In July 1683, amidst a backdrop of social unrest and fear in early modern Scotland, Margaret Logan of Crichton found her name inscribed on the infamous Edinburgh Porteous Roll. Margaret, described as a married woman from the vibrant city of Edinburgh, was thrust into the merciless judicial mechanisms of the time, facing grave accusations that swirled around a key lineage of offenses—those of witchcraft, sorcery, and necromancy. These charges were compounded by the formidable allegation of renouncing baptism and making a pact with the Devil, submitting both body and soul to his dominion.
Margaret’s fate was intertwined with that of G. Penman and other associates from her locality, all named in the same perilous legal documents. Records from the circuit court proceedings reveal their shared indictment in what were considered heinous offenses. However, the trial documentation offers a curious note: despite the formal accusations, Margaret and her co-accused were marked as "absent and resisted." This annotation suggests that they did not appear for the proceedings, sparking questions about the circumstances of their absence, though the records do not provide further insight into what may have led to their non-appearance. Margaret Logan’s experience reflects a harrowing period in Scottish history, where the societal tremors of the era manifested in the relentless persecution of those accused of traversing the boundaries between the ordinary and the arcane.