Riverbend Journal

Five members of the Cogswell family (including my 9th great, 10th great and 11th great grandfathers) were among the twenty prominent people who signed the petition drawn up by the Rev. John Wise on behalf of Goodwife Proctor, who stood accused of witchcraft. Mary Warren alleged that she had been threatened and abused by Goodwife proctor, and that she had seen apparitions of people who had long since been murdered by the wife of John Proctor. This evidence prevailed and the good woman was sentenced to death. She was burned at the stake and her husband John hung from the gallows as a wizard. The stories of witchcraft in old Salem, Massachusetts have been around for many years. The suffering and injustice that these people were put through has been made into movies and debated quite a bit. Thiry-one of the parishioners of Chebacco plus their minister John Wise signed the petition "judging them innocent of any crimes or evill" which John Proctor and his wife had been accused. Th...

The following is an account of my twelfth great grandfather's journey to the shores of America back in 1635. The Angel Gabriel and the Great Storm of 1635 August of 1635 had been a fair one for the small settlements, which were striving to establish themselves in New England. In the wheel of the year, haying would have just concluded, with the settlers mowing, drying, gathering and storing the hay for the upcoming winter during the hottest, most unforgiving part of summer. Crops would be nearing their peak, nearly ready for the September harvest time. However, for "...the whole of the second week of August the wind had blown from the direction of south-southwest with considerable force..." Suddenly, about midnight on 14 August, the wind changed to the dangerous direction of northeast and soon blew to hurricane strength. The winds blasted the crops in the fields and the small houses of the English settlers. On the shoreline, the winds and storm surge took the waters to ...