She has been incorrectly portrayed as a young woman who was persecuted by the Puritans for wearing provocative red dresses and for running a tavern.
In fact she was a bitter old woman who used her reputation as a witch to get her way. Prior to the Salem witch trials a mere reputation as a potential witch wasn't enough for a conviction. Two witnesses to an act of witchcraft had been the traditional standard for conviction and thus convictions had been very rare in New England.
I detail more of this in my book about the witch trials - Justice at Salem.
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