Haunting Story of Bell Witch Cave: How a Ghost Can Foresee the American Civil war? Know the Mystery!
Placed on the National Historical Registry by the US, The Bell Witch Cave is located in Adams, Tennessee, near where the Bell Farm once stood. Renowned for its paranormal activities, this place is one of the most known places across the United States of America. This cave is associated with the Bell Witch, which tormented the Bell Family in the 1800s.
The tale of The Bell Witch
Moved from North Carolina to Tennessee along with his wife and nine children, John Bell, a farmer by profession, bought land along the Red lake. They moved around 1804 and lived happily for 13 years. During this period, they earned quite a fortune.
In 1817, they started encountering some unusual activities around their place. Mr. Bell began seeing strange animals and creatures on his farm. Unexplained and mystic events started occurring, which were centred around Betsy, Mr. Bell's daughter.
They could hear someone's choking and gulping sound, chains being dragged here and there, the drooping sound of stones on the wooden floor, knocking on walls, and Betsy being attacked in her sleep leaving behind bruises and scars.
Even though terrified and shook, the Bell family never let a hint slip from them. But when it all got out of hand, they involved outsiders in the matter.
John asked his friend James Johnston and his wife, to stay with them for a week. And to their surprise, even Johnson and his wife could feel the mystic activities. Knocking on doors and walls, dragging chairs, movement in different objects.
The voice of the spirit grew louder over time, and it was evident that the spirit quoted the Bible and scriptures. Spirit vowed to kill John Bell and to never let Betsy marry his lover Joshua Gardner. And it is said that these are two main reasons why the spirit returned.
The mystic force always introduced itself as a different person. Once when asked about her identity, she said that she is the spirit of the Bell family's neighbour Kate Batts. And from then on, the spirit was addressed as 'Kate.'
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In the coming years, no one knew that they would be tormented and harassed by the spirit, especially Betsy, who received a lot of physical abuse. John, as believed, was under the spirit's spell, and thereof his physical condition (health) deteriorated.
Kate, the spirit, seemed to get really popular because of her knowledge of the Bible, people's past and future. Many people visited the Bell family. They all were assumed by the ability of Kate in multiple places at a time.
The news spread in the community like a plague, and the church excommunicated John Bell, somewhere around 1818. On December 20, 1820, Kate accomplished her mission, and John Bell died. Rumours were he was poisoned by Kate, and the spirit took full responsibility. And on March 21, 1821, Betsy broke off her engagement with Joshua Gardner.
Return of Kate
A year after John Bell's burial, Kate told Betsy that she will return after seven years. In 1828, precisely seven years later, the supernatural entity made her last official recorded appearance, in discussion with John Bell, Jr., in which she informed him about the Civil war.
After her visit, she said her second visit will be a hundred and seven years later. Some believe she never left the place, which can account for the reason behind the supernatural happenings in the house as well in the town.
Attack on the Cinema
Roger Clarke, former film critic for The Independent, argued that the spirit had a conspicuous and measurable effect on the movies such as the Poltergeist film series, the found footage Paranormal Activity film series, The Witch released in 2015, the trope of burial ground disturbance in The Amityville Horror, and the apparat of cherries to the children in Mama released in 2013.
Cursed: A Documentary
In 2015 when a psychic named Sarah Dulaney Pugh released a series titled 'Cursed' in which she claimed to have spoken with the deceased John Bell's daughter Betsy and that she knows the actual witch story. She said that it was not the family who was cursed, but the land itself.
Pugh also made a fascinating revision on John Bell's death, which brought some doubt on the year's old legend. Based on her communication with the departed Betsy, the clairvoyant stated that John was murdered by a slave who rose up against the patriarch.
The slave was angered when John did not step in to stop another family member from abusing Betsy, so the slave took justice into his own hands.
Conclusion
Visitors claimed to have heard some noises, whispers, and movements thought nothing remarkable has been recorded or even noted till now. The Bell Witch legend is still a doubtful tale, but of course, there is no way to know what's true or not.
But instances, citing and description of various people who visited, including the 7th US president, Andrew Jackson, proves that something happened in time immemorial that has haunted the farm for years and left many with supernatural, completely unrealistic and life-long impressions of what we can call a "ghost."
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