Salt Lane Witches

Salt Lane Witches : In English folklore, two white witches who once lived in Castle Street, Worcester, in medieval times. They were considered white witches because instead of bewitching others to their harm, they used their Magic to free the carts that frequently became stuck in the mud near their cottages. For sixpence, one witch would stroke and bless the horse while the other would stroke the cartwheels.

One day a wagoner tried to bargain with the witches and noticed a piece of straw on his horse’s back. Thinking it was part of their magic, he cut it in half. Immediately, the witch who was stroking the horse screamed and fell dead, severed in two. The cart was freed, and the wagoner fled. The second witch lived on and later turned a troop of soldiers into stone, when they appeared in town to collect taxes. According to legend, their petrified figures once stood at what is now the main road that passes through Worcester. A local merchant tried to break the spell of the figures, but one of the stones turned into a giant horse which reared up and pawed the air, frightening him off.

FURTHER READING:

• Folklore, Myths and Legends of Britain. London: Reader’s Digest Assoc. Ltd., 1977.

SOURCE:

The Encyclopedia of Witches, Witchcraft and Wicca – written by Rosemary Ellen Guiley – Copyright © 1989, 1999, 2008 by Visionary Living, Inc.