“On June 29, 1745, Elizabeth Shaw, a ‘weak, simple girl, deficient in mental capacity,’ gave birth to  a boy in Windham [now Hampton], Connecticut . She was not happy. Her son was a bastard child, which could not only bring punishment and public humiliation upon her, but also incur the wrath       of her ‘stern and rigid’ father. She decided to rid herself of the problem by taking the baby into the woods, hiding it in a nook along a ledge of rocks, and leaving it there to die.” 

                                                                                                                          From Early American Crime

This girl grew up in Hampton. I cannot imagine the fear of not knowing what was happening to her body, even the experience of how she got pregnant. Most likely, she was raped, perhaps by a family member, or someone she knew in the community.

In the last month, I have had many angry and bewildering conversations with women friends (and some good feminist men) about our place in the world. Hearing stories of mothers and grandmothers and aunts and daughters, their varied and valid    experiences, the need to have an abortion (pre– and post Roe v. Wade), and to    protect the very human rights of women and girls everywhere. Neighbors and friends have already volunteered to create an “underground railroad” to help women and girls from states like Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio to receive safe and supportive care of their choice here in Connecticut, at the risk of losing their own freedom to inane and unconstitutional laws. 

Elizabeth Shaw is not merely a footnote to our Hampton herstory; she is a tangible  reminder that we cannot remain silent in the face of ignorance, that we must educate our children without fear, and continue the struggle for equality and human rights for all.                                                                                     

Mary Oliver