Page 77 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - February 2023 Edition

Hoax Sparked Spiritualism Craze 77

How a Hoax by Two

Sisters Helped Spark the

Spiritualism Craze

When two young sisters claimed
to communicate with ghosts in

the mid-1800s, they soon became
celebrity mediums and

unwittingly spurred a trend.

In March 1848, two young sisters in
Hydesville, New York came up with what
they may have considered a fun prank.
Teenager Maggie Fox and her younger

sister Kate claimed that there was a spirit
communicating with them by making
otherworldly raps on the walls and
furniture of their house. When their
mother asked how many children she’d
had, the spirit appeared to rap out the
correct number. One of their neighbors the sisters were just cracking their value. Yet for many people,
reportedly witnessed these sounds, and joints—but many others believed that demonstrations of spiritualism were not
word spread that there was something they were witnessing a true spiritual only believable, but deeply comforting.

strange going on at the Fox house. phenomenon. Soon, other people began
to open their own shows in which they During and after the Civil War, many

Maggie and Kate made these noises by claimed to be “mediums” who could Americans found solace in the idea that
cracking their knuckles, toes and other communicate with the dead. they could communicate with the people
joints—a fact Maggie confessed to the they’d lost. One of these people was
New York World 40 years later, in 1888. One of the key aspects that differentiated Mary Todd Lincoln. During Abraham
By that point, the childhood prank had the spiritualism craze from religious and Lincoln’s presidency, the first lady held
spun out of control, and the now adult spiritual beliefs that came before it was séances in the White House to try to
sisters had become famous mediums. The its connection to the growing media and communicate with her dead children.
Fox sisters and their public séances entertainment industries in the United
helped spark a spiritualism craze in the States and Europe. People in the business The spiritualism craze also found many

United States and Europe built on the of spiritualism gave paid theatrical followers in Europe. After the death of
belief that it was possible for living performances featuring elaborate Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert,
humans to communicate with the dead. lighting, music and table-tipping séances. in 1861, the queen held many séances in
The Fox sisters became celebrities, and Buckingham Palace in order to talk to

The Business of Spiritualism so too did other self-proclaimed him.
mediums.

Maggie’s confession to the New York
Soon after Maggie and Kate’s
In the 1850s, Ira and William Davenport World in 1888 that her and her sister’s
supernatural discoveries, the girls went to
became famous for what was essentially communication with the dead had been a
live with their older sister Leah in
a magic show whose tricks they hoax—as well as her public
Rochester. When the supernatural
attributed to spiritual intervention. Many demonstration of how she cracked joints
occurrences continued, Leah “decided to
stage magicians differentiated themselves to make “rapping” noises—was big news
turn this into a little bit of a business,”
from spiritualists like the Davenport among people interested in spiritualism.
says Nancy Rubin Stuart, author of The
brothers by exposing what spiritualists
Reluctant Spiritualist: The Life of
did as a hoax (something for which At the public demonstration, attended by
Maggie Fox.
illusionist Harry Houdini later became Kate and held shortly after the
famous). Despite these exposures, publication of Maggie’s confession, the
In November 1849, at Rochester’s
spiritualism remained extremely popular New York Herald reported that Maggie
Corinthian Hall, Maggie and Kate
throughout the 19th century. “was greeted with cheers and hisses.”
demonstrated their powers to a paying
crowd of nearly 400 people. Newspapers
Not everyone who attended spiritualism “When I began this deception I was too
began to report on the girls, and the
shows believed what they were seeing. young to know right from wrong,”
sisters soon held public demonstrations in
Some went as skeptics who wanted to see Maggie told the crowd, according to the
New York City.
for themselves if there was anything Herald.
convincing about what the Fox sisters or
Plenty of people denounced the girls as
other mediums did. Some attendees may (Continued on Page 78)
fakes—and some correctly guessed that
have gone simply for the entertainment