Within beautiful Fairfield County sits the small historic town of Winnsboro, South Carolina. It’s known for the clock that has been standing since the 1830s. The city was once a resting place for soldiers from the Revolutionary War, who stayed there in preparation for their next battle. But that isn’t all Winnsboro has to offer. There is a mystery here that has yet to be fully understood.
Everyone knows about the horrors of the Salem Witch Trials, but very few people know about the witch trials that existed around the country. Yes, that’s right – it wasn’t just Salem that experienced these trials. Winnsboro had its trials back in 1792.
The people of Winnsboro believed they found four different witch-doctors and had them brought to trial as well as punished by burning the soles of their feet completely off. Mary Ingleman was an elderly German woman approximately 70 years of age who was caught up in the middle of the horrifying situation when people found dead livestock around the town.
People began slandering the innocent woman, accusing her of being the reason for the animals, and decided to prosecute her. Townsfolk started doubling down on the stories, and soon they began escalating. Mary was accused of turning one man into a horse and levitating people off their beds. She received the same fate as the men, having the soles of her feet burned off and being flogged.
Although Mary was found innocent and even sued those who wronged her, the locals couldn’t shake the uncomfortable feeling that Mary still hadn’t left the town, sometimes even seeing her spirit appear at the local museum. Why? Nobody is sure. Maybe it’s the location or even the area where she was persecuted. But if Mary was never executed and was eventually found innocent, then why is her ghost? Is there something that we have yet to uncover?
Written By: Israel Petty
