The spiritualism movement began in 1848 when Maggie (age 14) and Kate Fox (age 11) pulled pranks on their family. By cracking their ankles, they fooled their parents—and, later, massive audiences—into believing the “rapping” sounds were communications from ghosts.
They soon became national celebrities and traveled extensively, giving séances and demonstrations of their messages with spirits. Maggie really did come clean about their act in 1888 but recanted her confession the following year. No matter, spiritualism had already taken hold, particularly in the United States.
Spiritualism crossed the Atlantic to become popular in Britain as well. Considering how obsessed the Victorians were with death and death-related traditions, it makes sense that they would take an interest in the movement. Sherlock Holmes author Arthur Conan Doyle and his wife were avid spiritualists. There is an interesting story about Queen Victoria seeking the services of a medium in order to speak to her beloved husband Albert but this is likely an urban myth.
Two other major events overlapped in the 19th century that helped the spiritualism movement become a success: the women’s suffrage movement and the American Civil War.
Many women who made their living as spiritualists also supported women’s voting rights. Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for president in the United States, was a spiritualist. Although obviously done for different reasons, women’s suffrage rallies and spiritualism spectacles were both opportunities for women to speak publicly in front of large crowds and gain notoriety—for many women, this would have previously been unheard of.
As for the Civil War, thousands of young men were killed and bereaved relatives were desperate to speak to their lost sons, brothers, and husbands. Spiritualism provided that opportunity for communication and closure.
The buzz around spiritualism died down for a while but then spiked in popularity again directly after the First World War.
Thank you to Jennifer Quinlan and Colleen McKie for whipping this book into shape.
Thank you to Peter Rukavina for showing me his printing press. Although this book didn’t end up including much about the publishing process, seeing the press did give me an understanding of the time and skill it would take to create a publication.
Thank you to my family for their support and my darling husband for his endless patience.