Every Witch Way...

John Bland ( alias "John Smith") of Edgartown, is the grandfather of a convicted witch. His daughter, Isabella Austin-Leavitt and current husband, Thomas Leavitt, had to regretfully inform Mr. Bland and his wife, Joanna, that Mr. Bland's granddaughter Isabella Austin-Towle was the second person to be convicted of witchcraft during July in Hampton,NH.

Mrs. Austin Towle will spend a year in jail while her husband Philip Towle takes care of their 9 children.

Of course, all this happened in 1656, over a decade before the Salem With Trials of 1692.... but it did indeed happen. John Bland, Isabella Austin Towle's grandfather, was one of the earliest settlers of Martha's Vineyard, owning land here as early as 1646. He and his second wife Joanna (his first wife, Isabella, died before he came to the island) were prominent citizens of Edgartown back in the day. It is even believed that John Bland was with Thomas Mayhew in the shallop that first pulled into what is now Edgartown Great Harbor.

Mr. John Bland is not the only tie between witches and Martha's Vineyard...but because Bland died in 1667 there is no chance he knew Deodat Lawson. Deo-who? you ask?......Why Deodat Lawson of course! Lawson was the son of a preacher man, but there is more than enough evidence to prove that he is not the one to be teaching us much of anything outside of "how to wrongly accuse someone of being a witch."

After graduating from college in England, Lawson managed to make his way to New England and became a preacher right here on Martha's Vineyard where he preached his sermons to the good people of Edgartown. Of course this was before 1683 when he jumped at the opportunity to preach in Salem. That didn't pan out so well for ol' Deodat. He pissed off a lot of people by taking on the position of town minister when there were a bunch of nepotistic town folk that felt they deserved it. Lawson never actually got the position of full time minister due to that, and eventually left in 1687 for Maine.

One year later, after both his wife and daughter had died unexpectedly, he returned to Salem. Hoping for some sort of warm reception, and instead got the cold shoulder. Lawson left Salem again shortly there after and made a beeline for Boston. He lived like a hermit in Beantown for a few years ... right up until (*insert drum roll please*) March of 1692 when Deodat Lawson was asked to come back to Salem to help deal with some alleged witchcraft. This, of course, was the beginning of (*another drum roll for impact*) The Salem Witch Trials.

Playwright Arthur Miller, author of 'The Crucible', described Lawson as "one of the great witch-hunting preachers ... (rallying) his congregation for what was to be nothing less than a religious war against the Evil One." There are, however, other versions in regards to how people viewed him. Some claimed he was useless, and unsuccessful; others said that he was in cahoots with the lunacy taking over individuals at the time, minus the evil aspect. Regardless, Lawson was gone by the start of April 1692, telling his congregation that they had pretty much brought all this crazy on themselves. Basically a big ol' "Peace out, freaks!"

There are no historical records that show any other links to witches/witchcraft & Martha's Vineyard.... but after all the research it took to find out those tidbits of random information, (done purely to see if the island should worry that if word got out that there were more ties...we might have yet another crazed tourist filled weekend... don't worry Salem, Halloween is ALL yours) one has to wonder what Halloween was like back then when nerves were racked, worried that anything you did could make you appear to be a witch. Nowadays it is pretty much the main goal to emerge on October 31st as something, or someone, with little to no resemblance to yourself. For some this is not only fun, but easy. Those are the people you know with ridiculous amounts of creativity, and a hot glue gun. For the rest it's a matter of trying to decide which sheet to cut eye holes in and find various ways to say "BOO!" all night. BUT... the witch... that is the one people have been attempting for years.

The variations on "witch" costumes is almost endless...

There is ....

The "wicked/evil witch":

The "good witch":

The "cute kid witch":

The "bad ass witch":

The "oh now that's just wrong!" witch: (please don't do this to your pets)

The "double, double toil and trouble witch": (for group costumes)

The often overdone "slut witch":

and, there is even a "Playboy® issued witch": (because all witches wear garters and thigh highs...)

The irony of all these "witch costumes" is that no witch would look like that. You can look in the mirror on an average Thursday if you want to see what a witch would probably look like. Remember, the men & women accused, tried, and punished for crimes of witchcraft in our history were all innocent. So save yourself some money this Halloween, and go as a witch. You are safe now, no one will try to burn you at the stake next Saturday. (Unless you end up at that one party in Chilmark, then you're on your own.)

Should you see any bonfires burning don't be scared, it's probably (read: hopefully!) just someone celebrating Samhain (pronounced "sau-in") and not a reenactment of The Salem Witch Trials. Originally, when the large bonfires were built, all the fires within the home were snuffed and then re-lit from the bonfire. It was like a giant stationary smudge stick. A seasonal "out with the old, in with the new" cleansing of massive proportions. This time around it may just be your neighbor clearing out the dead leaves from his yard, but back in the day there was all sorts of stuff thrown into the fire. A lot of the time it was the bones of animals, which makes sense if you think about it since the word "bonfire" comes from the middle english for "bone fire"...almost creepy, but not totally. In fact the origins of all things Halloween stem from Samhain (which translates to "summer's end.") Not only was this a celebration and acknowledgment of seasonal change, but one of reverence for the changing of light. The lighter part of the year now over and the darker part beginning. In many cultures, and especially that of the ancient Gaels, this was the night when it was believed that spirits were able to visit. The problem was that, as with all things, with the good comes the bad. Hence the tradition of costumes on Halloween. The idea was to scare away the evil spirits. Too bad they didn't have the option of a "Playboy issued witch costume" back then.

What we DO still have now, that has not varied much since "then", is the carved pumpkin. History tells us that originally it was rutabagas and/or turnips that were carved and used as lanterns. These carved heads were meant to ward off evil spirits. In America we use pumpkins because they are easily obtained and much bigger here than anywhere else, ("America! F*ck Yeah!"). Though it wasn't till about the 1850's that they became associated with Halloween, up until that point it was just a seasonal thing to do.

Speaking of "things to do", there are quite a few options for Halloween on the island this year. Being as that Halloween is on a Saturday, it's almost a guarantee that there will be more people participating in the festivities. (as opposed to if Halloween fell on a Tuesday.- That's like saying "we'll celebrate your Monday birthday next Friday", lame) so even places that aren't advertising anything (yet?) might still have something going on.

At the moment of posting this, these are the advertised options out there:

The Lampost, in Oak Bluffs is having a party.
doors open at 6:15
(if you get there before 8:30 there is no cover charge)
The prizes for the night include:
Grand Prize of a one night stay at the Mohegan Sun Casino including a show and $100 spending cash (would it be rude to just ask for the cash equivalent? these are trying times!)
$200 cash prize for best group/couple costume
$100 cash prize for the best island theme (Hamburger, Johnny Seaview, etc...)
IPOD touch for sexiest costume (now you know where to wear that Playboy witch costume)
*************
Mediterranean (formerly Lola's) in Oak Bluffs is throwin' a Halloween shindig
apparently 93.7FM has something to do with it, but DJ Di & GypsySoundSystem are listed as the entertainment.
Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door
There will be prizes, including a $500 "best costume" award
Tarot readings
Halloween games
*************
The Ritz in Oak Bluffs
live music, Johnny Hoy & the Bluefish
cash prizes for costume contest.
*************
Nectars (formerly "The Outerland"/ "The Roof") in Edgartown at the airport has a bash of it's own.
There will be prizes as well as live music. "The Boogies" are playing that night... 'cause not much else says "fun, fun, fun" like watching the likes of Frankenstein, Strawberry Shortcake, and some dude dressed like a skunk do the hustle.
*************
Colonial Inn in Edgartown as a home base
(contact 508 627 4711 for more info)
there will be trick-or-treating among multiple merchants, as well as face painting at the Edgartown Library.
Noon to 3pm
*************
West Tisbury Public Library
(508 693 3366)
"spooky crafts" & mask making
hay rides
CANDY
refreshments will be served
3pm to 5pm
*****************************
Vineyard Haven
Candy galore!!
participating businesses will have balloons marking their stores.
*****************************
Now that you know some random history tidbits about the island & it's minimal ties to witches, how to have the most realistic witch costume, why one wears Halloween costumes in the first place, and where you can show it all off next weekend, go and have a Happy Halloween! (And don't drink & drive, that's for chumps.-Solipsister)