Episode 27 Bell Witch

Dive in with Sabryna and Joey on Ghost and Gavel on the legend behind the Bell witch and why the haunting still hang around to this day. Where and when can you visit the area where it all took place? Don’t worry we go over that too.

Don’t forget that we now have a Patreon set up with a free option to listen to the episode, However, we do also have paid tiers with a couple extra incentives. Please be patient with us as we are doing this independently and figuring things out as we go along. We also have our social media pages Ghost and Gavel on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. If you have any of your own personal encounters that you would like to share, especially as they pertain to any of our episodes please feel free to email us at ghostandgavel@gmail.com.

Sources: 
Wikipedia.org
Tnmuseum.org
YouTube.com/twinparanormal
Bellwitchcave.com 

Transcript

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Welcome to Ghost and Gavel with Sabrina and Joey. Today we are in episode number twenty seven, and this one's gonna be handed over to Joey for the Bell Witch. The Bell Witch or the Bell Witch Hunting is a legend from Southern United States folklor centered on the nineteenth century Bell family of Northwest Robertson County, Tennessee. Former John Bell Sr. resided with his family along the Red River in an area currently near the town of Adams. According to legend, from eighteen seventeen to eighteen twenty-one, his family and the local area came under attack by mostly an invisible entity that was able to speak. Affect the physical environment and shape shift. Some account records the spirit also have been clavariant and capable of crossing long distances with superhuman speed or of being in more than one place at a time. Even the families' enslaved workers reported strange happenings, and an enslaved man named Dean said that he encountered the witch several times. He said the witch usually took the form of a dog like creature that sometimes had two heads. Dean admitted that soon after the counters he began carrying a witch ball made by his wife to protect him from harm. Did you say witch ball? Yes. Honestly, I've never heard of that. Neither have I. So if you'd like to, can you look that up to see what it is? As much as I do deep diving into witchy things. Actually, I think I have. Let me see if it's what I'm making of. Okay, so kinda, yeah. A handcrafted hollow glass sphere traditionally hung in windows or over doorways to ward off evil spirits, hexes, and ill fortune. So, yeah, it is what I was thinking. Something like this, and we can post it from our audience on our social media so they can see what we're talking about. But yeah, basically like taking one of those glass ornaments that you get at Christmas time and filling it with like herbs and stuff that would are said to be protective herbs and flowers and plants. But some of the family's neighbors and friends experience unusual counters with the witch as well. One incident involved a family friend named William Porter, in which he supposedly grabbed a hold of the witch and attempted to throw the visible entity into the fire. He was unsuccessful at the massive weight and terrible odor of the witch were too much for him to bear. After three years of nonstop attacks and harassment, John Bell's physical health started to decline. He became bedridden and eventually passed away in December of eighteen twenty. His family believed that the Bell Witch had caused the death by giving him a kind of poison. It was eventually said that the witch had crashed his funeral and sang cheers cheerfully drinking songs during the ceremony. After his death, the constant hauntings and abuse lists lessened, then eventually stopped altogether, just as a mystery as they began. Okay, so it's a mystery as to why he the bell witch attacked that specific person. It's not known, is what you're saying. Yep. Because that was gonna be my next question. Is there any reason as to why she attacked him specifically? Nope, it is all a mystery. Since that time, the legend of the bell witch has lived on by influencing popular culture throughout books, movies, television, and theater. While many view the story of the bell witch as a local folk tale, there are others who believe the hauntings did in fact take place and that there is still supernatural activity connected to the land to this day. Thousands of people flock to Adams every year to visit the original site of the Bell Witch haunting in hopes to experience something paranormal for themselves. So the Bell Witch came? Yep. I wanna go. You wanna go? You ain't taking no rocks. I didn't say I was gonna take nothing, but I wanna go. The hauntings began sometime in 1817 when John Bell witnessed the apparition of a strange creature representing a dog. I gotta remember this. Change that time limit when we're recording. Bell fired at the animal, but it disappeared. Johnson drew Bell approached an unknown bird perched on a fence that flew off and was very extraordinary size. The daughter Betsy observed a girl in a green dress swing it from a limb of an oak tree. Dean, a slave belonging to the Bell family, reported it being followed by a large black dog on evenings he visited his wife, actively moved to the Bell's household with knocking herd along the door and walls. The family heard sounds of growling on the beds, invisible dogs fighting, and chains along the floor. Among this time, John Bell began experiencing peristillus. Paralysis? Yes, in his mouth. The phenomenon grew and intensely as sheets were pulled from the bed when the children slept. Soon the entity pulled hair and scratched children and particular emphasis on Betsy, who was slapped, pinched, and stuck with pins. Stuck with pins? For the evening at the Bell home. Johnson was awakened that night by the same phenomenal. Phenomenon? Yes. That morning he had told John Bell in a it was a spirit just like in the Bible. Soon word of the haunting spread with some traveling great dissistance to see the witch. The apparition began to speak out loud. It was asked, Who are you and what do you want? And the voice answered freebly, I am a spirit. I was once very happy, but have been disturbed. The spirit of the spirit offered a device explanations of why it had appeared trying to its origin to disturb or to the disturbance of Native American burial mound located on the property. Okay, so that makes sense. I mean, you hear of a lot of hauntings and paranormal stuff coming from disturbances of burials. Yeah, especially being Native American too, yeah. Right. Well, there was that story I told in our first episode about how one house that we lived on was supposedly around Native American, built around Native American burial grounds. And we would hear drumming back in the woods. Um, and we even saw like apparitions of Native Americans passing by windows. Um there honestly, there had to be something Native American related because I did find things like arrowheads, spears, um daggers, and different things out in the woods that were Native American related. And St. Drew Bell and Beckett Porter on an unproductive search for the buried treasures. With the emergence of full conversations, the spirit repeated word for word the two sermons given thirteen miles apart at the same time. Entity the entity was well acquainted with Biblic texts and appeared to enjoy religious arguments. As another amusement, the witch shared gossip about activities in other households, and at times appeared to leave for brief moments to visit homes after an inquiry. Inquiry? John Johnson, a son of James, devised a test for the witch. Something no one outside of his family would know, asking the entity what his Dutch stepmother or his stepgrandmother in North Carolina would say to the slaves if she caught, if she thought they did something wrong, the witch applied with his grandmother's accents Hut, which had which has happened now in another account. An Englishman stopped to visit and offered to investigate on remaking on the families overseas. The witch suddenly began to mimic his English parents again in the early morning. The witch woke him to voices of his parents worried as they would. Skepticism. At times the spirit displayed a form of kindness, especially towards Lucy. John Bell's wife, the most perfect woman to walk the earth, the witch would give Lucy fresh fruit and sing rhymes to her and show John Bell Jr. a measure of respect. On April twenty-fourth, eighteen eighty, an article was published recording regarding a haunted house in Springfield, Tennessee, where knocking underneath the floor was heard. The fourth night of knockings began at 10:30 p.m. and ended at 4 a.m. With the home surrounded by 10 to 12 persons working in an effect to discover the origin of the sound in a follow-up report from April 26th, 1880. The writer reported that several hundred people have visited the home with tempting to witness the phenomenal with many camped out overnight despite the homeowners asking them to leave. On Wednesday night, April 28th, 1880, the family were reported to left the home for the night. And a smaller group of investigators around the home heard knocking from fifty yards away during the events. And people would come from all parts of the country, even as far as New York to hear or see her. Still in his own words, I'd rather go fight the entire British Army than face the Bell Witch ever again. Which I have mentioned that earlier. Yes, she did. There are more rumors that I have seen while doing my research that the spirit lives in the Bellwitch cave, that people would take rocks from the cave and eventually send the rocks back. That's why I mentioned let's not take rocks. I was just kidding. But I did like I don't remember which podcast it was that I was listening to, but I think I told you about this. They told a story about them going on a uh doing a live and one of their guests had actually brought them a rock from the Bell Witch, and even the Bell Witch cave, and even they refused. They were like, uh, no, I don't think we're gonna take that. Thank you for, you know, being kind and bringing us a gift, but that is something we definitely don't want to take home with us. Yeah, of course not. Who would? Then people who entered the cave today would hear growling and seeing a black figure and being attacked. And some people believe that the cave is a portal that whatever or whoever is still watching and waiting. I do have like just a little general information that I found out. But yes, they do do the Bell Witch Tours. Yes, I've heard. That's why I keep asking if we can please go. And they were closed for the 2025 season and will reopen in May of 2026. It's May. Actually, when this comes out, it'll be June. It's beyond May. But it's May right now. They're open. All admission tickets include a tour of the Bellwitch Cave and the John Bell Cabin. So May, they will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends, Saturday and Sunday. The last tour starts at 5 p.m. Then June and July open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. August and September open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Open Labor Day. October 3rd to November 9th. See October under the at the BWC under plan your visit for hours. New November hours, November 2nd, 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. November 8th and 9th, 10 p.m. to 4 p.m. Rest of the month, Saturday and Sunday only from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Last tour starts at 3 p.m. Closed December through April of 2026. Tickets are purchased on location. No reservations required. They are closed during and after heavy rain because of flooding. If there is or has been rain in the area, they will give updates on their website banner or the home page by 8 a.m. Or on their Facebook page. Or you can also call 615-696-3055 or 913-237-4955 for up-to-date information. Please see the waiver page. But when I was doing my research on the tours, uh Ida was doing the research during uh a part of time where I couldn't find a waiver page or I might have just overmissed it. But all of that information was on uh on their website, and all that is is just bellwitchcave.com. So we're planning a trip to the Bellwitch Cave then. Not ready to risk coming home with anything. No, because you ain't bringing no fucking rocks home from the Bell Witch. I'm not bringing no rocks home. I'm just saying that there's no you never I mean we watch ghost adventures and we know that they come home with stuff that has attached to them themselves. Not that they've necessarily brought it home in tension. Is that all you got? I was just going back to their website to see if I could find anything on the waiver page real quick. Okay, I did just find the waiver and restrictions thing I was just mentioning. But August must sign a waiver to access the Bellwitch Cave and or the John Bell Cabin. Okay, so it is that you must sign it, not just read? Yes. Okay. Good to know. Uh children under 18 must be uh a accompanied by an adult. The adults must sign a waiver for the minors if they are not able to do so. The a stereo historical Bellwitch Cave and John Bell Adams Cabin are not a ADA accessible. It is a nature cave with nature surrounding an uneven footing. People who are handicapped, disabled, or have impairments that limit their ability to see, bend, crouch, walk, on loose footing, climb, descend, ascend, steep hills should not pay omission to enter the cave or cabin. Flip-flops are highly discouraged, no food or drinks are allowed in the Bellwitch Cave and or John Bell Adam cabin. No smoking or vaping is allowed in the Bellwitch Cave or John Bell Cabin. Sorry, no pets allowed. Due to safety concern, children on three and under are not allowed in the cave. Parents who carry their children put them at a risk of being injured by having to duck, bend over, climb across rocks, or walk on loose footing while in the cave. Tour minimum is two people, no solo tours. Your feet may get wet in the Bellwitch Cave. We have rubber boots and disposable boot covers available to rent. So apparently I guess I missed all of that earlier. Well, if it was only on the waiver page that wasn't available when you look because they weren't open yet. And to make an appointment or call or text Candy at 913-237-4955. I think that was one of the numbers I mentioned earlier. A two-hour tour includes a lantern tour of the cabin, extended time in the cave, and exclusive access to an album of weird photographs taken here in the last 30 years. $35 a person, four-person minimum. Then a three-hour tour is the lantern tour of the cabin, extended time in the cave, exclusive access to the album of weird photographs taken here in the last 30 years. Plus a walking lantern tour of the haunted Dell and Native American burial ground site. Where they will also have a drawing for a free Bell Witch book for members on this tour, $50 per person, a four-person minimum. Due to safety procedures, children ages 12 or 9 and under are not allowed on these tours. Or you can email them at the bellwitchcave at gmail.com. And that would be it for the Bellwitch Cave. But do you still want to go? I mean, with my health ailments, it will be difficult, but I'm willing to push myself a little bit because yes, I still want to go. I am still willing to go. Anyways, guys, that's a wrap on this episode. We appreciate you coming in for 27 weeks now. We hope that you guys are enjoying it. Have a happy Monday. And of course, make sure you check us out on social media. We're on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, all of which we're doing a little bit better with as for posting videos. Um, and then also as of now, we also have a Patreon set up. So if you would like to join on there again, you guys, we are individually doing this ourselves, everything ourselves. So please be patient with us. There are a few benefits on there with a couple different tiers available. If you would like to, that would definitely help support. Um, and then as we continue to grow and more people come in and we're consistent with things, of course, we'll add more benefits and more availability to the um Patreon as well. But you can find us under there and on all of our social medias at ghosts and gavel. And then if you would like to reach out to us personally, send a personal encounter or story if you've been to the Bell Witch Cave and you want to tell us a little bit about it, you can send that to ghost and gavel at gmail.com. Have a great week and stay spooky, guys.