Elizabeth Kelly – “Killed” by Witch Goody Ayres
While the infamous Salem Witch Trials of 1692 often dominate historical narratives of early American witchcraft accusations, the reality is that the first significant witch hunts in the American colonies unfolded decades earlier, not in Salem, Massachusetts, but in Connecticut. Beginning in 1647 and continuing intermittently until 1697, a wave of suspicion and fear gripped the region, culminating in the Hartford Witch Panic of 1662. This period of intense paranoia was ignited by the tragic death of eight-year-old Elizabeth Kelly, a young girl whose untimely demise was attributed by her distraught parents to the alleged dark magic of their neighbor, Goody Ayres.
The narrative surrounding the death of Elizabeth Kelly is steeped in the anxieties and superstitions of the 17th-century Puritan world. In the spring of 1662, the small community of Hartford was a tightly knit society governed by strict religious beliefs and a deep-seated fear of the unknown. Into this environment stepped the tragedy of a young life cut short, and the desperate search for answers led to accusations of witchcraft, forever altering the lives of those involved.
The events leading up to the death of Elizabeth Kelly began innocently enough. After spending time with Goodwife Ayres, a neighbor, Elizabeth fell ill. What initially appeared to be a common ailment soon escalated into a terrifying ordeal. The young girl suffered for five days, plagued by excruciating stomach pains and unsettling hallucinations. As her condition worsened, Elizabeth began to cry out, claiming that Goodwife Ayres was tormenting her, choking her, pinching her, and threatening to break her bowels. These delirious pronouncements, born from fever and pain, were seized upon by her parents as evidence of malevolent witchcraft.
Grief-stricken and desperate for an explanation for their daughter’s suffering, Elizabeth’s parents, John and Bethia Kelly, interpreted her illness as a sign of demonic influence. They became convinced that Goody Ayres had cast a spell on Elizabeth Kelly, using black magic to strangle and torture their child. Their anguish fueled their suspicions, leading them to publicly accuse Ayres of witchcraft, setting in motion a chain of events that would have profound consequences.
The accusations against Goody Ayres quickly spread throughout Hartford, amplified by existing rumors and prejudices. The community, already primed by religious fervor and a fear of the supernatural, readily embraced the notion that Ayres was a witch. Stories circulated that Ayres had boasted of encounters with the devil, further solidifying her image as a dangerous and malevolent figure in the eyes of her neighbors. The atmosphere of fear and suspicion intensified, creating a climate ripe for persecution. The death of Elizabeth Kelly was the catalyst.
Following Elizabeth’s death on March 23, 1662, her parents formally brought their accusations against Ayres to the attention of the local authorities. An inquest was convened, and Ayres was summoned to the Kelly home, where Elizabeth’s body lay in state. During the examination of the corpse, the sleeves of Elizabeth’s gown were rolled up, revealing what appeared to be bruises on her arms and shoulders. To the assembled onlookers, this was damning evidence of Ayres’s guilt. The atmosphere grew even more charged when a red spot reportedly appeared on Elizabeth’s cheek, seemingly in response to Ayres’s presence. These events were interpreted as supernatural signs, solidifying the belief that Ayres was responsible for the young girl’s death.
In response to the growing suspicion, the local magistrates turned to Dr. Bray Rossiter, a physician from Guilford, Connecticut, to conduct what is believed to be one of the first autopsies performed in the American colonies. Rossiter, assisted by schoolmaster William Pitkin and witnessed by at least six others, examined Elizabeth’s body several days after her death. His findings, while not explicitly stating that Goody Ayres was a witch, fueled the growing panic. Rossiter’s report noted that Elizabeth’s body was unusually pliable, with extensive bruising, a throat filled with blood, and a constricted gullet. He concluded that Elizabeth had not died of natural causes but rather from "preternatural causes," a term that Hartford residents readily interpreted as evidence of witchcraft.
Faced with the overwhelming accusations and the growing hysteria, Goody Ayres and her husband, William, made the fateful decision to flee Hartford. Abandoning their eight-year-old son and all their possessions, they disappeared, likely seeking refuge in New York or Rhode Island, colonies that did not have extradition treaties with Connecticut. Their flight was widely seen as an admission of guilt, further cementing the belief in their culpability in the death of Elizabeth Kelly.
The repercussions of Elizabeth Kelly’s death and the subsequent accusations against Goody Ayres were far-reaching. The Hartford Witch Panic escalated in the following months, leading to the accusations of ten more individuals and the execution of four. The tragedy of Elizabeth Kelly served as a potent reminder of the dangers of unchecked fear and the devastating consequences of superstition.
Years later, a re-examination of Dr. Rossiter’s autopsy notes by medical professionals offered a more rational explanation for his findings. In 1925, Dr. Walter R. Steiner reviewed the autopsy report and concluded that Rossiter had likely mistaken the signs of beginning decomposition for supernatural phenomena. The bruising, the pliability of the body, and the other symptoms described in the report are consistent with the natural processes that occur after death, particularly in the absence of modern embalming techniques. This later analysis suggests that the tragedy of Elizabeth Kelly was not the result of witchcraft but rather a misinterpretation of natural processes fueled by fear and superstition.
Beyond the immediate events surrounding Elizabeth’s death, the story also provides a glimpse into the lives of the individuals involved. Elizabeth Kelly was the daughter of John and Bethia Kelly. Bethia was born to Samuel Wakeman and his wife Elizabeth in about 1634 in Massachusetts Bay Colony. Her parents had immigrated to the United States during the Puritan Great Migration in 1631. After Elizabeth’s death and the death of John Kelly, Bethia remarried to David Phillips in 1665. Goody Ayres, originally from London, was described as a friend to other women accused of witchcraft, including Elizabeth Seager and Rebecca Greensmith, both of whom faced similar accusations.
The case of Elizabeth Kelly and Goody Ayres stands as a stark reminder of the dangers of mass hysteria and the fragility of justice in the face of fear. It highlights the importance of critical thinking, scientific inquiry, and the need to challenge deeply held beliefs in the pursuit of truth. While the Salem Witch Trials may be more widely known, the events in Hartford serve as a crucial chapter in the history of early American witchcraft accusations, underscoring the devastating consequences of unchecked superstition and the enduring power of fear.