Citation: Witches – Mapping the Scottish Survey of Witchcraft Database by the University of Edinburgh
Summary: This project is a continuing adaptation of the “Survey of Scottish Witchcraft” database that was created in 2003. The original database, linked on the site after some searching, is essentially an advanced search engine with different filters and subjects, from “Accused witches by name” to “People involved.” These new maps were made to adapt and visualize those tried for witchcraft during the Witchcraft Act from 1563-1736 using various tools so users could get an accurate picture of who was actually accused, tried, and sometimes executed for witchcraft. Not only that, but the project also evolved to have case studies of certain people like the witch-pricker John Kincaid or alleged witch Isobel Young using other visualization tools. Though the original database’s audience may have just been researchers, judging by the extensive search options yet lacking visualizations, this new upgrade expanded it to people who may not know as much about Scottish history or witchcraft.
Claims and evidence: Using those maps, the creators are able to answer questions with their data. For example, they can show that the demographics of people accused of witchcraft may have been different than what people originally believed, and that most people accused according to the data were middle-class women. It also showed that many trials occurred in the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, and accused witches who were found guilty relocated to either of the two (mostly Edinburgh) for their execution. There are not so many questions that are asked and answered, however, as there are visualizations. Visualizations, while they may have come from a huge database to work from, did not have many analytical components on their own and instead furthered the original database’s “Introduction,” a general Q&A answering questions based on the data.
Technology: This project used LeafletJS combined with WikiData for primary visualizations with support from ArcGIS StoryMaps. Given that there are over 3,000 trials recorded as well as certain historical locations, it makes sense to pair with WikiData for sourcing and visualizing the demographics of these events. LeafletJS allowed for specific filters in their maps, which let the researchers determine the exact demographics of those accused and even the torture methods used in confession. Mapping Witchcraft does document where the data was taken from, as did the original database, and credits the sources they used while also linking their spreadsheets of data.
Issues: While there is a significant amount of visualization, there is little of analysis. What analysis was done was created or written by other people either from the original project or from contribution pages. Such analysis comes from the “Introduction” and “Further Reading” pages of the original witchcraft database. There was an issue with the loading time of some maps, particularly the map of “Involved People.” Everything still ran smoothly once it loaded, so I believe this came down to the quantity of data.
