Margaret Krieger

Margaret Krieger ( – February 2, 1790) also known as Widow Krieger, was the only recorded person to undergo a witch trial in Vermont. At the time, she was a widowed mill owner from Pownal. After surviving the alleged trial, Krieger moved back to Williamstown, Massachusetts, her birthplace.

Early life and career Margarette Schumaker was born about 1724 in Williamstown, Massachusetts. She may have been descended from Dutch immigrants who began settling along the Hoosic River in the 1600s. She married Johann Juri Krieger (born c. 1708) in 1741 at the First Reformed Church in Albany, New York.

The Kriegers built a mill in Pownal, Vermont, and developed land along the Hoosic River.

After Krieger's husband died, her neighbors began to accuse her of being an extraordinary woman who possessed extraordinary powers. The committee cut a hole through the ice on the Hoosic River and pushed Krieger in, and she sank to the bottom of the river.

Later life Krieger returned to Williamstown after the trial and lived with her sons.

On September 16, 2023, Pownal dedicated a historical marker to Krieger. It is placed below Krieger Rocks along the Hoosic River.