Sometimes ghosts grab sheets, throw rocks, break dishes, make loud noises, and the list goes on. Ghosts are not usually portrayed as helpful roommates but rather (sometimes entertaining) nuisances.
The ghost of the Kubis household in Rice Lake, Wisconsin (1925) was a special kind of ghost: she cooked and cleaned!
This domestic goddess ghost slung “an awfully wicked mop” and baked biscuits that were “nothing short of a poem.” The poetic biscuits were “so nice and brown and just the right texture.”
She was also consistent: her shift always started at midnight.
The biscuits would not make up for the fact that the house was getting too crowded. Not satisfied with the list of cleaning tasks, the ghost started to get a bit too social. One night she climbed in bed with the two Kubis daughters (Helen, age 13, and Armilla, age 11). Another night, she stood very close to Mrs. Kubis while she was replenishing the kitchen fire.
After Mrs. Kubis described the ghost to the neighbors, they shared a photo of Mrs. Axol Pickman, the previous owner of the Kubis home. The photo was a spitting image of the ghost! Further, Mrs. Pickman once told the neighbors she would return after death. It must have been her.
The Kubis family ended up moving out, because the house was cold (that’s the polite answer).
I wonder if Mrs. Pickman is still cleaning the house (and if the house is on Zillow)?
Sources
Battle Creek Enquirer, Battle Creek, Michigan, March 12, 1925.
The Escanaba Daily Press, Escanaba, Michigan, March 05, 1925.
I love haunted objects, especially mundane objects. I have read about haunted chairs, paintings, bookshelves, beds, quilts, and now…bunk beds!
This tale from Wisconsin definitely caught my attention when I was browsing the newspaper archives. Bunk beds were such an important piece of my childhood (I always had the bottom bunk). My sister and I shared bunk beds in my childhood bedroom. I used them during soccer camp. I even slept in them all four years of undergrad, from dorm room to sorority “cold air.” I have lots of great memories, but none of them involve ghosts.
“‘Haunted’ bunk beds landfilled”
Deborah and Allen Tallman paid $100 for a second-hand set of bunk beds for their daughters, aged 1 1/2 and 2 1/12. After placing the beds in their home, dreadful things began to happen.
A foggy apparition appeared to Allen in his daughters’ room and threatened him, saying “You’re dead.”
The ghost of an elderly lady appeared to their son.
A clock radio kept changing stations on its own.
A chair and suitcase moved on its own.
Things came to a head around Christmas when Allen challenged the being to leave his family alone, instead focusing its rage on him. Allen then saw flames coming from his garage’s overheard door.
The family eventually buried the set of bunk beds in the landfill and put the house up for sale.
Source: Chippewa Herald-Telegram, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, February 20, 1988.
Welcome to a new series: Indiana Folk Beliefs. For the next five weeks (We are on the final week!), I will be sharing a new themeeach week. These will be short and sweet posts.You’ll notice some of these folk beliefs expand beyond the Hoosier state.
It is our final week (I CAT believe it) and I am ending on a high note. What kind of things about cats will claw their way out of Indiana folklore?
Some Folk Beliefs
If a cat howls around a house a night, death is coming. (Monroe County, around 1860-1870)
It is bad luck to kill a cat.
It is good luck for a stray cat to enter a home, especially if the cat is black.
When a quilt is finished, all the girls present should take a side of the blanket, put a cat in the center, and toss the cat up and down. The girl the cat jumps towards first will be the first to marry.
Want to see who your future husband will be? Just before midnight, open all the doors and do everything backwards (such as walking). In complete silence, set a place at the tale for each girl present. The girls will then take their place when. At the stroke of midnight, a hard wind will blow, cats will begin to squall, and your future husband will enter.
Cats will mutilate a corpse.
Cats will suck the breath out of a sleeping person.
When moving houses, don’t bring your broom or cat.
Cats draw lightning and shouldn’t be held during storms.
If a black cat crosses your path, walk backwards ten steps.
If a cat play with their tail, bad weather is on the way.
If a cat washes their face, company will come.
A woman who loves a cat will be an old maid.
A Folk Tale
There was once a man who had a gristmill in southern Indiana who was unable to get help at night. Why? An enormous cat with fiery eyes would come closer and closer towards the night worker, yowling and screaming. No one was hurt by the cat, but no one stayed long enough for the cat to reach them.
A brave man volunteered to take the night shift. The mill owner provided pay, and room and board at his home. The new worker joined the owner for a home-cooked meal, prepared by the owner’s wife. Then, he started his shift with a butcher knife for protection.
As expected, the cat appeared. The cat got louder and closer. When the cat suddenly jumped towards him, he slashed off a front paw with the knife. The cat disappeared.
The next morning at breakfast, the worker asked why the wife of the house was missing from the table. The mill owner explained his wife got her hand cut off the night before. Yep, she was a witch.
And a Favorite News Clipping
Source: The Kokomo Tribune, 12 Oct 1939, Thu.
Sources
Baker, Ronald L. Hoosier Folk Legends. Indiana University Press, 1982.
Busse, Ora S. “Indiana Folk Beliefs, Omens, and Signs.” Hoosier Folklore, vol. 6, no. 1, 1947, pp. 14-26.
Halpert, Herbert & Paul G. Brewster. “Folk Beliefs and Practices from Southern Indiana.” Hoosier Folklore Bulletin, vol. 2, no. 2, 1943, pp. 23-38.
Welcome to a new series: Indiana Folk Beliefs. For the next five weeks (we are on week 4), I will be sharing a new themeeach week. These will be short and sweet posts.You’ll notice some of these folk beliefs expand beyond the Hoosier state.
This week’s topic is death. Which superstitions or folk beliefs also appear in your community’s folklore?
Dream of death, you will hear of a wedding.
Turn the mirrors to face the wall, when there is a corpse in the house. Or place veils over mirrors.
Stop the clocks if there is a death in the house.
It’s bad luck to have a grave open overnight.
A dog howling while sickness is in the home is a sign of death.
Sneezing at the breakfast table is a sign there will be a death in the family within a week.
A picture falling from a wall is a sign there will be a death in the family soon.
A bird flying in the house is a sign of death.
Ticking in the wall is a sign of an upcoming death in the family. It’s called the “death watch.” I’m assuming this is a reference to the deathwatch beetle.
A ringing in the ears is a sign of death.
Someone died on Sunday? There will be another death in the community before the week is over.
Looking for a drowned body? Bring a sheet from that person’s bed and lay it on the water. It will float above the location of the body and then sink. Or use their shirt, which will remain stationary over the body’s location.
“Dream of the dead, hear from the living.”
Touch the face of the dead and you will not dream about them.
If three people light their cigarettes from one match: the third smoker will die, the youngest of three will die first, one of them will die soon, and one of them will die before the year is out. I guess don’t share a match.
If two people sweep the floor together, one of the brooms should be thrown out or one of them will die.
If two people make a bed together, a member of a family will die.
If you miss two consecutive rows when planting corn, someone in your family will die by the year’s end.
If a comb is dropped on Sunday, a death will occur the following week.
If you trade chickens, a member of your family will die within the year.
Don’t count the number of cars at a funeral or someone in your family will die.
Sources
Busse, Ora S. “Indiana Folk Beliefs, Omens, and Signs.” Hoosier Folklore, vol. 6, no. 1, 1947, pp. 14-26.
Halpert, Herbert & Paul G. Brewster. “Folk Beliefs and Practices from Southern Indiana.” Hoosier Folklore Bulletin, vol. 2, no. 2, 1943, pp. 23-38.
Welcome to a new series: Indiana Folk Beliefs. For the next five weeks, I will be sharing a new themeeach week. These will be short and sweet posts.You’ll notice some of these folk beliefs expand beyond the Hoosier state.
Last week, I shared a Hoosier folktale about a witch bewitching a housewife’s butter in Giro, Indiana. The housewife won in the end. Will a hunter have the same success against three shape-shifting witches?
Today’s tale is from Shelby County, Indiana, back when it was heavily wooded and only a few log cabins sprinkled the landscape. Three sisters, believed to be witches or fairies, lived in one of these cabins. It was rumored that when they left the house to explore the woods, they transformed into wild animals.
One of the local pioneers and a famed hunter planned an epic hunt in the woods, preparing and gathering the best weapons. On the first day, he traveled deep into the woods and came across three fawns. The skilled hunter was unable to shoot any of the fawns. He returned home frustrated, deciding to check his weapons for issues after a night’s sleep.
In the morning, the hunter checked his guns and found no problems. Maybe he was nervous and needed to practice his shot? After practicing his shot, and with success, he knew that was not the case. He went back into the woods, ready to get a kill. Again he came across the fawns, and again he missed.
The next day, he headed into town with hopes of buying a new gun and cartridges. He was greeted by his curious friends at the store, who asked how many deer he had killed. The hunter, ashamed, explained he was unsuccessful. After his friends poked fun at his failure, an older hunter walked over.
This older hunter explained that these fawns were most likely the witches and that they could only be killed with silver bullets. The determined hunter went home with this new information and melted down his silver coins into bullets.
Early the next morning, he went into the woods with his new silver bullets. He happened upon the fawns again, which were galloping and enjoying the outdoors. He took his shot, hitting one the fawns in the leg.
The two other fawns disappeared when they heard the shot. The injured fawn continued after them with an injured leg, slowly. The hunter followed the hurt fawn through the woods and watched it eventually walk into a cabin and disappear, being replaced by a beautiful, young, and limping woman.
The hunter entered the house to ask the woman if she had seen the injured fawn. Instead he saw two more beautiful young women standing around a bed. In the bed was the woman he had noticed in the doorway, lying with a wounded foot. He asked her sisters what had happened, and they explained she had stepped on a sharp stone.
The hunter, finally figuring it out, asked the three sisters if they were the rumored witches that turn into animals. They said yes. Gasp!
The three sisters soon disappeared from the area after the incident.
Sources
Baker, Ronald L. Hoosier Folk Legends. Indiana University Press, 1982.
Welcome to a new series: Indiana Folk Beliefs. For the next five weeks, I will be sharing a new themeeach week. These will be short and sweet posts.You’ll notice some of these folk beliefs expand beyond the Hoosier state.
This week we are talking about witchcraft! I actually found A LOT of good stuff, so we are breaking it into two posts. The first post is focused on butter. Yes, butter.
When looking over the 1943 article “Folk Beliefs and Practices from Southern Indiana,” I came across two witchcraft folk practices.
Having issues with making butter “come,” it’s probably witchcraft! Counteract it by adding a hot poker to the churn.
Still having trouble with that butter? Put a horseshoe in the churn. You’ll be able to recognize the witch later if you see her with a horseshoe burn.
Then, later, when I was reading my copy of Hoosier Folk Legends (Baker, 1982), I came across a legend that provided some context.
This particular story comes from Giro, Indiana (an unincorporated community located at the northernmost point of Gibson County). It was not uncommon to blame the difficulty of everyday tasks on a neighbor’s bewitchment, especially in this small town.
One day, Mrs. Brown of Giro noticed she was not producing butter, even after churning for several hours. She turned to husband and exclaimed, “Someone has a foot in my cream, so I’ll find out who the witch is this time!” She then heated an iron in the fire and dropped it into the churn, hoping to burn the foot of the person bewitching her butter. Soon, she had nice yellow butter.
The next day, Mrs. Brown stopped by the house of Mrs. Jones for a chat. Mrs. Jones was in great pain and complained about her burned foot. Mrs. Brown left satisfied that she had found the witch.
Sources
Baker, Ronald L. Hoosier Folk Legends. Indiana University Press, 1982.
Halpert, Herbert & Paul G. Brewster. “Folk Beliefs and Practices from Southern Indiana.” Hoosier Folklore Bulletin, vol. 2, no. 2, 1943, pp. 23-38.
Welcome to a new series: Indiana Folk Beliefs. For the next five weeks, I will be sharing a new themeeach week. These will be short and sweet posts.You’ll notice some of these folk beliefs expand beyond the Hoosier state.
If the moon changes in the morning, it will rain soon.
To avoid manure remaining on top of the ground, it should be laid in the dark of the moon (not in the light of the moon).
Plant vegetables in the light of the moon, particularly above-ground vegetables: lettuce, cabbage, beans, etc.
If the new moon lies on its back, it means dry weather.
If the moon is laying on its back, it’s full of water (Morgan County).
A halo around the moon means it will rain soon (Morgan County).
A circle around the moon means dry weather.
A red moon is a sign of war.
Move when the moon is new. In this market?
Got dirt on your clothes? It’s harder to get out in the light of the moon.
Corn grows faster in the light of the moon, rather than the dark.
The full moon favors severe or killing frosts (diminishes after the full moon).
Frost never kills fruit in the light of the moon.
Bathe only in the dark of the moon.
If you collect apples in the light of the moon, their bruises will dry up.
Fish bite best in the dark of the moon.
Make lye soap in the light of the moon.
Sources
Busse, Ora S. “Indiana Folk Beliefs, Omens, and Signs.” Hoosier Folklore, vol. 6, no. 1, 1947, pp. 14-26.
Halpert, Herbert & Paul G. Brewster. “Folk Beliefs and Practices from Southern Indiana.” Hoosier Folklore Bulletin, vol. 2, no. 2, 1943, pp. 23-38.
This weekend, I am excited to be in conversation with novelist and friend Rebecca McKanna at Second Flight Books in Lafayette, Indiana. Her first novel Don’t Forget the Girl is a thriller about friendship, shame, and victim narratives. The story takes place in Iowa City, Iowa. I highly recommend it.
A key location (and possibly character) in Rebecca’s novel is the Black Angel of Oakland Cemetery in Iowa City. The cemetery, close to the college campus of The University of Iowa, has many legends, especially since it turned black from its original copper.
Like true crime, the origins of local legend can become muddled by salacious and unfounded changes. I will share Teresa’s story and the legend that led it astray.
Where did the Black Angel come from?
The Black Angel of Oakland Cemetery is about 8 feet tall, standing with wings spread. The statue, due to the elements, is now black-ish green. Due to her legendary status, she has been the victim of vandalism and is missing fingers.
The Angel is a memorial for Eddie Dolezal, who died at 18 of meningitis. His mother Teresa Dolezal Feldevert (born in 1836) moved from Strmilov, Bohemia to Iowa City, staying until her son’s death in 1891. A practicing physician in Strmilov, Teresa served as a midwife in Iowa City.
A tree stump monument was erected at Eddie’s grave in Oakland Cemetery.
Teresa moved to Eugene, Oregon, married Nicholas Feldevert, and was widowed in 1911. She moved back to Iowa City and hired artist Mario Korbel to create an angel to look over her son and husband’s remains. This endeavor did not go as planned.
She paid $5,000 for the monument, which was completed around 1912. Some publications say she was not pleased with the work as it did not incorporate her son’s stump monument. Other publications say the memorial was made of poor quality stone and covered with only a thin layer of bronze. Regardless of the details, Teresa was not pleased but had her son’s remains and stump moved next to the Angel anyway.
Shortly before her death, Teresa was interviewed by Blanche Robertson for The Des Moines Register. Teresa, then 89 years of age (pictured above), held pictures of son and husband, telling the interviewer: “My boy—he got sick and die. My husband he got sick and die. Now I am sick and soon I, too, shall die.”
She died on November 18, 1924 and her ashes were buried under the Angel.
Why did the statue turn black?
A logical Chelsea (my favorite character) explains the Black Angel’s appearance in Don’t Forget the Girl: “It’s bronze. It oxidized over the years, which gives it that greenish-black color.”
But such a scientific explanation will not suffice when one needs a scary thrill in a cemetery. According to legend, there are several reasons for its discoloration.
Teresa’s evil sins caused the Angel to turn black. Some versions say she was a witch.
The night after Teresa’s burial, the Angel was struck by lightning.
A boy was buried under the Angel. It turned black because his father, a preacher, had murdered him.
Teresa’s husband buried her and promised to remain faithful to her. He found a new sweetheart and his lie caused the color change.
Or, a man had the statue erected over his wife’s grave. Her infidelity during life turned it black.
What is the lore surrounding the Black Angel?
Touching or kissing the angel has become a rite of passage for the local coeds and youths.
Anyone who kisses the Angel will die instantly.
If you touch the Angel at midnight on Halloween, you will die within seven years.
Any girl who kisses the statue (or kisses near the statue) in the moonlight will die within six months.
If a virgin is kissed in front of the statue, it will turn to it’s original color (breaking whatever curse).
If you stare into the Angel’s eyes or touch her, you will come down with an incurable illness.
A pregnant woman will miscarry if she touched it.
It turns a shade darker each Halloween.
As you can see, the tragedy of Teresa has now become something much more sinister. Not only has the memorial been damaged, but her reputation as well. As I always say about cemetery lore, enjoy the legend critically but treat interments respectfully.
Sources
The Black Angel Monument. www.iowa-city.org. Pamphlet.
McKanna, Rebecca. Don’t Forget the Girl. Sourcebooks Landmark, 2023.
Moran, Mark and Mark Sceurman. Weird U.S.: Your Travel Guide to America’s Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., 2009.
Robertson, Blanche. “Iowa City’s ‘Black Angel’ Casts Spell Over Superstitious.” The Des Moines Register, 24 May 1925, p. 19.
During my research for It Was Not a Ghost, I often come across humorous pranksters. They are children or men using contraptions or sheets to scare fellow citizens for a laugh.
Unfortunately, some of these stories end in death.
In this particular newspaper clipping, a man admits to terrorizing the town of Gower, Missouri for several years. You’ll understand shortly why he took the pranks to his deathbed.
The Ghost
Before Thomas P. Ogden passed away in 1902, he delivered an interesting deathbed confession: he had been the Gower Ghost. Ogden was the elusive phantom that was heard, but never identified, for several years. His pranks resulted in one death and the near murder of a man. Below are some of the incidents involving the Gower Ghost.
The Livery
Grower utilized a rubber tube to create disembodied moans in a stable, which resulted in a ghost hunt.
In the livery stable in Gower were box stalls for the horses. Posts were set in the ground between the stalls and planked up on each side. Ogden bought a long rubber tube and, concealing himself in the haymow, let the tube down between the boards on one side of a stall. Then he groaned into the tube and the sound of his voice was carried down to a point close to the ground. In a little while the groans attracted the attention of the men employed about the barn. They tore the boards off one side of the stall, but Ogden drew the rubber tube up, and they found nothing.
A brave citizen decided to locate the source of the moans with a pick and shovel as hundreds of men watched. While he dug, the ghost (well, Ogden) played along: when the digger hit a rock, Ogden yelled that he had struck his bones.
The man kept digging even after nightfall until Ogden threw a white sheet on top of him. The digger jumped out of the hole screaming and the crowd scattered. One man ran into a tree and died during the chaos.
During another incident at the livery, Ogden the Ghost claimed he was the spirit of a man murdered by citizen James Woodward. The crowd nearly lynched Woodward (the article does not say what stopped them).
The Mansion
Ogden also decided an abandoned mansion in town would make the perfect location for a haunting. His trickery included moving lights, slamming doors, screams and moans. The house, now impossible to sell, became “a weather-beaten wreck.”
The Cemetery
In a local cemetery, Ogden used a network of wires to create the illusion of dancing lights. Cotton balls were dipped in kerosene and attached to the wires. At night, he would light the balls of cotton while a fearful audience of thousands watched from a safe distance. He also used moving white figures and accompanying moans to add to the experience.
Like the mansion, the cemetery was avoided by citizens. Some family members “removed their dead from the dreaded place.”
The Confession
While on his deathbed, Ogden called his friends and admitted to the years of tomfoolery. He felt great sorrow for the death of the young man. He also informed listeners he refrained from scaring children and women.
Source: The Newton Daily Journal, Newton, Kansas, 4 Oct 1902 (pg 7)
Notebook of Ghosts 