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Poltergeists

Séances and mediums

Spiritualism was born in 1848 in the Fox sisters' house in Hydesville and within a few years had conquered the drawing rooms of America and Europe. Mediums – often women – received guests in darkened rooms where tables rose, instruments played and ectoplasm appeared. They were tested by physicists, doctors and magicians, among them Harry Houdini. Poland had its own stars: Stanisława Tomczyk, Jan Guzik and Franek Kluski. Most mediums were caught cheating, but not all of them.

cases
12
years
1848–2026

Disputed: 5 Legend: 1 Explained: 1 Hoax: 5

  1. 19th century

    1. 1848 Séances and mediums · Hoax The Fox Sisters and the Hydesville Rappings The Fox cottage in Hydesville (Arcadia), New York, United States Two girls “talked” by rapping with the ghost of a murdered peddler – Spiritualism was born, and 40 years later came a confession of fraud.
    2. 1854 Séances and mediums · Hoax The Davenport Brothers’ Spirit Cabinet Buffalo, New York, United States Tied up inside a wooden cabinet, two brothers “summoned spirits” that played instruments – magicians soon showed how it was done.
    3. 1893–1894 Séances and mediums · Disputed Eusapia Palladino in Warsaw Warsaw, Poland At Julian Ochorowicz’s invitation the famous Italian medium held séances in Warsaw attended by Bolesław Prus – echoes found their way into his novel “Pharaoh”.

  2. 1900–1909

    1. 1908–1909 Séances and mediums · Disputed Stanisława Tomczyk and the Levitating Scissors Wisła, Silesian Beskids, Poland In the mountain town of Wisła, Julian Ochorowicz studied a medium who made scissors float between her hands – and “Little Stasia” left marks on photographic plates.

  3. 1920–1929

    1. c. 1920–present Séances and mediums · Legend María Lionza – Mount Sorte and the Spirits in Trance Mount Sorte near Chivacoa, Yaracuy State, Venezuela Every October thousands of Venezuelans climb Mount Sorte to receive the spirits of the dead in trance – from Indigenous chiefs to Simón Bolívar and… Vikings.
    2. 1920 Séances and mediums · Disputed Franek Kluski and the Paraffin Hands Institut Métapsychique International, avenue Niel, Paris, France A Warsaw medium was said to materialise spirit hands that left moulds after dipping into hot paraffin – a Paris institute still keeps them.
    3. 1923 Séances and mediums · Hoax Jan Guzik before the Sorbonne Committee The Sorbonne, Paris, France A Warsaw medium whose dark séances featured “animals” brushing against sitters was tested by Sorbonne scientists – the verdict: fraud.
    4. 1924 Séances and mediums · Hoax “Margery” versus Houdini The Crandon home, 10 Lime Street, Beacon Hill, Boston, United States A Boston society lady “spoke” in her dead brother’s voice and rang bells in the dark – Houdini built a box for her and accused her of fraud.

  4. 1930–1939

    1. 1936 Séances and mediums · Explained The Final Houdini Séance Rooftop of the Knickerbocker Hotel, Hollywood, Los Angeles, United States On the tenth anniversary of Houdini’s death his widow and friends waited on a Hollywood hotel roof for a sign from the magician – the world listened on the radio.

  5. 1940–1949

    1. 1944 Séances and mediums · Hoax Helen Duncan – England’s Last “Witch” Master Temple Psychic Centre, Copnor Road, Portsmouth, United Kingdom A Portsmouth medium was arrested mid-séance and convicted under the Witchcraft Act of 1735 – earlier she had “known” about the sinking of a battleship.

  6. 1970–1979

    1. 1972–1973 Séances and mediums · Disputed The Philip Experiment – a Ghost Invented in Toronto Toronto, Ontario, Canada A Toronto group invented a ghost of an English nobleman who never existed – and after months of sittings “Philip” began rapping answers and moving the table.
    2. 1976–1980 Séances and mediums · Disputed A Letter from Beyond the Grave in a Goiânia Court Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil A 15-year-old was killed by a friend's accidental shot in 1976. The court acquitted the friend after weighing a letter from the dead boy, written by a medium.