Proctor's Ledge Project

Proctor’s Ledge – 1692 Witch Trials

From February 1692 through May 1693, Salem and the surrounding communities were in chaos, as witchcraft accusations and trials pitted neighbor against neighbor and tore families apart. Over 170 people were accused and most ended up in prison. By the end of the crisis, over 25 innocent people perished and 19 of them were hung at Proctor’s Ledge. This memorial is dedicated to the innocent victims.

“The design challenges at Proctor’s Ledge were two-fold. First, the location is set in a tight residential neighborhood, so we needed to be respectful of the people who live near the monument. We had to choose the lowest profile, least obtrusive lighting, with minimal glare. Secondly, due to the nature of the memorial’s somber subject matter, respect for history had to be an important consideration. The overall design strategy aimed to capture the age of the project, highlighting the stonework in old reclaimed New England granite and the aged font of the engraved markers. The unique historical subject matter needed to be emulated in the lighting.”

The well light was the right fit for the project, a sleek 2” stainless steel fixture. The 2700 Kalvin color temperature captured the old time feel of the project while the asymmetrical optical lens reduced glare and pushed the light only onto the subject and not back at the viewers. The ladder style optical lens produces this effect by its construction. The riser side of the lens is clear which is directed at the subject that it is lighting, while the tread or top of the lens is frosted.

The most challenging part of this project was controlling the intensity of the light. Too much light would wash out the lettering while not enough would create a Halloween feel, which would not be appropriate for the subject matter. The 2.5 watt, 107 lumen model gave just the right effect to the entire monument.