She would not understand it and did not suspect us as being capable of a trick because we were so young."ĭuring the night of March 31, Kate challenged the invisible noisemaker, presumed to be a "spirit", to repeat the snaps of her fingers. In 1888, Margaretta told her story of the origins of the mysterious "rappings": "When we went to bed at night we used to tie an apple to a string and move the string up and down, causing the apple to bump on the floor, or we would drop the apple on the floor, making a strange noise every time it would rebound. The house had some reputation for being haunted, but it was not until late March that the family began to be frightened by unexplained sounds that at times sounded like knocking and at other times like the moving of furniture.
Hydesville no longer exists but was a hamlet that was part of the township of Arcadia in Wayne County, New York, just outside Newark. In 1848, the two younger sisters – Catherine (Kate) (age 11) and Margaretta (Maggie) (age 14) – were living in a house in Hydesville, New York, with their parents John and Margaret, who were Methodists. Despite their confession, the Spiritualism movement continued to grow in popularity. Margaretta attempted to recant her confession the next year, but their reputation was ruined and in less than five years they were all dead, with Margaretta and Kate dying in abject poverty. In 1888, Margaretta confessed that their rappings had been a hoax and publicly demonstrated their method. They all enjoyed success as mediums for many years. Their older sister then took charge of them and managed their careers for some time.
The two younger sisters used "rappings" to convince their older sister and others that they were communicating with spirits. The Fox sisters were three sisters from Rochester, New York who played an important role in the creation of Spiritualism: Leah (Ap– November 1, 1890), Margaretta (also called Maggie), (Octo– March 8, 1893) and Catherine Fox (also called Kate) (Ma– July 2, 1892). From left to right: Margaretta, Kate and Leah
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