• Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament, Engraved Witch Seated on a Broomstick Above the Harbor Dock, Christmas Wreath With Red Bow on a Piling, Fieldstone Wall, Crystal Ornament Art
  • Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament, The Harbor Witch, 3 Inch Faceted Crystal Glass Ornament With Gold Gift Box
  • Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament, The Harbor Witch, Crystal Glass Ornament With Red Ribbon Hanger
  • Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament, The Harbor Witch, Faceted Gem Cut Edge Detail
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Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament - The LBD Harbor Witch

Stamford Connecticut Holiday Ornament - The LBD Harbor Witch

$26.00 USD
$26.00 USD
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Stamford has a witch. She's ours, and we've had her since 1692. She sits sidesaddle on her broom above a wet dock on Stamford Harbor, bare feet pointed, hat tipped, a wreath on the piling behind her — engraved in the fine black line of an 1880s book illustration and printed on clear crystal. The only color is the wreath.

In April 1692, the same spring Salem began hanging people, a seventeen-year-old servant named Katherine Branch fell into fits in the Wescot house by the cove and began naming women. Two were charged: Elizabeth Clawson of Stamford, who had feuded with the Wescots for years, and Mercy Disborough of Compo. In June both were bound and lowered into the water at Fairfield; both floated, which by the rules of the day was proof. Then Stamford answered on paper. On June 4, seventy-six of Clawson's neighbors signed a petition on her behalf. The trial opened at the Fairfield meetinghouse on September 14, the jury could not agree, the court sent the case to Hartford and back, and the colony's ministers, asked for a written opinion, called the water test unlawful and the girl no witness to hang a woman on. On October 28 Clawson was acquitted. Disborough was convicted, sentenced to death, reprieved, and in the end released. Salem hanged nineteen that year. Stamford hanged no one, and Elizabeth Clawson walked home and lived another twenty-two years, dying in 1714 at eighty-three.

A three-inch clear crystal ornament with a faceted edge, the engraving printed to the glass so the hatching reads like an old plate held to the light. She hangs on a Halloween tree in October and on the Christmas tree in December, and she looks right on a hook in a window with the harbor fog behind her. Spruce-green wreath, cranberry bow, nothing else.

For Stamford natives, for the neighbors on Shippan and the Cove who know the Wescot name as a cove, for the friend who likes a witch with good posture, and for anyone who thinks the better 1692 story is the one where the town said no. As with everything we make, profits support hunger relief.

3-inch (76 mm) round crystal glass ornament, faceted gem-cut edge, white-backed print for crisp contrast, red ribbon hanger, white or gold gift box chosen at checkout, free U.S. shipping.

She is not Elizabeth Clawson. Nobody in 1692 looked like this, and that is the point: the women this town nearly hanged were neighbors, not witches.

More Stamford CT Items

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Two landmarks from either end of that story still stand on the water and on the skyline. Out past the breakwater, on Chatham Rock, the Stamford Harbor Ledge Light is a sixty-foot cast-iron sparkplug tower set on a caisson in 1882, the kind of lighthouse that looks like it was screwed into the Sound. It was automated in 1953, sold to a private owner in 1955, and has been privately held ever since, which is why you can see it from Cummings Beach and Shippan Point but not climb it. In town, the First Presbyterian Church on Bedford Street is Wallace K. Harrison’s Fish Church: a sanctuary shaped like a fish in plan and profile, its concrete walls set with more than 20,000 pieces of faceted glass, dedicated in 1958, with a 260-foot carillon tower beside it. It was named a National Historic Landmark on January 13, 2021.

Who were the Stamford witches? Elizabeth Clawson and Mercy Disborough, two neighbors accused in 1692 after a servant girl’s fits; Stamford tried them, and hanged no one. That spring, while Salem was filling its jail, a seventeen-year-old servant named Katherine Branch began to convulse in the house of Daniel Wescot and to name the women who tormented her. One was Goodwife Clawson of Stamford, a woman who had quarreled with the Wescots for years. The other was Mercy Disborough from Compo, down the Sound. Both were jailed, searched for witch-marks and bound and lowered into the water to see whether they floated. Then Stamford did something Salem never managed: seventy-six of Clawson’s neighbors signed a petition swearing she was no witch. The court at Fairfield heard the case in September and acquitted her in October. Disborough was convicted, and reprieved. The witches went away. The need didn’t.

Why People Visit Stamford, CT

Stamford balances harbor and city — sailboats on the Sound, a downtown skyline, and four centuries of history from Rippowam to the rail line. It is a Gold Coast harbor town an hour from Manhattan, with the water, the parks, and that one-of-a-kind church on the hill. Increasingly it is also a town with a story to tell: the one that was asked to hang its witches in 1692 and signed a petition instead.

Stamford, Connecticut Merlin Classics retro vintage logo featuring an oyster shell over Connecticut Est. 1636

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Because items are made to order, we can’t accept returns for sizing or color choices. We do accept returns for defects, misprints, or shipping damage. Please review the detailed photos and descriptions before purchasing. Women’s fitted tees run small; if you prefer a looser fit, consider sizing up.

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We make each item on demand using premium blanks, embroidery, and soft-hand prints. Production usually takes 2–5 business days (excluding weekends and holidays). You’ll receive tracking once shipped. We currently ship to U.S. addresses via USPS, UPS, or FedEx. Most orders arrive within 6-12 business days.

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We accept returns for defects, misprints, or damage on arrival. Report issues within 30 days with photos and your order number, and we’ll replace or refund. Size or color changes aren’t supported after purchase, so please consult size charts before ordering if you are at all unsure.

Who are we?

Merlin Classics is a volunteer-run, AI-assisted apparel project celebrating timeless local style. Every item is made to order, and profits (revenue minus external product/marketing cost) support hunger-relief programs in the communities our collections spotlight. Classic looks, real local impact—every purchase helps.