A Fictional Account of our Ancestor Deborah Bachiler Wing

Goody Wing: An American Foremother , By Beverly Vorpahl

Deborah Bachiler Wing, our ancestral grandmother, assumed a personality as I researched life in 17th century England and New England. I wanted to learn the circumstances of women, Puritans and others, who sought religious freedom by daring to cross the Atlantic Ocean and make a life for themselves on a little-known continent.

The right to worship as they believed God directed them was the driving force of these earliest Europeans, who with their noble quest and spirit of perseverance, established the basis of our nation’s character. Much has been written of our forefathers, but of equal importance are the wives and daughters of those men – women we know little about. As I read and wrote, Deborah – in her world of four centuries ago – developed from a name on my family group sheet to a wide-eyed young lady, and into that of a heroic woman.

Goody Wing, an American Foremother tells the story of what our ancestor, Deborah Bachiler Wing, might have been like. Researching women who lived centuries ago may not be easy, but perseverance and imagination can open many closed doors. There are clues to be found about their circumstances and lifestyles. Women weren’t entirely ignored those many centuries ago – researchers just have to be aware.

Life challenges everyone, but Deborah’s challenges did seem a bit stiffer than most women had to bear.

Our Colonial grandmothers were much brighter and cheerier than the myth of dour, stiff, black-and-white women who have been eternalized by Pilgrim-era paintings. Certainly, do not “color” Deborah Bachiler Wing as wan and morose. Like most foremothers, Deborah was resolved and resolute, determined to create a home out of a cabin in the midst of a primeval forest. Deborah braved crossing the Atlantic as a widow with four young sons and her father, the Reverend Stephen Bachiler, an irascible fellow who attracted misfortune as though he were a magnet. While their crusade to find religious freedom was thwarted in New England as it had been in England, their experiences helped form the persevering character of America.

Goody Wing, an American Foremother is published by iUniverse, and is available at https://www.iuniverse.com/en and https://www.amazon.com/Goody-American-Foremother-Beverly-Vorpahl/dp/0595201024.