Today's Show
Today I'm talking to Beth Caruso Author of the historical novel One of Windsor – The Untold Story of America's First Witch Hanging.
It's a tragic story of a young woman who comes over from England as an indentured servant and settles in the religiously strict Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635.
She adapts to the new world, is an active participant in her community, and then is hung after being accused of practicing witchcraft by her friends and neighbors.
Her name is Alice Young, and she is victim number one in the colonies. Unfortunately, she wasn't the last. The witch trials continued for another 30 years here in Connecticut and another 50 in the greater Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Alice's story is relevant today – most of the debated issues in her time are still being discussed today, some 373 years later.
Issues like pandemics, falsely imprisoning people, the inhumane treatment of minorities. Bullying, character assassination, and acts of genocide. It appears history has taught us little!
And Yes, we talk about herbs, medicine of the day, healers, doctors, and the definition of a witch in the 1600s, among other topics. Its a great interview!
Beth M. Caruso
Author Beth M. Caruso grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio and spent her childhood writing puppet shows and witches’ cookbooks. She studied French Literature and Hispanic Studies, earning a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Cincinnati. She later obtained Masters degrees in Nursing and Public Health and served diverse communities.
Aside from writing, Beth’s interests include travel, and gardening. Her latest passion is to discover and convey important stories of women in history. One of Windsor: The Untold Story of America’s First Witch Hanging was her debut novel in 2015. She released her second novel, The Salty Rose: Alchemists, Witches & A Tapper In New Amsterdam, in September of 2019. It takes place in colonial New York and New England. Beth is a Connecticut resident.
Personal Update
Interview
Alice's Medicinal Garden
If you're curious about what a garden looked like in the 1600s, Beth sent me a list of plants grown in Alice's time. Using historical records, I put together a historically accurate garden plan that might have been something Alice and her family built.
It's simple because that's how the Puritans lived. Having fancy flower beds or garden ornaments like many have today was frowned upon and could be considered blasphemy and punishable by the church.
Many of the colonists were not gardeners or farmers – so a lot of the gardening was trial and error – or in their case, God's blessing or devils curse depending on how successful their garden was that year.
Those who dared to make friends with the First People of America did so at considerable personal risk. It was illegal to even speak to the Native Americans.
However, those who did, learned many useful skills, such as native medicinal plants, how to grow certain crops in the New England rocky soil, or modify their gardening techniques, so the plants survived.
The garden plan is free to download, just click on the link below. It includes the house and garden and a list of plants – some are perfect for small spaces or pots on a patio.
Although I don't recommend growing skunk cabbage in your garden. If not processed properly it can cause nausea and vomiting. It's best to leave them in the bogs for the critters.
Alice had two types of herbs – European and Native plants.
Note: Some of these plants can be toxic and could cause serious illness if not processed properly. If you are interested in growing a medicinal garden, please contact me for assistance or ask someone in your local area who is a plant expert such as an herbalist.
European Herbs:
Parsley
Sorrel
Marigold
Chervil
Winter Savory
Summer Savory
Thyme
Sage
Spearmint
Southernwood
Rosemary
Lavender
Coriander
Horehound
Licorice
Anise
Plantain
Heal-All
Yarrow
Adder’s Tongue
Tansy
Rue
Native Herbal Plants:
Elecampane
Coltsfoot
Yarrow
Elderberry
Whortleberries
Black Cohosh
Blue Cohosh
Wild cherry bark
“Kinnikinnik”-Bearberry
“Indian Sage”-Boneset
White Pine, pine turpentine
Skunk Cabbage
“Red Puccoon”-Bloodroot
“Yellow Puccoon”-Goldenseal
“Touch-me-not”-Jewelweed
Wild Geranium
Hemlock
Books
One of Windsor: The Untold Story of America's First Witch Hanging – Beth M. Caruso
Salty Rose: Alchemists, Witches & A Tapper In New Amsterdam, Beth M. Caruso
Culpepper'a Complete Herbal: Over 400 herbs and their uses, Nicolas Culpepper
Green Pharmacy: The History and Evolution of Western Herbal Medicine, Barbara Griggs
Reference and Books Section:
Books:
New England Rarities Discovered in Birds, Beasts, Fishes, Serpents, and Plants of that country, John Joslin – Public Domain pdf
Green Pharmacy: The History and Evolution of Western Herbal Medicine. Barbara Griggs
Beth Caruso's Books:
One of Windsor: The Untold Story of America's First Witch Hanging. Beth M. Caruso
The Salty Rose: Alchemists, Witches & A Tapper In New Amsterdam. Beth M. Caruso
Beth's Website: oneofwindsor.com
Beth's Email: oneofwindsor@yahoo.com.
Beth's Facebook Page: One of Windsor
Tony Griego and Beth Caruso Facebook Page – CT Witch Memorial
Historial Reference Links:
Epidemics in US History: https://ashp.cuny.edu/epidemics-us-history
Massachusetts Bay Colony: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Bay_Colony#:~:text=The%20Massachusetts%20Bay%20Colony%20(more,the%20Province%20of%20Massachusetts%20Bay
Connecticut State Library – Colonial Witch Craft Trials Research Guide pdf: https://livingandlovinherbs.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Research_Guide_to_Colonial_Witchcraft_Trial_Materials.pdf
CT State Library Historical Archives https://archive.org/details/witchcraftdelusi00tayluoft/page/xii/mode/2up
History of the Puritans: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puritans
Health in the 17th Century – Royal Museums Greenwich England: https://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/explore/health-17th-century
History of Herbalism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_herbalism
Hippocrates and the Theory of the Four Humors: https://exploringyourmind.com/hippocrates-theory-four-humors/#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20theory%20of,with%20cold%20and%20dry%20properties.
Medicine in Colonial North America: https://colonialnorthamerica.library.harvard.edu/spotlight/cna/feature/medicine-in-colonial-north-america
The Most Dangerous Epidemics in U.S. History: https://www.healthline.com/health/worst-disease-outbreaks-history#16
20 of The Worst Epidemics and Pandemics in History Article March 20, 2020: https://www.livescience.com/worst-epidemics-and-pandemics-in-history.html
Show's Sponsor Info:
Farm to Bath| Our philosophy is to live a locally focused naturally beautiful life, a lifestyle choice that is infused into the products we make. The ingredients are locally grown and/or acquired and are as basic and pure as nature itself. Each bar is full of fragrant aromatics that provide a rich moisturizing lather with no artificial colors or preservatives added – naturally beautiful!
My Garden Journal: A How To Garden Book For Kids| Gardening is a learned skill – everyone has to start somewhere, and a journal provides the best way to improve your gardening skills to ensure more successes and fewer failures.
The intent of this journal is to simultaneously teach basic gardening techniques while providing a place to record your journey with important information about the “how, when, and where” to grow food and flowers.
There are suggestions on themed gardens such as “A Harry Potter Garden”, “A Young Chef's Garden”, or a “Monarch Butterfly Superhero Garden” for budding Naturalists and places to either sketch or photograph your plants to remember their appearance for the next growing season.
You'll be amazed at how much you will learn by journaling about your garden!
Music
A special thank you to Gene Tullio for writing and producing this music. He has given me special permission to use this song for the show.
Gene's music can be downloaded from Amazon, iTunes, and Spotify. For more information please contact him at dreamshipmusic@gmail.com
Album: The Dreamship| The Forge Of Life| Copyright 2018
Social Media Links
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Thompson Street Farm LLC: https://thompsonstreetfarm.com/
Brenda J. Sullivan Books: https://brendajsullivanbooks.com/