The statue of Grace White Sherwood, also known as the Witch of Pungo, honors her legacy as a healer and herbalist and commemorates her unfair treatment. Grace White Sherwood (1660-1740) was a farmer, healer, midwife, and mother of three who lived with her husband on a farm in Pungo (today, part of Virginia Beach), Virginia. Sherwood’s neighbors accused her several times of witchcraft, accusing her of many accusations, from casting a spell on their animals and cotton crops to transforming into a black cat; Sherwood had to defend herself in court and lost most of the cases. In 1706, she was already a widow and was taken to court on the accusation of bewitching her neighbor and causing her a miscarriage. The court investigated ways to prove she was a witch, searching her home and examining her body. When two “witch marks” were found on her body, the court ordered the ducking test to check her purity. She is a witch if she floats and innocent if she sinks. On the morning of July 10th, 1706, in Lynnhaven River near today Witchduck Road, in the presence of a large crowd, Sherwood was thrown into the river; she succeeded in untying herself and floating. She was sent to jail and spent there about eight years. Afterward, she claimed farm ownership and lived there until her death. There are many legends about her death; some say that her body disappeared through the chimney, that her devil took it, others that unnatural storms happened after she died, and many other stories. In 1973, Virginia Beach historian and author Louisa Venable Kyle wrote a children’s book about Sherwood, bringing Sherwood’s story back to the public attention. 300 years after her conviction, on July 10th, 2006, Governor Tim Kaine cleared her name with an informal pardon. About a year later, on April 21st, 2007, her statue by Robert Cunningham was dedicated at the junction of Independence Blvd and North Witchduck Road on the grounds of the Sentara Independence hospital. Sherwood is depicted as a healer holding a basket of rosemary and standing alongside a raccoon, representing her love of animals. Bronze plaques on the base tell her story, the story of the trial, and present a copy of the governor’s pardon letter. Read more...