Night of ghoulish, witchy fact and fiction

BY JOHN DECOSTE

Kings County Register

For fans of the “darker side” of society, the Kings County Museum has a treat for you – and just before Halloween!

October 29 at 7 p.m., upstairs in the old courtroom, the Kings Historical Society presents a public lecture, “Massacres, Visitations and the Victim’s Voice.”

As part of the evening (sponsored by the White Family Funeral Home of Kentville), a series of speakers will examine the topics of murder, ghostly visitations and other “things that go bump in the night” - past and present.

Acadia history professor Dr. Barry Moody will talk on the Col. Noble Massacre as part of the Battle for Grand Pre in 1747 during the French and Indian War (Seven Years War).

The “visitations” portion of the evening will examine modern-day witchcraft versus the traditional cultural view of witchcraft.

KHS president Maynard Stevens will speak on the topic “Did the New England Planters Believe in Witchcraft?” and what traditions and superstitions the Planters may have brought with them from New England in the 1760s.

Glenda Bishop will then present a ghost story on forerunners, and Allison Magee will tell a classic ghost story based on personal experiences surrounding his family’s home.

The third and final portion of the evening will feature Cindy Usher, a member of the Burlington Historical and Cemetery associations, reading letters written by Theresa McAuley, the wife (and murder victim) of William S. Robinson, the last person publically hanged for murder in Kentville in 1904.

Museum curator Bria Stokesbury is looking forward to the entire evening, and especially to the “victim’s voice” portion of the program. “Our talk last fall on William Robinson was one of our most popular and well-attended,” Stokesbury says. “Many people know Robinson’s story; this will tell the other side, from the perspective of the woman who died.”

She stresses, “the problem of violence against women still exists today. “Theresa McAuley’s letters keep her memory alive and allow her side of the story to be told.”

Stokesbury says the museum is trying to contrast the “serious side” of the topic with the more “ghoulish” side, in what should be an entertaining evening.

Stokesbury expects the entire event to take around 90 minutes, “so none of the presentations will be that long - more like short vignettes.” Admission is by freewill donation, with the proceeds going to the society.