Continued from
The true story of the Bell Witch
The Bell Witch was real. By the end of 1817, it had been witnessed by most of the Bell family and at least one outsider.
The Bell Witch became a sensation. Neighbors–and even strangers–travelled great distances to visit the Bells, hoping to see evidence of their ghost… or demon.
Even Andrew Jackson–soldier and future President–tried the spend the night at the Bell
home, and fled in terror.
This was one of the worst things that could happen to a church-going family in the early 19th century. Now, the Bell family was known far and wide for their possible associations with the Devil.
A court case, and excommunication
In the midst of this unwanted attention, John Bell was accused of usury. Kate Batts and her invalid husband, Benjamin, said that Mr. Bell overcharged when he sold slaves to them.
The church acquitted Mr. Bell, but the local magistrate found him guilty in criminal court.
This was what the community needed. Immediately, the church reversed their earlier decision.
They excommunicated John Bell.
The Bell Witch evil spreads
The Bell Witch, who now called herself “Kate,” began bothering the Bells’ neighbors. Her
voice was heard within their walls, at church, and even in the streets.
The Witch revealed the private thoughts of anyone and everyone, and usually at the most
embarrassing moments.
Some speculated that the Witch was actually “Kate Batts’ witch,” sent to get even with John Bell for his now-infamous business mistake.
But, that’s not the only reason why Kate Batt wanted revenge on the Bell family.
Kate Batts jilted by John Bell
Many years earlier, Kate Batts and John Bell had “kept company.”
In fact, Kate considered herself engaged to John Bell. She purchased her trousseau, and
boasted that she was marrying the heir to one of the South’s wealthiest families.
No one knows if there was really an agreement between John Bell and Kate Batts. However, he abruptly married Lucy Williams instead of Kate.
Miss Batts never recovered from the embarrassment.
More than one Bell Witch?
At least four other spirits acted on behalf of “Kate.” Their names included “Blackdog” and
“Jerusalem.”
Some of these spirits seemed very Christian. They quoted Scriptures and sang hymns. One even helped John Bell’s wife, Lucy, with her household chores.
“Kate” remained the most active among the spirits… and the most vocal.
The Bell Witch regularly interfered with the Bell family’s lives.
For example, when Betsy Bell became engaged to Joshua Gardner, the Bell Witch objected loudly and often. After repeated attacks by the Witch, Betsy broke off the engagement.
The Bell Witch kills John Bell
Soon after Betsy ended her engagement to Mr. Gardner, John Bell had a relapse. His tongue and jaw problems returned. His doctor prescribed medicine, but it only helped for awhile. The Bell Witch proclaimed that she was killing Mr. Bell. On December 20, 1820, she succeeded.
At John Bell’s burial, the Bell Witch was heard cackling at her evil deeds. As John Bell’s
family and neighbors stood in the cemetery watching as his body was lowered into the
ground, they were surrounded by eerie winds and laughter by the Bell Witch.
After the funeral, the Bell Witch remained in the area for a few weeks. Then she left, and
promised to return in seven years.
Did she make the Bell family rich?
She appeared as she’d promised. She spoke to John Bell, Jr. with his friend, Frank Miles. The Witch told the men about the upcoming Civil War, and about World Wars I and II. She predicted many things which later came true.
Did the Bell Witch help these men to succeed financially? Many people believe so. John Bell r. seemed to have an uncanny business sense after this, and became wealthy almost overnight.
According to some stories, John Bell Jr. left a document in his safe. It was to be opened after he died.
If it was ever found, the family did not say what the paper revealed.
According to both Bell and Miles, the Witch left and promised to return again in 107 years
(1935).
In 1886, the following story was published in The Goodspeed History of Tennessee.
A remarkable occurrence, which attracted widespread 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 it 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 return of the Witch
According to legend–and as she predicted–the Witch returned to “her” cave around 1935. This cave was on the original Bell plantation. It’s the same cave where the Bell children had played, and sometimes encountered her in the early 19th century.
In 1935, she appeared to several soldiers who were camping in the cave for the night.
According to one story, the skeptic in the group eventually died from the injuries caused by the Bell Witch. Those who survived her attack were never the same afterwards.
Next, read the rest of the story, Bell Witch – An American Haunting to find out what happened to the Bell family.
i would like to contact this witch.
if u have any info on how i may be able to do so, please contact me at [email address removed].
i would like to contact her without going to the direct sites.
iKandi,
I’m not sure what you’re asking. I mean, it’s not as if she has a phone or email.
I don’t mean to be flippant, but generally, the only way to hope to make contact with a spirit connected with a specific location is to go to that location.
I have edited out your email address to protect your privacy.
Sincerely, Fiona
is she still were why dose she hurt people they have thing to do with the bell family.
iKanda, just send an email to KateB.@ hellsahalfacre.com. She will be in touch with you shortly. Altho, I would be careful what you wish for, because once she contacts you, she won’t go away. If you have a cave on your property, she’ll like that even more.
Jim,
Is there something I don’t know about protecting the privacy of people who comment here? I thought I’d removed iKandi’s email address, so I’m not sure how someone would contact her. If you found iKandi’s information via a hack or somewhere else on this website, please let me know.
In addition, there is no domain, “hellsahalfacre.com.” HellsHalfAcre.com is owned by Jeff Carruth, and — at this time — redirects to a Texas state article.
Fiona Broome
I think he was joking with iKandi
Sarah, I’m fairly sure his entire comment was a joke, but sarcasm and humor don’t always convey well in text.
I particularly didn’t like his sinister suggestion that “…once she contacts you, she won’t go away.”
I’m not sure how old iKandi is, but the pre-edited context of her comment suggested a pre-teen girl. It’s not funny to scare kids, even if they started the dialogues themselves.
In addition, I don’t encourage minors to contact strangers online, even as a joke. I know of at least two child molesters who have been presenting themselves as respected members of the professional ghost hunting community. I shared the stage with one of them and had no idea he had a very dark and troubling history.
A third man was asked to leave a New England ghost team for inappropriate touching… that he still tries to defend. (This is the same guy who “jokingly” put his camera over a bathroom stall wall and took uninvited and inappropriate photos of another person at a ghost-related event.)
I don’t talk about this kind of thing very much, but it’s a growing concern among those of us who take this research very seriously.
The sharing of email addresses — even pretend ones — is one reason I’ve considered turning off all comments here.
Sincerely,
Fiona
Jim & iKandi,
what do you mean by “contact her spirit”? If there is such a thing, why would you want to? There is no reason, and that’s just messing with things you shouldn’t. A spirit named “john” followed me around for almost a year, tormenting me, telling me to die and that i was completely worthless, and i started getting all suicidal, from what he told me. He has finally let,but he would do almost anything to tick me off as well, such as making my ankle turn red and swell up. i got this checked by doctors, who could not find anything wrong.
Please think and care more for yourself
how is she still alive but her ghost haunted them
how is she haunting them but she was still alive trying to do a research paper but cant get the right information please help if you can i would realy appreciate it
Thanks,
Chelsea
Chelsea,
The Bell Witch — if there ever really was one — cannot be both alive and a ghost. If she’s a ghost, she may be “alive” in another reality or dimension, but in our world, she’s not considered “alive.”
However, if what’s in the Bell Witch cave isn’t a ghost, she may be alive… just not human. She could be a demon, an alien, a faerie, or something else altogether.
In my opinion, the Bell family may have been tormented by more than one entity, but most of the mischief was caused by the schoolteacher who later married the Bell daughter. In fact, it seems to me (and several other skeptical researchers) that at least 95% of the problems were caused by someone very human and alive, not a ghost/witch.
I hope that clears up the misunderstanding.
Sincerely, Fiona
Do you thing the bell witch is a deamon and not a ghost?
John
John,
I’m not even convinced it’s a ghost. If anything is still there, it’s in the cave. As long as it stays there, I don’t see any reason to be concerned about it.
The events around Betsy Bell may have been mostly a hoax. The schoolteacher married her, and things settled down.
From what I’ve seen, the thing in the cave may be something entirely different. I’m not sure what it is, but I probably wouldn’t visit it.
Sincerely,
Fiona Broome
This story interests me alot mainly because i am related to the John Bell. I wish i could go to were this happened and take a look around. Maybe someday…
my comment is below, my brother now lives in the seattle area, and met a descendant of John Bell, while visiting a local church there……is that you, by any chance?
Fiona,
I am very interested in the story of the Bell Witch and love to have insight such as your own. I would like to know if you have visited the location where the Bell Witch is said to be seen and if you’ve had any experience with ‘it’ yourself?
having grown up in tennessee, and family coming from very near adams, tn, i would offer that you peruse a copy of M.V. Ingram’s “an authenticated history of the bell witch” while the skeptics have their own point of view, this historical documentary reflects authentic interviews with folks who were actually there, at the time. why this mysterious spirit came into contact with the Bell family may never be known, but not to be “blown off” as some pranksters pulling off some stunt.
If that comment is aimed at me, I’ve never said that the entire experience was just a “stunt.” I believe some of what happened — not all of it — was a hoax by one person, aided by the work of someone else. The evidence is compelling.
However, no matter how much of it was paranormal, the experiences were real. They profoundly impacted the Bell family and the people who knew them.
Likewise, I would never “blow off” any situation that resulted in death. That’s not a prank, and shouldn’t be treated by one, regardless of its cause. Using words like that trivializes the tragedies associated with the Bell Witch, and polarizes those of us who’ve spent years researching the case, including the Ingram reference.
i stand corrected, and apologize for any offense (none intended) it is a very interesting bit of history, and i hope you will accept my apology, no comment of mine was aimed at anyone. and yes, the M.V. Ingram book is an interesting account indeed. kindly accept my apology, and i will peruse the postings on your site with more care before i “speak before i think” (the dangers of typing online
thank you for responding, and i plan to visit Adams, Tn. very soon. more than likely now days just a nice little spot by the Red River. thank you again, and i am sorry i was negligent in reading the information you provide more carefully before submitting my comment.
Usually I’m a huge cynic when it comes to these things, but I did a raft trip down the red river the other day. There was no doubt that that area has a bad vibe.
Hello:
There is much on your site that is in error and complete and utter contradiction to the basic facts laid down by M.V. Ingram. There is also the historical record such as it is in connection with this event.
By what of authority I am a Great, Great, Great Grandson of John Bell, Sr. through the marriage of his daughter Esther to Alexander Bennett Porter.
I was born and raised in Yalobusha, County, Mississippi (Where Jesse and Esther moved) and have “lived” with “Kate” as a part of my family my entire life.
I am currently embarked on several projects related to this “legend” and was “surfing the web” when I came accross yours.
My Mother was a firm believer in the phenomena as am I, though there are others in our family (Esther’s side) who do not discuss these events nor do they believe in them. On Aunt Betsy’s side, it is almost complete silence even unto the current generation.
Are you aware that, because of repeated vandalism, the family recently removed Betsy’s original headstone in Longbranch Cemetery and replaced it with a hideous “modern” one with an incorrect inscription?
If you would like to talk more, please contact me.
Dear Mr. Cox:
I’m sure there are many errors throughout this website. It represents nearly 20 years’ research & writing, online, and another 20 years’ work before that. If I didn’t change my opinions, I’d have stagnated and been a far less effective researcher. However, updating all 500+ articles at this website… that’s not a productive use of my time.
However, my Bell research has never disputed the existence or reality of the phenomena. My only questions are just how much can be explained, and
I don’t accept that the Ingram version is entirely factual, as additional information came to light after that. (Including information from descendants, who may be part of an apparently silent side of the family.) This includes a greater emphasis on the hidden passages and secret access to many homes, known to the schoolmaster and his father, who was one of the builders.
We have to consider the possibility that some of the “secrets” revealed by the Bell Witch actually involved ventriloquism or other deliberate use of information gathered without the knowledge of the victims.
I am horrified by the vandalism at Betsy’s stone and at haunted locations — particularly graves — aggravated by “ghost hunters.” Now that some “ghost hunting” events include a BYOB note… I’m disgusted by what this field has become. It’s a significant part of some recent decisions I’ve made regarding this field.
I urge you to write your own book to explain what really happened. A family member, on the record, explaining this… it’d be a tremendous help for those of us who want to understand the truth behind the stories.
Sincerely,
Fiona Broome, founder of HollowHill.com
http://FionaBroome.com/
Hi I just got done reading all of these post. But the reason I got into the bell witch is from the blair witch. I was wondering if you guys have any info on the blair witch to.
Thank you
Tellmore, search on “Blair Witch” in the Search form on the right side of this page. You’ll find more articles about it. Here’s one: The real ‘Blair Witch’ ghosts – part one.
I just watched the American Haunting film with my girlfriend and found it very intriguing. This is the first research I have ever done over this subject. I find it quite fascinating and it seems to me that the Bells must have broke a truce they had with the spirit to begin with. Maybe one day I will be able to visit this site to see what it’s all about.