Folk Tales of the Pennsylvania Dutch by William Woys Weaver

Posted by on Jul 25, 2023 in | Comments Off on Folk Tales of the Pennsylvania Dutch by William Woys Weaver Folk Tales of the Pennsylvania Dutch Stories of Witchcraft, Magic, and the Supernatural by William Woys Weaver Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center, 200 pp., hardcover $35 The Pennsylvania Dutch hold a rich tradition of oral storytelling, yet little scholarship to date focused on the supernatural tales of this community. William Woys Weaver’s latest book, the 10th volume of the...
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Searching for Mountain Mary: The Life and Legend of an Early Pennsylvania Saint

Posted by on Nov 30, 2021 in | Comments Off on Searching for Mountain Mary: The Life and Legend of an Early Pennsylvania Saint “There, underneath this mountain stone, Lies Mary Young, who lived alone, High on the lofty mountainside, Beloved and honored till she died.” —Ralph Bigony, 1846   Enshrined in works of art and immortalized in poetry, the life and deeds of Mountain Mary, or Anna Maria Jung (1744–1819), has become one of the preeminent legends of early southeastern Pennsylvania, embodying the spirit of the...
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The Witch Trial of Pennsylvania

Posted by on Dec 24, 2020 in | Comments Off on The Witch Trial of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania’s founder and original proprietor William Penn (1644–1718) was not only a great lawgiver but also a clever arbiter of disputes between residents of his commonwealth. His thoughtful handling of a witch trial on December 27, 1683, at a Provincial Council meeting in Philadelphia helped to prevent a crisis in Pennsylvania like the hysteria that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts, only...
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