<
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/jul/26/women-witchcraft-financial-independence>
"When Katherine Harrison’s husband passed away, she became the wealthiest woman
in Wethersfield, Connecticut. Rather than wallow in her new status as a young
widow she decided to run the farm she’d inherited on her own. She took up
ranching and a slew of other hobbies including brewing ale, spinning yarn and
beekeeping. She traded honey and beeswax for candles. She was by all accounts,
headstrong, outspoken and clever.
In many corners of the internet, Harrison’s interests are having a moment.
Craft brewers have been spruiking classic ales for years, urban beekeeping is
surging in popularity, and people are looking to textile-based crafts as ways
to practise mindfulness.
But Harrison was a single woman and mother of three daughters who, in a notable
contrast to today’s tradwives, felt she did not need a man. Her independence,
wealth – and the fact that she practised astrology – make her hobbies seem less
like those of a good wife and more like those of a good witch.
Unfortunately, Harrison lived in the 17th century when fear and paranoia
dominated the New England colonies. It was a time when a woman’s refusal to
conform to puritanical, patriarchal norms made her vulnerable to accusations of
witchcraft. In 1668, more than two decades before the Salem witch trials kicked
off 200km north, Harrison was arrested and put on trial for witchcraft."
Via Kenny Chaffin.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
