Belinda Nash, Canadian-born American historian, Died at 69

Belinda Nash was born on October 27, 1946, and died on February 16, 2016)

She was an American historian, author, and activist.

Nash wrote a biography of Grace Sherwood, the last person “convicted” by ducking of being a witch in Virginia.

As a result of Nash’s work, Sherwood was given a pardon, 300 years after her trial by ordeal.

In the 1980s, Nash moved from Canada to Virginia Beach.

She became interested in the etymology of the name Witchduck Road which was close to her home.

As a result, she investigated Grace Sherwood for around 20 years and with her daughter, Danielle Sheets, co-wrote a biography of her, A Place in Time: The Age of the Witch of Pungo.

However, Sherwood’s life had been defined before by Louisa Venable Kyle in The Witch of Pungo and Other Historical Stories of the Early Colonies, a fiction book written for children including biographical data, published in 1973.

In that aspect, a memorial marker was placed at a herb garden of the Old Donation Episcopal Church, Sherwood’s former parish church in 2014, which Nash was very pleased about.

Belinda Nash passed away at 69 yrs old.