The Witch of Saratoga

Last updated

Angeline Tubbs
GroupingGhosts
Similar entities Agnes of Glasgow
FolkloreNew York
First attested1770s
CountryUnited States
Region Saratoga Springs, New York
DetailsSpurned or murdered lover abandoned in America by British soldier

Angeline Tubbs, aka The Witch of Saratoga, was a semi-legendary figure who lived in the area of Saratoga Springs, New York in the 1700s and 1800s.

Contents

Background

Tubbs was born in England around 1761, in the Star and Garter Inn in the village of Watford in Northamptonshire. [1] She became engaged to a British officer from the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot and at age fifteen followed him when he was sent to the colonies to fight in the Revolutionary War. After the British defeat in the Battles of Saratoga, he abandoned her. [2] With no place to go and knowing no one in a strange country, Tubbs supposedly walked fifteen miles through what was then uninhabited wilderness to the neighborhood of Saratoga Springs. [3] There she settled at the base of a hill called Mount Vista, described as "a small mountain one mile north of the village", [4] probably a promontory in the vicinity of Glen Mitchell—

Just north of the village of Saratoga Springs rises a bald promontory of rock - called "Mount Vista" - the gray masses of which impend frowningly over a deep glen beneath. [5]

For many years Tubbs lived there in a hut surrounded by a brood of cats. She developed a reputation as a witch and made a living telling fortunes [6] and trapping. Stone provides the following description:

Had she been mistress of the whirlwind, she could not have been more delighted with storms. She had been seen, her form erect and with extended arms, standing upon the verge of fearful precipices, in the midst of the most awful tempests, conversing, as it were, with unseen spirits, her long, matted hair streaming in the wind, while the thunder was riving the rocks beneath her feet, and the red lightning encircling her as with a winding-sheet of flame. [5]

Death and legacy

Tubbs died in 1865 at the age of 104. Reportedly her ghost can still be seen haunting the woods and she is a popular subject for "ghost walks". [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saratoga County, New York</span> County in New York, United States

Saratoga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, and is the fastest-growing county in Upstate New York. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was enumerated at 235,509, its highest decennial count ever and a 7.2% increase from the 219,607 recorded at the 2010 census, representing one of the fastest growth rates in the northeastern United States; and despite the worldwide toll of the COVID-19 pandemic in the early 2020s, Saratoga County has continued its rapid growth. The county seat is Ballston Spa. The county is part of the Capital District region of the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilton, Connecticut</span> Town in Connecticut, United States

Wilton is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 18,503. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballston, New York</span> Town in New York, United States

Ballston is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 11,831 at the 2020 census. The name is derived from an early settler, Eliphalet Ball, a Presbyterian minister who relocated there from Westchester County, New York in 1770. The town is in the southern part of the county, and is north of Schenectady.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saratoga Springs, New York</span> City in New York, United States

Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 200 years. It is home to the Saratoga Race Course, a thoroughbred horse racing track, and Saratoga Performing Arts Center, a music and dance venue. The city's official slogan is "Health, History, and Horses".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schuylerville, New York</span> Village in New York, United States

Schuylerville is a village in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The village is located in the northeastern part of the Town of Saratoga, east of Saratoga Springs. The Village of Victory is adjacent to Schuylerville to the southwest and the Hudson River forms the village's eastern border. The population was 1,370 at the 2020 census. The village was incorporated in 1831 and is named after the Schuyler family, a prominent family of Dutch descent in colonial America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glens Falls, New York</span> City in New York, United States

Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,830 at the 2020 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls referring to a large waterfall in the Hudson River at the southern end of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saratoga Race Course</span> Horse racing track in New York

Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the U.S. It is the fourth oldest racetrack after Pleasanton Fairgrounds Racetrack (1858), Freehold Raceway (1854) and Fair Grounds Race Course (1852).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catherine Breshkovsky</span> Russian revolutionary

Yekaterina Konstantinovna Breshko-Breshkovskaya, also known in English sources as Catherine Breshkovsky, was a major figure in the Russian socialist movement, a Narodnik, and later one of the founders of the Socialist Revolutionary Party. She has been described as Russia's first female political prisoner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Speck</span> American cook, guide, and hunter

George Speck was an American chef. He was known for his role in popularizing potato chips in Upstate New York and was later mythologized as their creator.

Zilpha Keatley Snyder was an American author of books for children and young adults. Three of Snyder's works were named Newbery Honor books: The Egypt Game, The Headless Cupid and The Witches of Worm. She was most famous for writing adventure stories and fantasies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saratoga National Historical Park</span> Park in Stillwater, New York

Saratoga National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located in the Town of Stillwater in eastern New York, 30 miles north of Albany. The park preserves the site of the Battles of Saratoga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marylou Whitney</span> American socialite and philanthropist (1925–2019)

Marylou Whitney was an American socialite and philanthropist. A prominent owner and breeder of thoroughbred racehorses, Whitney was notable for "reigning for decades as the social queen of the Saratoga and Lexington racing seasons".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York State Route 9N</span> Highway in New York, USA

New York State Route 9N (NY 9N) is a north–south state highway in northeastern New York in the United States. It extends from an intersection with U.S. Route 9 (US 9), NY 29, and NY 50 in the city of Saratoga Springs to a junction with US 9 and NY 22 in the Clinton County hamlet of Keeseville. At 143.49 miles (230.92 km) in total length, NY 9N is the longest letter-suffixed route in the state. It is concurrent with its parent route for 1 mile (1.6 km) in the village of Lake George and for three blocks in the hamlet of Elizabethtown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caherconree</span> Mountain in County Kerry, Ireland

Caherconree at 835 metres (2,740 ft), is the 20th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale, and the 27th–highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale. Caherconree is the 2nd-highest mountain in the Slieve Mish Mountains in the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland, and one of its southerly spurs is the site of an ancient stone promontory fort, which is a protected National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union Mill Complex</span> United States historic place

The Union Mill Complex,, is located at the junction of Milton Avenue and Prospect Street in Ballston Spa, New York, United States. It is a complex of three late 19th-century brick buildings on a 4-acre lot, and the ruins of a dam.

Lisa's Booby Trap is an American thoroughbred racehorse owned by Tim Snyder, a trainer at Finger Lakes Race Track in Farmington, New York, near Rochester. She is best known for the story surrounding her name, as she was named for her owner-trainer's deceased wife, Lisa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Leete Stone Jr.</span>

William Leete Stone Jr. was an American historical writer and journalist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicholas Stoner</span>

Nicholas Stoner was a hunter and trapper in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. He served in the Continental Army in the American Revolution and the American forces in the War of 1812. He is buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery, Gloversville, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Wilton (New York)</span>

The Battle of Wilton was fought in 1693 in Wilton, New York between Colonial Militia and allied Native forces on one hand and French forces and their Native allies as part of King William's War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Allen Farm Massacre</span> Farm at South Argyle, Washington County

The John Allen Farm massacre occurred in South Argyle, Washington County, New York on 25 or 26 July 1777 during the advancement of the British Army in the Saratoga campaign of the American Revolutionary War. Six members of the John Allen family and two or three enslaved servants loaned to the Allen's were killed by Native Americans attached to General John Burgoyne's British Army. Subsequently, Native Americans led by the warrior Le Loup attacked and killed Jane McCrea in nearby Fort Edward on 27 July; which garnered publicity in newspapers along the eastern seaboard of America and is believed to have helped rally locals to the American patriotic cause.

References

  1. ↑ "Ancient anti-witchcraft potion found at former pub". BBC News. 31 October 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  2. ↑ Woutersz, Jeannine (22 September 2011). "History Lesson: Revolutionary War brought "Witch of Saratoga" to Wilton". Saratogian. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  3. ↑ Woutersz, Jeannine (22 September 2011). "History Lesson: Revolutionary War brought "Witch of Saratoga" to Wilton". The Saratogian. Retrieved 2 September 2013.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. ↑ Stone, Wm.L. (29 April 1869). "Reminiscences of Saratoga: Who was He?" (PDF). The Saratogian. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  5. 1 2 Stone, William Leete (1875). Reminiscences of Saratoga and Ballston. New York: Virtue and Yourston. pp.  213–218. william leete stone.
  6. ↑ "Witch Of Saratoga, Northampton's Forgotten Magickal Emigrant | Spooky Isles". 26 June 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  7. ↑ Jung, Alyssa. "Supernatural Saratoga: History Ghost Walks expose city's ghostly side". Spotlight News. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.