In the summer of 1650, Agnes Litle stood accused of witchcraft in Wigtown, a town in the southwestern region of Scotland that would become notable for its witch trials in the latter half of the 17th century. The records indicate that Agnes hailed from the Stranraer presbytery, yet she had no fixed parish allegiance, a detail that seemingly marked her as a vagabond in the eyes of the community and ecclesiastical authorities. This status outside the bounds of settled parish life may have contributed to the suspicion and scrutiny that surrounded her.
Agnes's trial is documented in case number C/JO/3016 and trial number T/JO/1282, a testament to the formal processes of the period that sought to address accusations of witchcraft with a veneer of legal due diligence. However, the specifics of Agnes's alleged offenses or the evidence brought against her are not detailed in the surviving records. It is clear, though, that being a woman without a permanent parish home placed her in a precarious position during volatile times, when the fear of witchcraft had a pronounced hold on the Scottish populace.
The trial of Agnes Litle took place against a backdrop of heightened religious and social tensions in 17th-century Scotland, where the intersection of local fears, religious dogma, and societal norms often culminated in accusations against individuals who stood outside conventional lines. The records of her trial add to the somber mosaic of early modern Scottish history, illustrating the complex weave of community dynamics, gender, and mobility that shaped the witch trials of the period.