next day until sundown. A 
friendly door in ‘‘Berwick town’’ opened to them. 
The Quakers living there who had suffered from the 
persecutions to their sect opened hearth and heart to 
them. They dwelt there until ‘‘off its breast the land 
threw the haunting horror of witcheraft’’ through 
shame and pity and ‘‘spectres ceased to roam.’’ ‘‘And 
onee more by Beaver Dam’’ the larks sang and the 
violets grew. No more chains were forged and jail- 
bolts backward fell. Youth and age were once more 
free from the ‘‘hell’’ of witcheraft. 
PART II 
To end this legendary tale of witcheraft without 
appending some information regarding this peculiar 
period in our local colonial history would not make 
this article serve its instructive mission. 
The Puritans were dissenters from the ‘‘corrup- 
tions of the church of England.’’ In the new world 
cven ‘‘idle drones,’’ ‘‘swearers’’ and the intemperate 
were lawbreakers and were summarily dealt with. But 
despite this strenuous religious and law-abiding period 
in Colonial history, greater corruptions resulted. 
In 1692 Salem was composed of all the present 
towns of Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Wen- 
ham, Manchester and parts of Topsfield and Middle- 
town so that the term ‘‘Salem Witch”? covers a wide 
From 1632-1692 there was a marked change in the 
characteristics and mental acumen of the Salem set- 
