On 3 November 1649, legal proceedings were initiated in the burgh of Culross, Fife, against a resident named Janet Paterson. The archival entry, cataloged under case reference C/EGD/2620, places Janet within the broader context of the intense judicial activity that characterized the mid-seventeenth century in Scotland. At this time, the town of Culross—a community defined by its coal mining and salt panning industries—became part of a wider pattern of local scrutiny that sought to address reports of maleficium and perceived spiritual transgression.
The documentation surrounding Janet is relatively sparse, yet it serves as a significant marker in the historical record of the 1563–1736 witch trials. While the case note indicates that a specific reference by the historian MacDonald regarding a printed secondary source remained unverified by the project, the primary record confirms that Janet was subjected to the legal mechanisms of her day. Her inclusion in the judicial registers reflects the vulnerability of women in early modern Fife, where the intersection of kirk discipline and secular law frequently brought individuals like Janet under the formal gaze of the authorities.