Educational Websites
THE GOODY PARSONS WITCHCRAFT CASE
An educational website with primary source documents about the 17th century witchcraft case of Mary Bliss Parsons.
Mary Bliss Parsons (circa 1628-1711/12) of Northampton was the subject of accusations and charges of witchcraft resulting in at least two legal trials. In 1656, her husband sued a neighboring family for slander to quell rumors of witchcraft. In 1674-75, she was formally accused of witchcraft and stood trial in Boston. The website presents facsimiles and transcripts of court documents, maps and related documents. The online exhibit and educational website with school curricula were created by Bridget Marshall and the Center for Computer Based Technology at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and Northampton area teachers.
THE DALEY & HALLIGAN BICENTENNIAL WEBSITE, 1806-2006
Research digital copies of original court documents, the trial report and more from the Daley & Halligan Trial
Illustration by David Bourbeau, 1995
In 1805, Dominic Daley and James Halligan were accused of the murder of Marcus Lyon in Wilbraham. A trial held in Northampton in April 1806 resulted in a guilty verdict. Daley and Halligan were executed in Northampton on June 5, 1806. By today's standards the Commonwealth of Massachusetts would not have secured an indictment, let alone a conviction, with the evidence presented. In 2006, Northampton citizens organized a year-long commemoration. Original court documents, the trial report, related manuscripts and secondary source articles were compiled online to allow the historical record to be reconstructed with original sources.
RADICAL EQUALITY: THE NORTHAMPTON ASSOCIATION
View the Teaching American History website on the Northampton Association of Education & Industry.
In 1842, a group of silk manufacturers, farmers and abolitionists established a community in Broughton's Meadow (now Florence, Massachusetts) called the Northampton Association of Education and Industry. The association aimed to communally raise silkworms and produce raw silk based on principles of equality. Those who were drawn to this community sought to challenge the "existing social arrangements" of their day. Funded by a Teaching American History grant, the Collaborative for Educational Services and other partners developed this website using The Stetson Family letters in the collection of Historic Northampton and other primary source documents.
Additional Resources for Local History Research
For local history online, visit
www.historic-northampton.org/virtual_tours

www.historic-northampton.org/virtual_exhibits