The Bell Witch A Mysterious Spirit (The Black Book)
The Bell family has been notoriously silent with respect to the alleged haunting. Aside from *Our Family Troubles* allegedly written by Richard William's Bell in 1846, no other Bell family member has written a published account. That all changed in 1934 when Dr. Charles Bailey Bell wrote and published *The Bell Witch A Mysterious Spirit.* Dr. Bell was a neurologist in Nashville and was the Great Grandson of John Bell through John Bell Jr.'s line of descent. It is precisely because Charles Bailey Bell was a direct descendent that many esteem this book over Ingram's Authenticated History. The thinking being that a Bell family member is privy to all the family secrets regarding the legend. The background goes something like this:
The entity remained until the early months of 1821 - shortly after the funeral of John Bell whom she allegedly murdered. She promised Lucy Bell that she would return in seven years.
According to the legend she did return as promised in 1828 and stayed a short while before leaving again promising to return in 107 years which would place her return in the year 1935.
The appeal to many about this book is the "revelation" of what transpired in 1828. It is alleged that the entity had conferences with John Bell Jr. during that time and spoke to him many things including predictions of future events.
As John Bell Jr. approached the end of his life (he died in 1862) he revealed all to his son, Dr. Joel Thomas Bell, who listened and took notes. Joel Thomas Bell later imparted all this information to his son, Dr. Charles Bailey Bell. The notes allegedly taken by Dr. Joel Thomas Bell have never been located or revealed.
Charles Bailey Bell mentions how private a matter it is within the Bell family and that they have traditionally been silent upon the matter and he encourages the future generations to retain that silence unless circumstances attend where the time is right to reveal more. Due to transpiring events in the world during the 1930's, Charles Bailey Bell decided the time was right to reveal more and he published A Mysterious Spirit - just one year prior to when the entity said it would return again.
Needless to say, the book reinvigorated the legend and interest was at a peak. If the entity returned in 1935 then the family has been silent on the matter.
Charles Bailey Bell died in 1945 having not spoken another word on the matter. He along with his father, Joel Thomas Bell (who died in 1910), were reinterred in the Bellwood Cemetery in Adams which was built by Charles Leslie Covington in 1957.
The Bell Witch A Mysterious Spirit (The Black Book)
The Bell family has been notoriously silent with respect to the alleged haunting. Aside from *Our Family Troubles* allegedly written by Richard William's Bell in 1846, no other Bell family member has written a published account. That all changed in 1934 when Dr. Charles Bailey Bell wrote and published *The Bell Witch A Mysterious Spirit.* Dr. Bell was a neurologist in Nashville and was the Great Grandson of John Bell through John Bell Jr.'s line of descent. It is precisely because Charles Bailey Bell was a direct descendent that many esteem this book over Ingram's Authenticated History. The thinking being that a Bell family member is privy to all the family secrets regarding the legend. The background goes something like this:
The entity remained until the early months of 1821 - shortly after the funeral of John Bell whom she allegedly murdered. She promised Lucy Bell that she would return in seven years.
According to the legend she did return as promised in 1828 and stayed a short while before leaving again promising to return in 107 years which would place her return in the year 1935.
The appeal to many about this book is the "revelation" of what transpired in 1828. It is alleged that the entity had conferences with John Bell Jr. during that time and spoke to him many things including predictions of future events.
As John Bell Jr. approached the end of his life (he died in 1862) he revealed all to his son, Dr. Joel Thomas Bell, who listened and took notes. Joel Thomas Bell later imparted all this information to his son, Dr. Charles Bailey Bell. The notes allegedly taken by Dr. Joel Thomas Bell have never been located or revealed.
Charles Bailey Bell mentions how private a matter it is within the Bell family and that they have traditionally been silent upon the matter and he encourages the future generations to retain that silence unless circumstances attend where the time is right to reveal more. Due to transpiring events in the world during the 1930's, Charles Bailey Bell decided the time was right to reveal more and he published A Mysterious Spirit - just one year prior to when the entity said it would return again.
Needless to say, the book reinvigorated the legend and interest was at a peak. If the entity returned in 1935 then the family has been silent on the matter.
Charles Bailey Bell died in 1945 having not spoken another word on the matter. He along with his father, Joel Thomas Bell (who died in 1910), were reinterred in the Bellwood Cemetery in Adams which was built by Charles Leslie Covington in 1957.