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A Witch Hunt in NH -- Part I

© Christina Coruth

By today’s standards, Eunice(Goody)Cole might be viewed as a feisty, perhaps cantankerous, old woman. She spoke her mind, demanded what she felt was her due, and gave as good as she got in any dispute. People today might even be tempted to call her an old witch. Unfortunately for Goody, she was called an old witch and that was serious business during the time she lived in 17th century Colonial America.

Goody, was not the only woman in New Hampshire accused of witchcraft, however, she was the only woman convicted of the charge. At the time, New Hampshire was a part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Goody’s trial for witchcraft occurred about 20 years before the infamous witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts that resulted in death sentences for 20 men and women.

Goody and her husband, William Cole, traveled to the Massachusetts Bay Colony from London. There are no records to indicate they had any children. William was 63 years old. Goody’s age is not known. They lived in Massachusetts then moved to New Hampshire, first to Exeter, and eventually settled in Hampton. Despite owning a small farm, they were very poor.

The Coles never had any problems with the law until they moved to Hampton. At first there were minor squabbles with neighbors. At one point the sheriff went to their home to take custody of some pigs, which a neighbor claimed to own. There was an altercation between the Coles and the sheriff. Despite an allegation that both Goody and William bit the sheriff, the incident passed without anyone going to jail. At other times, Goody was accused of making “libelous and slanderous” statements against her neighbors. Nothing came of these incidents, except that the Coles, and especially Goody, became pariahs in Hampton.

Goody’s situation took a serious turn in 1656 when she was accused of being a witch. Goodwife Marstan and Susanna Palmer testified that she told them there was a witch in town and that she knew his identity. Furthermore, the two women testified that Goody also told them she had seen a man turn into an ape, then she cursed Goodwife Marstan’s child claiming that it was an ape. Another neighbor, Thomas Philbrick, testified that Goody cursed his calves, declaring that if they grazed on her land, the grass would poison them. According to the neighbor, both calves died, one that night and the other the following day.

Goody was found guilty. Her sentence included a public flogging, as well as a term in jail in Boston. During that time, William found it difficult to keep up the farm by himself. He petitioned the court for his wife’s release on the grounds that he was an old man who needed her care. He was too poor to hire any help and the town was providing assistance. Yet, as he informed the court, there was no way for the town to recoup its expenses. Even his farm had been transferred to Goody, which left no source of a lien. Goody also petitioned the court for release, based on her own advanced age and ill health. She promised to behave. The court granted neither petition, but did release her about a year later.

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