Elizabeth Colson Facts
Known for: accused in the 1692 Salem witch trials
Age at time of Salem witch trials: about 17
Also known as: Elizabeth Collson, Elizabeth Coulson, Elisabeth Colson
Family, Background: granddaughter of accused witch Lydia Dustin; Elizabeth's widowed mother Mary Colson and Mary's sister Sarah Dustin were also arrested and examined for witchcraft
Elizabeth Colson and the Salem Witch Trials
Elizabeth Colson of Reading (Redding), was accused by spectral evidence; her specter supposedly visited "Mary Walcott Mercy Lewis and others," according to the May 14 arrest warrant signed by John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin. She was accused by Malden resident Mary Swayne Marshall and charged with witchcraft against Susannah Sheldon. But a May 16 statement by Redding constable John Parker stated that Elizabeth Colson had escaped and was likely in Boston preparing to leave the country. Two more warrants were issued, the last on September 10; sources disagree as to whether she was ever captured.
By the time Elizabeth Colson was accused, her grandmother Lydia Dustin had already been accused and arrested, as had Lydia's daughter and Elizabeth's aunt, Sarah Dustin. Later, Mary Colson -- who was Lydia Dustin's daughter and Elizabeth's widowed mother -- was arrested and examined, but was not indicted. Lydia Dustin died in custody in March; she had been acquitted by a court in January or February but had not yet paid jail fees.
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