The Bell Witch
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
The Bell Witch haunting is the name given to a series of disturbing and allegedly inexplicable, real events associated with the family of Adams Station, Tennessee (located in Robertson County) settler John Bell, between 1817 and 1821.
Many of the events associated with and phenomena attributed to The Bell Witch were allegedly witnessed and documented by hundreds of people (among them future President of the United States Andrew Jackson), and the episode represents one of the most famous instances of a haunting in history. It is thought to have strongly influenced the creators of the fictional film The Blair Witch Project.
The Bell Witch is claimed to be the spirit of Kate Batts, an old neighbor of John Bell who believed she was cheated by him in a land purchase. She swore on her deathbed to get even and after she died, the haunting began. She reportedly tormented some of the family, especially John and his youngest daughter Betsy, while being indifferent to others and even kind to Mrs. Bell.
The Bell Witch also stopped Betsy from marrying a neighbor boy named Joshua Gardner, but for reasons unknown, allowed her to marry her schoolteacher Richard Powell. This leads some to claim that perhaps the haunting events were a hoax perpetrated by Powell.
The death of John Bell, on December 20 1820, is claimed to have been caused by The Bell Witch. She replaced his medicine with poison and gave him a dose of it as he slept. At his funeral, the Witch is said to have sang loudly and joyously.
Some claim that The Bell Witch still haunts the area on the property once owned by the Bell's. On that land is a cave, which has since become known as The Bell Witch Cave, and some people claim that paranormal activity takes place in it.
Published accounts
The earliest written account is in the Goodspeed History of Tennessee published in 1886. No author is given, although Albert Virgil Goodpasture (1855-1942) is a suspect for the author. Page 833 reads:
- A remarkable occurrence, which attracted wide-spread interest, was connected with the family of John Bell, who settled near what is now Adams Station about 1804. So great was the excitement that people came from hundreds of miles around to witness the manifestations of what was popularly known as the "Bell Witch." This witch was supposed to be some spiritual being having the voice and attributes of a woman. it was invisible to the eye, yet it would hold conversation and even shake hands with certain individuals. The freaks if performed were wonderful and seemingly designed to annoy the family. It would take the sugar from the bowls, spill the milk, take the quilts from the beds, slap and pinch the children, and then laugh at the discomfiture of its victims. At first it was supposed to be a good spirit, but its subsequent acts, together with the curses with which it supplemented its remarks, proved the contrary. A volume might be written concerning the performance of this wonderful being, as they are now described by contemporaries and their descendants. That all this actually occurred will not be disputed, nor will a rational explanation be attempted. It is merely introduced as an example of superstition, strong in the minds of all but a few in those times, and yet not wholly extinct.
The most famous account is the "Red Book", the 1894 An Authenticated History of the Famous Bell Witch by Martin Van Buren Ingram (said to be based on the earlier Richard William Bell's Diary: My Family's Troubles) who lists these people as witnesses:
- General Andrew Jackson, 7'th President of the US
- Joel Thomas Bell, son of John Bell, Jr.
- Rev. Joshua Featheton
- Dr. J.T. Mathews
- Mr. E. Newton
- R.H. Pickering
- J. Gunn
- D. T. Porter
- J.I Holman
- Wm Wall
- W.H. Gardner
The "Black Book" was written much later, and published in 1934 by Dr. Charles Bailey Bell great-grandson of John Bell.
The Guidebook for Tennessee, published by the US Govt Works Project Administration in 1939 also contains an account that differs from Ingram's on pages 392-393.
External links
- The Bell Witch (http://www.bellwitch.org/) - Site owned by researcher Pat Fitzhugh.
- The Bell Witch of Tennessee (http://bellwitch02.tripod.com/)
- Bell Witch the Movie (http://www.bellwitchthemovie.com/) - A fictionalised account of the Bell Witch legend.
- Prairie Ghosts - The Bell Witch (http://www.prairieghosts.com/b-cave.html)
- The Bell Witch Project (http://mtskeptics.homestead.com/BellWitch.html) - An investigation by the Middle Tennessee Skeptics.
- Electronic transcript of the 'Red Book' (http://bellwitch02.tripod.com/the_red_book.htm)
