Norman, Goodwife (fl. mid-17th c.) and Mary Hammon (c. 1633–?)
Norman, Goodwife (fl. mid-17th c.) and Mary Hammon (c. 1633–?)
American colonial women tried for lesbianism.
In 1649, Goodwife Norman and Mary Hammon, citizens of Plymouth in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, were charged with "lude behavior upon a bed." As is well known, Puritan authorities were strict in their religious beliefs and severe in their punishments of crimes, sins, and minor social infractions (all of which they considered fairly synonymous). Norman's first name is unknown, as are all other personal facts about her; "goodwife" was a form of civil address, much like "Mrs.," which usually was applied to married women but occasionally was used for unmarried women. Mary Hammon, who was recorded as being 16 years old in 1649, was acquitted of the charges. Norman was found guilty and sentenced to "public acknowledgment" of her crime, civic humiliation being a favorite punishment of Puritan authorities. She is thought to be the first woman in America convicted of lesbianism.
sources:
Read, Phyllis J., and Bernard L. Witlieb. The Book of Women's Firsts. NY: Random House, 1992.
Lisa Frick , freelance writer, Columbia, Missouri