In April of 1699, Jean Umphray of Newark, Kilmacolm in Lanarkshire found herself at the center of a flurry of accusations typical of the witchcraft hysteria that had periodically swept through Scotland. Though the historical records remain silent on any formal trial, Jean was nevertheless denounced as one of the alleged tormentors of Margaret Laird in the town of Paisley. Over the span of just a few days, from the 19th to the 21st of April, six men and one woman came forward to testify against her.
The documents related to Jean's case offer little in the way of resolution. Despite the intensity of the accusations, which propelled her into the orbit of suspicion and fear that characterized the Scottish witch trials of the era, no legal proceedings against Jean seem to have materialized. The absence of trial records leaves her fate in obscurity, marking a frequent pattern during the period when denunciations alone could ravage lives without the formality of the court's judgment. Thus, Jean Umphray's story, like many others, reflects the precarious existence of those caught in the witch hunt's relentless quest for scapegoats amidst the social tensions of early modern Scotland.