Paranormal researcher Gilane Sherwood identifies five sequential stages of poltergeist behavior:
sensory (sensations and smells),
communicative (groans, voices, cries),
physical (touching, slamming doors, etc.),
meaningful (throwing objects, deliberate actions aimed at causing fear),
aggressive (bites, blows, the appearance of blood on the walls, threatening inscriptions, the occurrence of unexplained painful conditions in the victim).
Upon reaching the last stage, the poltergeist, having reached the peak of activity, suddenly subsides and after a while reappears, starting the cycle from the first stage.
Let's see how it all happened with the Bells.
This story began almost two hundred years ago, in 1817.
Young farmer John Bell with his entire family (he had a large family: John himself, his wife Lucy and nine children) moved from North Carolina to the Red River Valley, Robertson County, Tennessee.
He settled in the community of Adams, bought a plot of land and a spacious house from a woman named Kate Butts.
Subsequently, Kate claimed that John Bell had deceived her during the deal, but Kate was old, did not enjoy special love from her neighbors, and no one listened to her claims: you never know what the old woman is talking about!
And it was worth listening to.
Many later recalled that "Old Butts" vowed to punish the deceiver, even if for this she had to return from the grave.
Things were going well for John Bell and his family. Soon he was able to buy some more land, cleared the field and started growing cotton. Over time, John Bell made new friends, became a respected person, and his opinion was taken into account in the community.
No one could have thought that very soon the quiet life of the Bells would come to an end.
The Bell House, bought from Kate Butts.
One day in 1817, John was walking around his cornfield when he came across a strange animal with the body of a dog and the head of a rabbit. Startled by the sight of a strange creature, Bell fired several shots at him and the beast disappeared.
Probably, later the farmer more than once recalled this meeting - after all, it was from her that his misadventures began.
Late in the evening of the same day, when the whole family was assembled, a knock was heard. It got louder and louder until finally there was a terrible noise. It felt like someone was pounding on the walls with all their might.
Bell and his sons ran outside to catch the one who was knocking, but returned with nothing: no one was found near the house, the yard was empty, and the old watchman swore that no one even came close to the house. Several times during the evening the farmer walked around the house with a gun, trying to figure out what was wrong.
The sound did not come from outside, but as if from the walls - but how could this be?!
Did John Bell think that from that day on his life would change forever and that he, an ordinary person, faced face to face with something that had no explanation and from which it was impossible to defend himself?
The knocking repeated every night, getting louder and louder until it became a roar. The Bell family sat awake. A strange knock caused anxiety and fear, but so far, for the time being, people's fears were connected, so to speak, with earthly affairs.
The year was 1817, human trafficking flourished in the southern states, and there were rumors among the planters that slaves sometimes killed their masters or their loved ones. Bell also had slaves working on the cotton plantations, and, of course, the first thing he thought of was on them. Could any of his slaves plot evil and take revenge on the owner?
But John was a zealous Christian, treated the slaves well, so that, on reflection, he was forced to admit that they had nothing to do with it.
Soon strange sounds began to be heard already inside the house. It was as if some evil spirit had come to plague the family, and he began with the children. They woke up at night, because someone gnawed the legs of the beds, scraped the floor with their claws, pulled off the blankets, threw pillows on the floor. Sometimes you could hear an invisible door slamming, someone scratching the glass with their nails, and sometimes in the middle of the night there was a sudden flapping of wings and a growl over the children's beds.
One night, the youngest son of the Bells, Richard, woke up because someone grabbed his hair. The boy screamed in pain and immediately heard the others screaming, whom the evil spirit dragged by the hair.
Now it was no longer enough for the ghost to scare people: he began to harass them.
Belov's youngest daughter, Betsy, who was then 12 years old, was especially hard hit.
Betsy Bell.
Her spirit was especially disliked. He either pinched her, then beat her (the bruises and abrasions on the girl’s body did not go away for weeks), then tore her hair out, then gave her slaps in the face.
Shortly thereafter, the knocking and rumbling subsided. Now a faint, quiet voice could be heard in the house, very similar to the voice of an old, infirm woman. For days on end, the invisible woman mumbled, wept, or lamented, barely audible.
"Who are you?" - John Bell asked her and immediately received an answer.
“I am a witch,” a female voice replied. “I am the spirit of a witch!”
Since then, the evil ghost has become known as the Bell Witch.
By the way, she terrorized not only the owners.
Once a guest spent the night in Bell's house. At night, when everyone had settled down, the guest's blanket suddenly flew off and hung in the air, clearly outlining an invisible human figure. The guest turned out to be not a timid one. He jumped up, grabbed a blanket in an armful and shouted to the owner that he had caught the ghost of a witch.
They wanted to burn the blanket along with the witch in the hearth, but no such luck.
Before the guest had time to take a step to the hearth, the room was suddenly filled with a terrible stench. The stench was so strong that the guest, leaving the captured ghost, rushed out of the room. When, after some time, John and his guest decided to enter the house, the nauseating smell had already disappeared, and the blanket was lying on the floor.
From trying to catch her, the witch became even more furious.
Driven to despair, John decided to consult with his old friend James Johnson, who was very knowledgeable in the occult sciences. First, Johnson and his wife came to the Bell house and spent one night there.
The “witch” harassed them in the same way as the Bells themselves: kicked, pinched, pulled their hair. After James Johnston's blanket was repeatedly thrown to the floor and after several very tangible blows, Johnston jumped out of bed and loudly exclaimed: "I ask you in the name of the Lord God, who are you and what do you want?"
He did not wait for an answer, but the evil ghost calmed down and the rest of the night passed quietly.
The next morning, Johnston, after conferring with John Bell, decided to perform an exorcism ritual, which was supposed to forever expel the spirit of the witch from the house.
This is how the exorcism took place according to the Catholic rite. I wanted to post a few more photos here, but then I thought that if someone is interested in exorcism, it is better to watch the movie "The Exorcist".
By the way, in early Christianity it was believed that the ability to exorcise evil spirits is a special gift that both a priest and a layman can be endowed with, but from the year 250 one of the lowest positions in the church hierarchy was introduced - an exorcist, endowed with special powers.
Exorcism was directly and unequivocally classified as a labor of faith, and, naturally, could not be performed by order or by virtue of appointment.
Great (large) or solemn exorcism, has the goal of expelling the evil spirit from the possessed and freeing him from demonic influences. This sacramental can only be given by a bishop or a spiritual person who has been given the appropriate permission by the bishop. The rite is served according to the Roman ritual.
Small, simple or personal exorcisms in Catholicism, unlike Orthodoxy, are not exorcisms in the full sense of the word and do not contain formulas of a great exorcism, for example, direct orders given to an evil spirit. Small exorcisms are prayers for the personal use of all believers, for example, in moments of temptation or torment caused by an evil spirit. These prayers are not full-fledged exorcisms, although they are aimed at liberation from demonic influences (with the exception of possession).
Be that as it may, the exorcist from Johnston turned out to be unimportant: the spirit subsided for only a few days.
For several days the Belov family enjoyed peace and quiet and hoped that their torment was over.
Their dreams, alas, were not destined to come true.
The vengeful ghost returned and brought down all his anger on Betsy.
The witch dragged her by the hair so that the girl squealed in pain and fear, pinched her, punched her in the face several times.
Parents began to fear for her life, especially since Betsy, who had never complained about her health before, suddenly began to lose consciousness, fell into a kind of trance and did not come to her senses for almost an hour. Now the spirit of the witch spoke only in the presence of Betsy, as if drawing vitality from the energy of the girl. When Betsy was absent or unconscious, the spirit of the witch was silent. It was even suspected that the girl was engaged in ventriloquism, but it was not possible to prove this.
In the meantime, rumors about the "Witch of Bells" reached the city of Nashville, where Andrew Jackson, a general who was well acquainted with the two Bell brothers, John and Jesse Bell, became interested in them - they fought under his command in the battle of New Orleans.
He decided to personally visit Belov and see with his own eyes what was happening there.
General Jackson did not go on his way alone: he was accompanied by several people. They rode in a large van, but as soon as they approached the Bells' land, the van suddenly stopped. The horses tried to move him, but he seemed to be rooted into the ground!
In vain trying to push the van from its place, Jackson exclaimed that all this was nothing but the tricks of the "witch". As soon as he said this, a woman's voice, coming from nowhere, spoke to them. The woman said that now they could go on, but that they would meet again that evening. After that, the van started off and Jackson and his comrades continued on their way.
In the evening, General Jackson and John Bell Jr. talked for a long time, recalled the past, and Jackson's companions patiently waited for the evil spirit to finally appear. Suddenly, one of Jackson's men, who was tired of waiting, decided to fool around. He took out a gun and declared that he would be a "witch tamer", now he would call her and kill her.
And at that very moment the man began to scream in pain. Later, he said that at that moment he felt needles stick into him and someone began to beat him cruelly.
The frightened "witch tamer" and the rest of the people began to beg Jackson to leave immediately. They did not spend the night in the "cursed" house, but settled down for the night in a wagon, in a field, but even there they were afraid of a vengeful spirit.
It all ended with the fact that the next day, Jackson and his people left the Bell farm. General Jackson himself, the hero of the battle of New Orleans, recalling this incident, said: "I would rather fight the whole British army than deal with one Bell witch." Andrew Jackson later became President of the United States.
No one succeeded in coping with the "Bell Witch".
She tormented the family for several years, especially John himself and his daughter Betsy. When Betsy grew up, she began dating a young man named Joshua Gardner, who lived near the Bell farm. An engagement was announced, but the spirit of the witch announced that the wedding would not happen.
He poisoned Betsy and Joshua, pursued them both in the house, and on the river, and in the field, threw stones at them, taunted, pulled their hair and, in the end, swore that if they got married, he would not give the newlyweds a minute rest.
On Easter Monday, 1821, Betsy and Joshua's engagement was broken off.
Having achieved her goal, the “witch” left Betsy alone, but set about John Bell: she announced that she would take him to the grave.
From that day on, Bell's health began to deteriorate.
In addition, he suffered a strange disease: his jaws were stiff, and his tongue was swollen to such an extent that it did not fit in his mouth. He could hardly eat and barely spoke. Attacks began that lasted for hours, followed by a nervous tic, which turned into convulsions.
He almost did not go out anywhere, because during the time the witch pulled off his shoes, pushed and beat him.
In the autumn of 1820, John Bell tried for the last time to get out of bed and walk to the farm, however, the witch did not allow him to do so.
“Father staggered as if he had received a blow to the head,” recalls his son Richard, “and heavily settled on a log lying by the side of the road. His face twitched; grimaces quickly replacing one another distorted it.” John Bell's shoes fell off his feet. The boy tried to help his father put on shoes, but the shoes immediately fell off again. There was noise in the air at that time: frantic swearing, mocking singing and screaming. When everything calmed down and the convulsions stopped, the weakened John, who received in addition a strong crack from the spirit, sat down on a fallen tree and began to cry. The witch nevertheless broke the will of this strong and self-confident person.
After that, John Bell fell ill and never got up again. On December 18, 1820, when the whole family gathered in the patient's bed, he was given his usual medicine. Immediately, his state of health deteriorated sharply, the agony began, which lasted until the morning. In the morning, John Bell breathed his last.
The household found a small vial of medicine that Bell had taken the day before and, suspecting the worst, John Bell Jr. gave the pet cat a taste of this liquid. The cat died immediately.
At this point, the "witch" triumphantly announced, "I gave Old Man Jack a good dose of this stuff last night and it helped him."
Instead of sending the liquid for examination, John Bell Jr. threw a vial of the remaining liquid into the fireplace, so the cause of the elder Bell's death could not be determined.
Although these terrible events took place a very long time ago, at the beginning of the 19th century, there has still not been a ghost in America that could do more trouble than the evil Bellov witch, who has earned herself the fame of the most famous ghost in the United States. The Bell family's haunting is one of the most celebrated mysteries in American history.
It all started in 1817. Prosperous farmer John Bell of Adams, Tennessee began to see ghost dogs and giant phantom birds. He shot at them, but the shots did not frighten these "creatures". For a year, the ghost tormented John and Lucy Bell and their eight children. They heard knocking and grinding near the house. Inside the house, giant rats seemed to be gnawing at the legs of the beds and scratching the floor. The bedspreads slipped from the beds, and the sleeping inhabitants of the house woke up from the slaps of invisible hands, which, moreover, pulled them by the hair.
Over time, whistles began to be heard, and then words. At first, the voice claimed that he was "everywhere, in heaven, in hell and on earth. I am in the air, in houses, everywhere and always. I was born millions of years ago. That's all I'll tell you." The spirit later announced that he was "old Kate Bathe, a witch, and I have decided that I will persecute and torture old John Bell as long as he lives." According to one version, Kate once made a bad deal with John Bell and now wanted revenge. The witch Kate Bathe was a prophetess. She reportedly predicted the American Civil War and both world wars. Rumors about her spread throughout the country, and President Andrew Jackson decided to visit the Bell farm, accompanied by an exorcist. After attempting to shoot Kate with a silver bullet, the killer was slapped in the face by unseen forces and quickly retreated.
Most of all, the rich planter was furious with the witch for upsetting the engagement of Betsy, his daughter. The ghost at the guests let out such dirty words about the girl and her fiancé that Betsy ran away in tears and locked herself in her room. Immediately after this incident, John saw a whitish transparent silhouette in the corner of the living room, the planter grabbed his saber and shouted: "I will destroy you, fiend!" - rushed to strike at the ghost. Of course, he did no harm to the spirit, but it made him very angry. The witch began to take revenge on the owner of the house. At first, it was as if a stick had been thrust into John's mouth: his jaw and tongue were stiffened to such an extent that he could neither eat nor speak. The planter's face twitched with convulsions, causing terrible grimaces. In 1820, while walking with her son, the witch pulled off his shoes several times, weakened John, who, in addition, received a strong crack from the spirit, sat down on a fallen tree and began to cry. The witch nevertheless broke the will of this strong and self-confident person.
Shortly after this incident, John fell into a coma. It turned out that the witch had changed his bottle of medicine for a vial of some suspicious liquid, which he apparently took. The turmoil at home was exacerbated by the announcement of the spirit that the elder Bell was no longer a tenant in this world. The arriving doctor decided to test the "medicine" of the witch from a bottle on a cat that turned up under the arm, and she immediately died. It became clear that old Bell would not last long, a few hours later the planter died. Even after death, the ghost mocked poor John to his heart's content. During the funeral, heart-rending cries of the witch, then her daring songs were heard. It is not known whether the elder Bell stood up for his family in the next world or entered into an invisible battle with this evil spirits, but a few months later, when one day the whole family was sitting at the dinner table, there was a terrible roar, a cannonball fell into the fireplace and immediately exploded. After such a "spectacular" introduction, the witch's voice was heard: "I'm leaving, wait for me in seven years." Of course, when this period passed, Lucy and her two sons, who from the whole family remained to live in the house, felt out of place.
The witch kept her word, seven years later suspicious sounds began to be heard in the house again, and the invisible man pulled the blankets off the sleeping ones. But whether the witch missed the presence of Betsy, or was struck by the indifference of the household, who agreed among themselves not to pay any attention to the spirit, this time the ghost disappeared, not having lasted in the house for two weeks. True, a couple of times in 1828 it visited the house of John Bell Jr., threatening him to return in 107 years ... Such a promise of a witch, most likely, did not frighten the Bells, hardly any of them intended to live so long.
Although this mysterious and tragic story happened a long time ago, researchers of anomalous phenomena are still arguing about this mysterious case. The fact is that the case of the Bellov witch had too many witnesses to be a hoax or fiction. Richard, son of John Bell, even wrote a book about the tyranny of the ghost called "Our Family Troubles". Some consider this case a classic manifestation of a poltergeist, others see it as a riot of diabolical forces, others even insist on the hypothesis of a mass hallucination... Well, a hallucination that lasts several years... There is something in it. Some suspect that John Bell was poisoned not by the invisible witch, but by some cunning killer. Like it or not, we have no way of knowing.
The Bell Witch Cave is an eerie place located in the American town of Adams, Tennessee. It all started in 1817, when successful farmer John Bell began to see phantom animals. An unknown evil settled in the farmer's house and constantly tormented all its inhabitants: John, his wife Lucy and their seven children. At night, strange rustles and creaks were heard in the house. With each new day, or rather at night, the poltergeist became more active.
Finally, after some time, the evil spoke up: “I am everywhere! And in heaven, and in hell, and on earth. I am millions of years old, I am the witch Kate Bate. John Bell will not know what peace is until the end of his days, for a deal he made in his youth.
What John Bel did in his youth remained a mystery.
During her lifetime, Kate Bathe had a reputation as a witch. She predicted the American Civil War and the outbreak of World War I in Europe. Rumors of her return quickly spread throughout the United States. John Bell even turned to the exorcist to send the witch back to the afterlife, but a few strong blows from an invisible hand made the clergyman run away.
John Bell's death came after an evil spirit replaced a vial of medicine with a vial of poison that he drank. But even after death, the spirit of the witch mocked the dead John. During the funeral, everyone heard terrible screams and vulgar songs. A few days later, Lucy and her children heard the witch's voice in their house: "I'm leaving, but I'll be back in seven years."
Kate Bate did not break her promise, and exactly 7 years later, paranormal phenomena began to occur again in the Bell house. However, Lucy and her two sons, who stayed in the house, agreed to ignore the witch. And it really helped. However, the evil spirit promised to return in a hundred or two years to continue to take revenge on the descendants of John Bell.
Since then, a lot of water has flowed under the bridge, but this mystical story is still being discussed. There were too many witnesses to call this story fiction. Richard, son of John Bell, even wrote an autobiographical book about the tyranny of the poltergeist called Our Family Troubles.
The Bell Witch Cave is located 150 meters from where the farm used to be. It is believed that it was in this place that the spirit of the witch found refuge and restored its strength. Today the cave is located in a private area, but anyone can visit this creepy place.
And so, according to tradition, ugly at night)
Although these terrible events took place a very long time ago, at the beginning of the 19th century, there has still not been a ghost in America that could do more trouble than the evil Bellov witch, who has earned herself the fame of the most famous ghost in the United States. The Bell family's haunting is one of the most celebrated mysteries in American history.
It all started in 1817. Prosperous farmer John Bell of Adams, Tennessee began to see ghost dogs and giant phantom birds. He shot at them, but the shots did not frighten these "creatures". For a year, the ghost tormented John and Lucy Bell and their eight children. They heard knocking and grinding near the house. Inside the house, giant rats seemed to be gnawing at the legs of the beds and scratching the floor. The bedspreads slipped from the beds, and the sleeping inhabitants of the house woke up from the slaps of invisible hands, which, moreover, pulled them by the hair.
Over time, whistles began to be heard, and then words. At first, the voice claimed that he was “everywhere, in heaven, in hell and on earth. I am in the air, in houses, everywhere and always. I was born millions of years ago. That's all I'll tell you." The spirit later announced that he was "old Kate Bathe, a witch, and I have decided that I will persecute and torment old John Bell as long as he lives." According to one version, Kate once made a bad deal with John Bell and now wanted revenge. The witch Kate Bathe was a prophetess. She reportedly predicted the American Civil War and both world wars. Rumors about her spread throughout the country, and President Andrew Jackson decided to visit the Bell farm, accompanied by an exorcist. After attempting to shoot Kate with a silver bullet, the killer was slapped in the face by unseen forces and quickly retreated.
Most of all, the rich planter was furious with the witch for upsetting the engagement of Betsy, his daughter. The ghost at the guests let out such dirty words about the girl and her fiancé that Betsy ran away in tears and locked herself in her room. Immediately after this incident, John saw a whitish transparent silhouette in the corner of the living room, the planter grabbed his saber and shouted: “I will destroy you, fiend!” - rushed to strike at the ghost. Of course, he did no harm to the spirit, but it made him very angry. The witch began to take revenge on the owner of the house. At first, it was as if a stick had been thrust into John's mouth: his jaw and tongue were stiffened to such an extent that he could neither eat nor speak. The planter's face twitched with convulsions, causing terrible grimaces. In 1820, while walking with her son, the witch pulled off his shoes several times, weakened John, who, in addition, received a strong crack from the spirit, sat down on a fallen tree and began to cry. The witch nevertheless broke the will of this strong and self-confident person.
Shortly after this incident, John fell into a coma. It turned out that the witch had changed his bottle of medicine for a vial of some suspicious liquid, which he apparently took. The turmoil at home was exacerbated by the announcement of the spirit that the elder Bell was no longer a tenant in this world. The arriving doctor decided to test the "medicine" of the witch from a bottle on a cat that turned up under the arm, and she immediately died. It became clear that old Bell would not last long, a few hours later the planter died. Even after death, the ghost mocked poor John to his heart's content. During the funeral, heart-rending cries of the witch, then her daring songs were heard. It is not known whether the elder Bell stood up for his family in the next world or entered into an invisible battle with this evil spirits, but a few months later, when one day the whole family was sitting at the dinner table, there was a terrible roar, a cannonball fell into the fireplace and immediately exploded. After such a "spectacular" introduction, the witch's voice was heard: "I'm leaving, wait for me in seven years." Of course, when this period passed, Lucy and her two sons, who from the whole family remained to live in the house, felt out of place.
The witch kept her word, seven years later suspicious sounds began to be heard in the house again, and the invisible man pulled the blankets off the sleeping ones. But whether the witch missed the presence of Betsy, or was struck by the indifference of the household, who agreed among themselves not to pay any attention to the spirit, this time the ghost disappeared, not having lasted in the house for two weeks. True, a couple of times in 1828 it visited the house of John Bell Jr., threatening him to return in 107 years ... Such a promise of a witch, most likely, did not frighten the Bells, hardly any of them intended to live so long.
Although this mysterious and tragic story happened a long time ago, researchers of anomalous phenomena are still arguing about this mysterious case. The fact is that the case of the Bellov witch had too many witnesses to be a hoax or fiction. Richard, son of John Bell, even wrote a book about the tyranny of the ghost called Our Family Troubles. Some consider this case a classic manifestation of a poltergeist, others see it as a riot of diabolical forces, others even insist on the hypothesis of a mass hallucination ... Well, a hallucination that lasts several years ... There is something in this. Some suspect that John Bell was poisoned not by the invisible witch, but by some cunning killer. Like it or not, we have no way of knowing.
The cave is associated with the witch and the period when those terrible events took place, but in fact she has no direct relation to them; however, many believe that when the witch left her family, it was in this cave that she found her refuge.
John Bell and Lucy Williams married in 1782. They settled on a farm in North Carolina and started their own family, eventually having 4 sons.
After a series of crop failures, they decided it was time to move. In 1805 they moved to the "barren prairie" of Tennessee, to what is now known as Robertson County.
The Bell family quickly settled into their new home, and John became a successful farmer, prominent member of the local community, and minister of Red River Baptist Church. The couple added another daughter and two sons to their family.
In 1817, the situation of the Bell family began to deteriorate rapidly. John Bell spotted a strange looking creature in one of his fields and shot at it several times. It must have missed the creature, and when he got home that evening, the sound of impacts on the outer walls of Bell's house began to be heard. The noise returned every night, and its strength and intensity increased. Although John tried to catch the creature that made the sounds, he always showed up too late.
Children began to complain that their blankets were being torn off at night, and whispers and chants began to sound throughout the house. An invisible creature began to mock a daughter named Betsy. The ghost, by then known in the community as "Witch Bell", became more and more violent until, on December 19, 1820, John Bell fell into a coma-like state.
He died the next morning, and his family found a small vial of liquid that they did not recognize. They gave some of the liquid from the vial to one of the farm cats, who quickly died. At this point, the creature gleefully claimed responsibility for John's supposed poisoning.
Although the witch Bell left after that, she promised to return after 7 years. Meanwhile, where did she go?
There is a basement on the Bell land plot. Archival records of the Bell Witch provide little information about the basement. Perhaps the basement was used as storage, perhaps the children sometimes played in it, as children often do, or perhaps the basement was indeed a gateway to hell. Perhaps Witch Bell had simply retired to the cool rest of the limestone corridors and secluded rooms.
Visitors to the Bell Witch's cellar can draw their own conclusions. Some heard voices in remote, inaccessible parts of the basement. Others felt an oppressive weight that literally made them fall to the ground. Lights and orbs can be observed flying throughout the basement and in the nearby sky at night.
Once upon a time, the skeleton of an Indian woman was buried in the basement, but thieves stole it. Subsequent visitors learned that taking the stones with them had dire consequences for them and their families.
Many visitors took pictures and found that some of their guests did not appear in their pictures, or additional people or even creatures appeared in the pictures that were not visible at the time the picture was taken.
The legend of the Bell Witch is a true story and one of the most well-documented ghost activities in America. The original Bell Farm is still a farm, but is no longer owned by the Bell family and is not open to the public. The Bell Witch's basement is located off the Keysburg Highway in Adams, Tennessee. It is open to tours by appointment only and is listed on the National Historic Register by the US Department of the Interior.
