In the tense atmosphere of Renfrew during the late 17th century, the witch trials of 1697 would leave a stark imprint on the region's history. Among the individuals caught in the turmoil was Katherine Campbell, a woman who transitioned from a servant in a household to the familial duties of a tailor’s wife in her community of Bargarran, Erskine. Katherine's life, like many women of her standing in that era, began with her serving in households, which likely shaped the social networks she interacted with as she assumed her role as a wife.
Katherine's path would take a fateful turn when she became one of the central figures in the accusations of witchcraft initiated by Christian Shaw, a young girl from the household Katherine once served. The Renfrew witch trials were marked by a frenzy of allegations, and Katherine was among the seven individuals ultimately brought to trial out of over twenty-eight accused. It is noted that her close acquaintance with Christian Shaw made her an early suspect. This proximity, amplified by the climate of fear and suspicion, perhaps hastened her fall under the net of accusations that swept through the region.
Katherine Campbell's trial was conducted with the gravity typical of such cases, commencing on April 13, 1697, and stretching over a month, culminating in a guilty verdict by May 12. The court even recorded interactions with ministers, suggesting the involvement of ecclesiastical representatives, which was common as they sought to expunge perceived malevolence from their communities. Her life ended at Gallow Green on June 10, 1697, where the grim sentence imposed was both a strangulation and burning, a tragic page in the Renfrew witch trials’ history. Katherine Campbell's story serves as a somber reflection on the societal and cultural forces of early modern Scotland that led to suspicion and persecution of individuals under the nebulous charges of witchcraft.