Item 35: Booklet by Henry W. Shoemaker et al., titled “The Origins and Language of Central Pennsylvania Witchcraft”, 1927 April 8
Item — Box: 18, Folder: 8
Dates
- Created: 1927 April 8
Creator
- Shoemaker, Henry W., 1880-1958 (Person)
Disclaimer for Name and Subject Authorities
Some of the name and subject authority tags have been assigned by educated guessing and estimation of persons and subjects by region, age, profession, and familial relationships. They have been thoroughly researched by using primary and secondary sources available digitally, and named in each description, or in some cases linked directly to the person tag.
Access:
All series and subseries within this collection are open for research, with the exception of a few files within the Academia series that are restricted. The Academia series contains financial and sensitive institutional records from Wilkes College, and financial report records from Princeton University that will remain restricted for 80 years upon creation.
Extent
1 items
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Type of Material:
Booklet
Condition Note:
Okay.
Measurements:
8 ⅝ in. x 5 ½ in. (closed); 11 in. x 8 ⅝ in. (open)
Title:
The Origins and Language of Central Pennsylvania Witchcraft
Description:
This is a speech given by Henry W. Shoemaker to the Women’s Study Club. Shoemaker was a famous 20th century conservationist and folklorist. He co-founded the Pennsylvania Folklore Society and then was later the first state folklorist. The first half is a speech about witches in York and Clinton County, Pa. The second half is about children telling stories they’ve collected about witches.The speech discusses the speaker’s childhood experiences with witch lore in Clinton County. It uses short stories about problems emerging and a witch coming to resolve, or a witch does something and faces punishment for it. This booklet tells of many accounts of witchcraft and superstitions that were seen through Colonial Pennsylvania. Shoemaker interviewed several older residents from Western Pa. about the “witches” they heard about growing up. These tales range from a witch who stopped butter from churning to an old woman who is actually a werewolf.It also tells the story of an outlaw named Cyrus Etlinger, who a graveyard haunting wolf was after him after he died. The origin of the stories come from the Pennsylvania Dutch culture. Shoemaker also referenced Henry Meyer, a poet, linguist, Superintendent of Centre County. Meyer collected many “witch books” that Shoemaker uses for his research. Also included in this publication is a newspaper article on a York, Pennsylvanian woman accused of witchcraft in 1926. The second part of this booklet are interviews given by students of Mrs. Maries Chatham Philips class from Clinton County, Pa. The students interviewed elderly residents of their neighborhood in April, 1927. Mildred C. Thomas, Jean Wagner, Rae Philips, Edith Miller, Frances McCloskey, Rhea Wagner, and Edith Rall are the schoolchildren who wrote down the witch tales.
Creator
- Shoemaker, Henry W., 1880-1958 (Person)
Repository Details
Part of the Wilkes University Archives Repository
Contact:
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu