Ann Hibbins

Ann Hibbins (or Hibbons; Hibbens) was a woman executed for witchcraft in Boston, Massachusetts, on June 19, 1656. Her death by hanging was the third for witchcraft in Boston and predated the Salem witch trials in 1692. Hibbins was later fictionalized in Nathaniel Hawthorne's famous novel The Scarlet Letter. A wealthy widow, Hibbins was the sister-in-law by marriage to Massachusetts governor, Richard Bellingham. Her sentence was handed down by Governor John Endicott (also spelled "Endecott").

Ann was twice widowed, first by a man named Moore. Together they had three sons who were all living in England at the time of her death. One son, Jonathan, was particularly favored in her will.

Ann was widowed, secondly, by a wealthy merchant, William Hibbins whose first wife, Hester Bellingham (buried Stokesay, Shropshire on 3 Sep 1634), was the sister of Richard Bellingham, Governor of Massachusetts. He had been a deputy to the General Court and became assistant governor in 1643, and thus was one of the magistrates who condemned Margaret Jones for witchcraft in 1648. Hibbins held the powerful position of assistant until his death in 1654. Humphrey Atherton, who is said to have been "instrumental in bringing about the execution of Ann Hibbins", succeeded him in that position.

In 1640, Hibbins sued a group of carpenters, whom she had hired to work on her house, accusing them of overcharging her. She won the lawsuit, but her actions were viewed as "abrasive", and so she became subjected to an ecclesiastical inquest. Refusing to apologize to the carpenters for her actions, Hibbins was admonished and excommunicated. The church cited her for usurping her husband's authority. Within months of her husband's death, proceeding against her for witchcraft began.

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