Testimony From Virginia Court Records: Katherine Watkins

The title of the document is “Testimony from Virginia Court Records, 1681” and it’s about the deposition of a women named Katherine Watkins. It is a legal document that explains an alleged rape and it was produced on the 13th of September 1681 by the numerous people involved who gave their depositions including Katherine Watkins, John Aust, William Harding, Mary Winter, Lambert Tye and Humphrey Smith. The document expresses Katherine Watkins side of the case, and it is intended towards the public. However, it also includes multiple stories of witnesses from the men in the story. This document is a primary source because it is a legal document that recounts an event, which make it as accurate as possible. Katherine Watkins

The document shows evidence of violence, however it also states multiple witnesses questioning Katherine Watkins behavior and character, as she is described as very flirtatious. The testimonies do not only portray Katherine Watkins as the victim in this story but rather the predator. John Aust who describes Jack's apparent attempts to avoid an intimate entanglement with Katherine Watkins. Katherine Watkins is described to “as she sett Negroe dirke passing by her she tooke up the taile of his shirt (saying) Dirke thou wilt have a good long thing” and she allegedly had thrown another on the bed, kissed him, and “put her hand into his codpiece” (Sex and Relations, 46). The purpose of the document is to show the deposition of both sides of the case, meaning that they do not only capture Katherines side of the case, but they also accuse her of in a way of “was she asking for it”. Another important aspect is that Katherine was described by numerous people that she had too much to drink and therefore her testimony is not as reliable. As a female during this period, being overly charming and flirtatious is not the best image of an ideal women. As well as ethnic tensions between enslaved people having sexual relationships with white privileged