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95-693: Elizabeth was born in 1859 to Edward D. Bangs (1827–1899) and Meroe L. Stevens Bangs (1832–1917) while they were living in Atchison, Kansas , and Mary was born there in 1862. Edward was a tinsmith and stove repairman, originally from Massachusetts . Their mother was a medium herself. They moved to Chicago in 1868. By the early 1870s the Bangs family were performing seances as described in an article by Steven Sanborn Jones published on August 3, 1872 in Religio-Philosophical Journal titled "An Evening with

190-485: A "fraudulent hoaxer". Carrington was the primary consultant and contributor of story ideas for The Mysteries of Myra , a 15-episode silent film series released in 1916 (photo to the right), which introduced "realistic" supernatural concepts such as automatic writing and astral projection to the screen. The leading character, Dr. Payson Alden, the first paranormal investigator of the cinema, was modeled after Carrington himself. (The novel developed from Carrington's ideas and

285-521: A Specialty" printed on their business cards. It was not long before they ventured out of Chicago. As reported in the Fort Wayne Sentinel on September 10, 1894, the Bangs conducted a Massachusetts wedding ceremony between a wealthy woman and her dead fiancé. For the next five years, they regularly held seances and performed the spirit slate writings at their home in Chicago. The spirit paintings were

380-450: A bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 15.8% of the population. 22.0% of the population was under the age of 18, 20.4% from 18 to 24, 21.3% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 109.7 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 112.4 males. The 2016-2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that

475-716: A combined 29 days of measurable precipitation. During a typical year the total amount of precipitation may be anywhere from 25 to 52 in (1,300 mm). There are on average 89 days of measurable precipitation per year. Winter snowfall averages almost 17 in (43 cm), but the median is less than 16 inches (410 mm). Measurable snowfall occurs an average of 10 days per year with at least an inch of snow being received on 6 of those days. Snow depth of at least an inch occurs an average of 23 days per year. The 2020 United States census counted 10,885 people, 3,871 households, and 2,255 families in Atchison. The population density

570-605: A committee of three to examine Palladino in Naples . The committee comprised Mr. Hereward Carrington, investigator for the American Society for Psychical Research and an amateur conjuror; Mr. W. W. Baggally , also an investigator and amateur conjuror of much experience; and the Hon. Everard Feilding , who had had an extensive training as investigator and "a fairly complete education at the hands of fraudulent mediums." Three adjoining rooms on

665-470: A comprehensive critique of the Feilding report. Podmore said that the report provided insufficient information for crucial moments and the investigators representation of the witness accounts contained contradictions and inconsistencies as to who was holding Palladino's feet and hands. Podmore found accounts among the investigators conflicted as to who they claimed to have observed the incident. Podmore wrote that

760-624: A contestant on 7 October 1953 radio edition of You Bet Your Life . In 1921, Carrington founded the American Psychical Institute. It consisted of a laboratory that was one of the first to investigate psychical phenomena preceding the National Laboratory of Psychical Research . It operated for only two years, but he later reconstituted it in 1933 in New York City with the assistance of his wife Marie Carrington. Henry Gilroy

855-478: A convinced spiritualist; at the same time, I am willing to grant that the evidence for survival is remarkably strong." Among other researches he made a detailed study of the medium Eileen J. Garrett . Carrington's 1957 book The Case for Psychic Survival is devoted to Garrett. Carrington kept extensive records of his research and investigations, and corresponded with notable figures of the day including Israel Regardie , Nandor Fodor , Aleister Crowley and one of

950-458: A detailed account of the Amherst phenomena. Carrington was an amateur conjuror and was critical towards some paranormal phenomena. Carrington in his book The Physical Phenomena of Spiritualism (1907) exposed the tricks of fraudulent mediums such as those used in slate-writing, table-turning , trumpet mediumship, materializations , sealed-letter reading and spirit photography . The book revealed

1045-423: A distance of less than 50 miles, would not be completed until May, 1872. The city tried to become a major railroad center, but was surpassed by Kansas City and Omaha , due to the former's greater industrial capability and connections to Texas and the latter's connection to Chicago, rather than St. Louis . Furthermore, Atchison boosters were unable to unite on a single project, instead scattering their efforts to

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1140-594: A global manufacturing company headquartered in Australia. The city is along the western bank of the Missouri River which also marks the Kansas - Missouri state line. Located at the junction of U.S. Route 59 and U.S. Route 73 , it is 21 miles (34 km) southwest of St. Joseph , Missouri, along US-59 and 25 miles (40 km) northwest of Leavenworth Kansas, along US-73. The section of US-73 between Atchison and Leavenworth

1235-542: A key supplier of components to EMD. In 1958 Rockwell purchased the LFM Steel Foundry to make locomotive trucks for EMD and GM (Progress Rail). Rockwell's Transit Truck Design Group was established in 1960. Rockwell Manufacturing and Rockwell International were the owners from 1956 to 1993 and they renamed the LFM to Atchison Casting Corporation (ACC) in 1991. Atchison Casting became a publicly held corporation in 1994. ACC bought

1330-537: A license", and while they claimed to be evangelists and such charges could not be brought against ministers, they were fined by the police court the following day. On April 2, 1888, two plainclothes police arrested May and Lizzie during a seance and confiscated all of their props. They were released on bail the next day by William Bangs, their embarrassed brother, and manager of the Chicago Club While they were out on bail, Lizzie's seven-year-old daughter died. At

1425-491: A love affair with Margery – on the q.t. They had an understanding that it would not affect in any way the report of the Scientific American magazine as to whether her mediumship was genuine or not. Their little love affair went on for several months and he told me how difficult it was to have their little trysts and get-togethers." It was also suggested that Carrington borrowed a large amount of money from Crandon that he

1520-706: A meeting Houdini and Carrington's differences emerged and they argued "well into the night". Historian Ruth Brandon has described Carrington and Houdini as "old enemies", noting their differences of opinion on the Crandon case. Skeptic Joseph McCabe wrote that Carrington was a talented conjuror who had exposed the tricks of mediums but was deceived by Eusapia Palladino . Strong criticism of Carrington's investigation of Palladino has come from psychologist Millais Culpin (1920) and philosopher Paul Kurtz (1989). Culpin criticized Carrington for not educating himself about psychological factors; he suggested that Palladino's behaviour

1615-554: A member of the American Society for Psychical Research in 1907 and worked as an assistant to James Hyslop until 1908, during which time he established his reputation as an ASPR investigator. However his connection with the ASPR ceased due to lack of funds. An important early case Carrington investigated and described was that of the medium Eusapia Palladino in 1908. Carrington and two companions went to Naples to see her on behalf of

1710-489: A newspaper. Each share of stock in the town company was assessed $ 25, the proceeds to be used to build the National Hotel, which was completed in the spring of 1855, and $ 400 was donated to Dr. Stringfellow and Robert S. Kelley to erect a printing office. The Squatter Sovereign , a paper with strong pro-slavery sentiments, was first issued on February 3, 1855. It had formerly been published at Liberty, Missouri , under

1805-520: A prominent promoter of both slavery and the idea of popular sovereignty over the issue in the new lands. However, not everyone agreed upon the location he had selected, and on July 20, 1854, Dr. John H. Stringfellow , Ira Norris, Leonidas Oldham, James B. Martin, and Neal Owens left Platte City , Missouri , to decide definitely upon a site. They found a site that was the natural outlet of a remarkably rich agricultural region just open to settlement. George M. Million and Samuel Dickson had staked claims near

1900-461: A rail line was constructed from St. Joseph, Missouri to Atchison between 1857 and 1859, funded in large part by $ 150,000 raised by the citizens of Atchison and connected to the Hannibal & St. Joseph R.R. at its eastern end. The Atchison and Topeka Railroad was founded in 1859 with Atchison as its eastern terminus and the intention of connecting Kansas to the southwest by rail. Although construction

1995-521: A residuum of genuine phenomena." Psychologists Leonard Zusne and Warren H. Jones note that although Carrington declared some mediums to be genuine, The Physical Phenomena of Spiritualism is a "monumental work on fraudulent 19th-century spiritualism." Journalist Wilfred Whitten described the work as "one of the most extraordinary books that I have read for a long time" and praised Carrington for his entertaining writing and exposure of spiritualist trickery. According to Arthur Conan Doyle , Carrington

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2090-545: A revolutionary diesel locomotive piston ring. In 1924 the John Seaton Foundry built an electric arc melting furnace for efficient smelting. In 1924 Atchison began the transition from iron to steel which paved the transition from steam locomotives to diesel locomotives. The first steel locomotive truck assembly was designed, cast, and assembled in 1934. In 1938 LFM was making 18 locomotive assemblies every day for General Motors-Electric Motive Division (EMD) and continued to be

2185-446: A sealed letter. He received a reply signed by Jane from the sisters. Psychical researcher Paul Tabori noted that Carrington "also analysed their way of producing 'spirit paintings' or 'portraits'. The ladies simply substituted one canvas for another, under the cover of their voluminous dress, the table or window-curtains." The Bangs sisters were defended by the spiritualist writer William Usborne Moore . He stated in his book Glimpses of

2280-411: A vast number of writers, of whom the majority are entirely unknown and carry no weight." The journal found Carrington's statements about curing all disease by prolonged fasts unsupported by scientific evidence. In none of the cases cited was the patient under the observation of Carrington. The review noted that Carrington took "all the facts either reported by others or as related to him in letters sent by

2375-452: A vitalist view of health and denied that energy is derived from food. Instead, he believed energy is obtained during sleep by an external, all pervading cosmic energy. Carrington's books have received positive reviews for their accessible writing style and detailed research. However, his unorthodox views on dieting , fasting and nutrition have been criticized by medical health experts. Henry Gilroy wrote that Carrington "went on to

2470-604: Is a common misconception he emigrated in 1899). Hereward lived with his brother Hedley in Minnesota and appears in the 1900 census there. He settled in New York City in 1904. There he first worked as an assistant editor for Street and Smith magazines . Initially a sceptic about psychic abilities, his interest grew from reading books on the subject and at the age of 19 he joined the Society for Psychical Research (SPR). Carrington became

2565-405: Is also the home of Benedictine College . Atchison was founded in 1854 and named in honor of Missouri senator David Rice Atchison , who, when Kansas was opened for settlement, interested some of his friends in the scheme of forming a city in the new territory. Senator Atchison was interested in ensuring that the population of the new Kansas Territory would be majority pro-slavery , as he had been

2660-617: Is part of the Glacial Hills Scenic Byway which follows K-7 northward from Atchison. According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 8.29 square miles (21.47 km ), of which, 7.83 square miles (20.28 km ) is land and 0.46 square miles (1.19 km ) is water. Under the Köppen climate classification , Atchison falls within either a hot-summer humid continental climate ( Dfa ) if

2755-420: The 480 acres (1.9 km ) and made a plat, and the next day was fixed for the sale of lots, an event of great importance as it had become understood that Senator Atchison would make a speech upon the political question of the day, hence the sale would be of political as well as business significance. At his meeting on the 21st, two public institutions of vital interest to a new community were planned for—a hotel and

2850-529: The sleight of hand tricks the Eddy Brothers used in an article in the Popular Science magazine. He wrote an introduction to the book Spiritism and Psychology (1911) by Théodore Flournoy which took a psychological approach to cases of mediumship. Carrington gained his PhD in 1918 from Oskaloosa College . In 1930, he stated "I have no particular theory to defend, and no belief to uphold. I am not

2945-604: The 0 °C (32 °F) isotherm is used or a humid subtropical climate ( Cfa ) if the −3 °C (27 °F) isotherm is used. Over the course of a year, temperatures range from an average low of nearly 18.4 °F (−7.6 °C) in January to an average high of nearly 87.6 °F (30.9 °C) in July. The maximum temperature reaches 90 °F (32 °C) an average of 38 days per year and reaches 100 °F (38 °C) an average of 3 days per year. The minimum temperature falls below

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3040-587: The 1912 death of John Seaton. After his arrival in 1872, John Seaton became one of the leading citizens of Atchison. Besides establishing the foundry which became the center of the town's industry, he also owned the local theater, served on the school board, was elected to the Kansas Legislature in 1889, served on the Kansas Penitentiary Board, and was nominated for Governor of Kansas. He died on January 12, 1912. In 1914, Harry Muchnic invented

3135-525: The Atchison Foundry and Machine Works in 1872. It soon began turning out decorative wrought iron fences, spiral staircases, and hitching posts for horses. The foundry expanded quickly, as Seaton transported his entire Alton operation to Atchison to establish the Seaton Foundry. It employed over 200 men and had a payroll of more than $ 14,000 per month in 1872. Expanding rapidly in the coming years, it

3230-474: The Atchison Public Schools closed six of its neighborhood school buildings to open one large elementary school. Although schools had been desegregated for more than 50 years, this move ensured more diversity and equality of education by uniting different segments of the city's children into one school. A few of the old neighborhood schools still stand - one, known as Lincoln school at 810 Division Street

3325-520: The Bangs Children." People paid to be entertained at the Bangs home. It is alleged that messages from the dead appeared on slabs of slate as chairs and furniture moved about the room. The children were tied up in a cabinet, then a guitar inside strummed and hands waved from within. For the finale, Mary brought forward a cat, said to be a "spirit kitten" from the afterworld. In the summer of 1881, May and her mother were arrested for "doing business without

3420-703: The Bangs Sisters. By November 1890, May was on her second divorce, from wealthy chemical manufacturer Henry H. Graham . They had been married under the pretense that his dead wife had told him to do so. According to the Chicago Daily Tribune , in March 1890, a Chicago grand jury declined to bring charges against the Bangs Sisters, but in May 1891, the Illinois Senate passed a bill: ...prohibiting anyone from personating

3515-732: The English SPR, an experience which strengthened his belief in the reality of psychic phenomena. He described her in his 1909 book Eusapia Palladino and Her Phenomena , invited her to the US and helped arrange a tour for her. He detected her cheating at sittings, but also claimed she had genuine supernatural ability. He also made a detailed enquiry into the case of Esther Cox (the Great Amherst Mystery ) in 1910. The events surrounding Cox had occurred more than thirty years previously, but Carrington contacted surviving witnesses for statements and published

3610-437: The Feilding report of Palladino and argued that she employed a secret accomplice that could enter the room by a fake door panel positioned near the séance cabinet. Wiseman discovered this trick was already mentioned in a book from 1851, he also visited a carpenter and skilled magician who constructed a door within an hour with a false panel. The accomplice was suspected to be her second husband, who insisted on bringing Palladino to

3705-509: The Next State that Carrington had never visited their house. After Carrington gave incontrovertible evidence he had visited the sisters and caught them in fraud, Moore had to publicly retract his charges in a letter for Light , December 14, 1912. Magician Milbourne Christopher has written: In 1913, David P. Abbott published a booklet on the subject The Spirit Portrait Mystery, Its Final Solution , revealing fraudulent methods of producing

3800-580: The Old Canadian Steel Foundry in Montreal, Canada from Hawker Siddeley in 1995. The foundry has primarily become a producer of rail transport components, including commuter rail truck frames for commuter rail systems in San Francisco, Chicago , Atlanta , and Washington, D.C. It has also undergone various mergers, reorganizations, and renamings, most recently after it was purchased by Bradken ,

3895-580: The age of 18 and 11.4% of those ages 65 or over. As of the census of 2010, there were 11,021 people, 3,933 households, and 2,447 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,407.5 inhabitants per square mile (543.4/km ). There were 4,442 housing units at an average density of 567.3 per square mile (219.0/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 87.9% White , 7.2% African American , 0.6% Native American , 0.5% Asian , 0.1% Pacific Islander , 0.7% from other races , and 3.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.7% of

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3990-406: The average family size was 3.00. In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.7% under the age of 18, 13.8% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.3 males. The median income for a household in the city

4085-572: The basis that established Atchison as a commercial center. Early merchants to establish businesses in the new town were George Challis, Burns Bros., Stephen Johnston and Samuel Dickson. On August 30, 1855, Atchison was incorporated. Dr. Stringfellow had North Atchison surveyed and platted in the fall of 1857. This started a fever of additions. In February 1858, West Atchison was laid out by John Roberts, and in May Samuel Dickson had his property surveyed as South Atchison. Still another addition

4180-417: The belief that her powers were genuine, although subsequent evidence of possible fraud again led him to express doubts about her writing that he maintained a "perfectly open mind" about such phenomena pending the arrival of better evidence one way or the other. Henry Gilroy, an associate and friend of Carrington later told biographer Paul Tabori "Of course, most people don't know this – but he (Carrington) had

4275-558: The block later occupied by the Otis house. In July 1883, the free-delivery system was inaugurated. For years there had been considerable trade up and down the Missouri River, which had naturally centered at Leavenworth , but in June 1855, several overland freighters, such as Livingston, Kinkead & Co., and Hooper & Williams were induced to select Atchison as their outfitting point and formed

4370-438: The city. The population density was 1,498.2 inhabitants per square mile (578.5/km ). There were 4,220 housing units at an average density of 617.9 per square mile (238.6/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 88.56% White , 7.80% Black or African American , 0.51% Native American , 0.41% Asian , 0.09% Pacific Islander , 0.65% from other races, and 1.99% from two or more races . Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.58% of

4465-494: The civil authorities in suppressing raiding and the lawless bands of thieves that infested the border counties. During the war, Atchison was also the headquarters of numerous bands of jayhawkers including the notorious Charles Metz, who was known as Cleveland. Metz, a former prisoner at the Missouri State Penitentiary, selected Atchison as his headquarters for raids into Missouri and was accepted with open arms by

4560-590: The completion of the connector to St. Joseph, which later became part of the Missouri Pacific, and the final connection to the growing AT&SF system, industrialization reached Atchison. Grain elevators, flour mills, and a flax mill were all erected in Atchison in the late 1860s and early 1870s. Several prominent businessmen in town lured Captain John Seaton, who operated a foundry in Alton, Illinois , to town to improve

4655-424: The conditions of the séances being susceptible to trickery. Hansel noted that they were performed in semi-dark conditions, held in the late night or early morning introducing the possibility of fatigue and the "investigators had a strong belief in the supernatural, hence they would be emotionally involved." In 1910, Everard Feilding returned to Naples, without Hereward Carrington and W. W. Baggally . Instead, he

4750-470: The curtains. The investigators sat on either side of her, holding her hand and placing a foot on her foot. Guest visitors also attended some of the séances; the Feilding report mentions that Professor Bottazzi and Professor Galeotti were present at the fourth séance, and a Mr. Ryan was present at the eighth séance. Although the investigators caught Palladino cheating, they were convinced Palladino produced genuine supernatural phenomena such as levitations of

4845-520: The earliest pioneers in the field of astral projection , Sylvan Muldoon , with whom he co-authored three books, including The Projection of the Astral Body (1929) and The Phenomena of Astral Projection (1951). A large collection of his writings and correspondence is held by Heidieh Croce, the heir to Marie Carrington's estate, as well as the Princeton University library. He can be heard as

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4940-583: The end of his life as a true pioneer and an indefatigable searcher for truth. I was proud to be his friend", he noted however that Carrington was a "half-assed amateur magician —a pretty bad one but most persistent. One night we threw a spook-show to raise money for the American Psychical Institute and it was really pathetic... He was a great psychical researcher but a godawful magician, fumbling almost every trick he tried." Anthropologist and skeptic Edward Clodd described Carrington as an "adept at disclosing spiritualistic chicanery, but, strangely enough, believing in

5035-477: The fasters." It was criticized in the Nature journal as unscientific. The reviewer stated that Carrington made many assertions unsupported by evidence and "his book is a strange medley, and hardly merits serious consideration in a scientific journal... [but is] remarkable as an instance of the lengths to which a fad can be carried." Carrington was a germ theory denialist and proponent of natural hygiene . He held

5130-486: The fifth floor of the Hotel Victoria were rented. The middle room where Feilding slept was used in the evening for the séances. In the corner of the room was a séance cabinet created by a pair of black curtains to form an enclosed area that contained a small round table with several musical instruments. In front of the curtains was placed a wooden table. During the séances, Palladino would sit at this table with her back to

5225-606: The first apologies for fruitarianism." He argued against the consumption of cereals , dairy products , meat and salt . Although Carrington recommended that these foods should be gradually eliminated. His Vitality, Fasting and Nutrition is over six hundred pages and is dedicated to the memory of Edward H. Dewey and Sylvester Graham . The book was negatively reviewed in the British Medical Journal , which commented that Carrington's "facts are taken at second hand, and that his arguments are derived from quotations from

5320-433: The freezing point (32 °F (0 °C)) an average of 107 days per year. Typically the first fall freeze occurs between the second week of October and the first week of November, and the last spring freeze occurs between the end of March and the third week of April. The area receives nearly 36.38 in (924 mm) of precipitation during an average year with the largest share being received in May, June, and July—with

5415-458: The hotel where the séances took place. Paul Kurtz suggested that Carrington could have been Palladino's secret accomplice. Kurtz found it suspicious that he was raised as her manager after the séances in Naples. Carrington was also absent on the night of the last séance. However, Massimo Polidoro and Gian Marco Rinaldi who analyzed the Feilding report came to the conclusion that no secret accomplice

5510-422: The median household income was $ 47,742 (with a margin of error of +/- $ 3,419) and the median family income was $ 60,939 (+/- $ 2,957). Males had a median income of $ 30,093 (+/- $ 6,798) versus $ 12,464 (+/- $ 4,601) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $ 17,399 (+/- $ 8,087). Approximately, 13.0% of families and 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line , including 12.7% of those under

5605-400: The most commanding of price, with people paying anywhere between $ 15 and $ 150 per portrait. Dr. Isaac K. Funk of Funk and Wagnalls paid $ 1,500 for a number of departed portraits. In 1907 came the next victim of May's marriages. Millionaire leather manufacturer Jacob H. Lesher was "told" to marry May by his dead mother, and according to a July 16, 1909 story in the Chicago Daily Tribune ,

5700-520: The most high-profile cases of apparent psychic ability of his times, and he wrote over 100 books on subjects including the paranormal and psychical research, conjuring and stage magic , and alternative medicine . Carrington promoted fruitarianism and held pseudoscientific views about dieting. Carrington was born in St Helier , Jersey in 1880. He emigrated to the United States in 1888 (although it

5795-463: The name of the Democratic Platform . In the spring of 1857 it was purchased by Samuel C. Pomeroy , Robert McBratney and F.G. Adams, who changed its policy and published it as a free-state paper until the fall of the same year, when Pomeroy became the sole owner. The first post office in Atchison was established April 10, 1855, with Kelley as postmaster. It was opened in a small building in

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5890-585: The people of the town. During his period of operations, he stole hundreds of horses from Missouri farmers and sold them in Kansas. He robbed any suspected southern sympathizer and threatened several leading citizens with murder and robbery if they remained in town. He even had the audacity to run off the first president of Atchison, P.T. Abell, who was forced into exile until after the Civil War concluded. He defied all authorities who attempted to rein in his excesses, but

5985-409: The population. There were 3,863 households , out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and

6080-442: The population. There were 3,933 households, of which 33.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.0% were married couples living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.8% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

6175-401: The portraits. Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city and county seat of Atchison County, Kansas , United States, along the Missouri River . As of the 2020 census , the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator David Rice Atchison from Missouri and was the original eastern terminus of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway . Atchison

6270-417: The psychologist Stanley LeFevre Krebs exposed the sisters as frauds; he employed a hidden mirror and caught them removing a blank letter sealed between two slates and writing a reply which they would pretend a spirit had written. Hereward Carrington who sat with the sisters in 1909 found their slate-writing to be fraudulent. He had also set up a trap by inventing a fictitious mother named "Jane Thompson" in

6365-402: The report "at almost every point leaves obvious loopholes for trickery." During the séances the long black curtains were often intermixed with Palladino's long black dress. Palladino told Professor Bottazzi the black curtains were "indispensable." Researchers have suspected Palladino used the curtain to conceal her feet. The psychologist C. E. M. Hansel criticized the Feilding report based on

6460-489: The river; Dr. Stringfellow staked a tract north of Million's. Million sold his claim for $ 1,000—an exorbitant price. Eighteen persons were present when the town company was formally organized by electing Peter T. Abell, president; James Burns, treasurer; and Dr. Stringfellow, secretary. The site was divided into 100 shares by the company, of which each member retained five shares, the remainder being reserved for common benefit of all. By September 20, 1854, Henry Kuhn had surveyed

6555-506: The rubbing of oil of phosphorus on the hands. In 1909 an article was published in The New York Times titled Paladino Used Phoshorus . Carrington confessed to having painted Palladino's arm with phosphorescent paint, however he claimed to have used the paint to track the movement of her arm, to detect fraud. There was publicity over the incident and Carrington claimed his comments had been misquoted by newspapers. Carrington exposed

6650-498: The same time, an article in The Washington Post published on April 17, 1888 reported that Lizzie and May Bangs had created the very lucrative firm, the "Bangs Sisters", which operated spiritualistic parlors in the Chicago area. That year, one of their wealthy clients, photographer Henry Jestram , reportedly paid vast amounts of his fortune for their seances. When Jestram died after being committed to an insane asylum, many blamed

6745-501: The southwest, west and northwest, none of which proved successful. A proposed "Atchison and Pike's Peak" line was eventually taken over by the Union Pacific, while a speculative Atchison-Nebraska connector was eventually finished and taken over by other investors. Bickering delayed the building of bridges, stockyards, elevators, warehouses and railroad yards, revealing the disharmony that plagued Atchison's entrepreneurs. However, with

6840-481: The spirits of the dead, commonly known as spirit-medium séances, on penalty of fine and imprisonment. According to the Los Angeles Times , the two sisters even fooled G.W.N. Yost , one of the main investors in the typewriter, with their "spirit typewriter" which produced messages from everyone from Moses to James Garfield . In late 1894, Lizzie and May began "spirit painting", with "Life Sized Spirit Portraits

6935-610: The table, movement of the curtains, movement of objects from behind the curtain and touches from hands. Regarding the first report by Carrington and Feilding, the American scientist and philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce wrote: Eusapia Palladino has been proved to be a very clever prestigiateuse and cheat, and was visited by a Mr. Carrington... In point of fact he has often caught the Palladino creature in acts of fraud. Some of her performances, however, he cannot explain; and thereupon he urges

7030-449: The theory that these are supernatural, or, as he prefers it "supernormal." Well, I know how it is that when a man has been long intensely exercised and over fatigued by an enigma, his common-sense will sometimes desert him; but it seems to me that the Palladino has simply been too clever for him... I think it more plausible that there are tricks that can deceive Mr. Carrington. Frank Podmore in his book The Newer Spiritualism (1910) wrote

7125-499: The town to protect it in case of invasion from Missouri, and on the 15th of the month another company was raised, which was subsequently mustered into a state regiment. In 1863 the city of Atchison raised $ 4,000 to assist the soldiers from the county and after the Lawrence Massacre a like sum was subscribed to assist the stricken people of that city. Citizens of the town also joined the vigilance committees that so materially aided

7220-428: The tricks of mediums such as Henry Slade and William Eglinton . He wrote in the book that after his investigations and studies into the subject of mediumship that 98% of both the physical and mental phenomena were fraudulent. He did however believe that some mediumship phenomena was genuine. Science historian Sherrie Lynne Lyons wrote that the glowing or light-emitting hands in séances could easily be explained by

7315-477: Was $ 31,109, and the median income for a family was $ 37,100. Males had a median income of $ 31,027 versus $ 20,262 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 14,441. About 9.5% of families and 17.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 17.4% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over. The community is served by Atchison USD 409 public school district, which operates four schools, and serves more than 1,600 students. In 1997

7410-505: Was 1,358.4 per square mile (524.5/km ). There were 4,361 housing units at an average density of 544.2 per square mile (210.1/km ). The racial makeup was 82.33% (8,962) white or European American (80.89% non-Hispanic white ), 6.84% (745) black or African-American , 0.55% (60) Native American or Alaska Native , 0.71% (77) Asian , 0.06% (6) Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian , 2.26% (246) from other races , and 7.25% (789) from two or more races . Hispanic or Latino of any race

7505-445: Was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.08. The median age in the city was 31.6 years. 23.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 18.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.9% were from 25 to 44; 22.2% were from 45 to 64; and 14.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.2% male and 52.8% female. As of the U.S. Census in 2000 , there were 10,232 people, 3,863 households, and 2,437 families residing in

7600-426: Was 4.69% (511) of the population. Of the 3,871 households, 28.7% had children under the age of 18; 39.2% were married couples living together; 32.1% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 36.4% of households consisted of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.4 and the average family size was 3.0. The percent of those with

7695-403: Was a condition of hysterical dissociation but he had failed to recognize it. Kurtz has written that Carrington attended unofficial sessions with Palladino and reported on several occasions she "transferred her telekinetic powers" to him to move objects without physical contact. Kurtz wrote that Carrington's testimony was uncorroborated by other witnesses and that he was either a naïve believer or

7790-474: Was accompanied by his friend, William S. Marriott, a magician of some distinction who had exposed psychic fraud in Pearson's Magazine . His plan was to repeat the famous earlier 1908 Naple sittings with Palladino. Unlike the 1908 sittings which had baffled the investigators, this time Feilding and Marriott detected her cheating, just as she had done in the US. Her deceptions were obvious. Palladino evaded control and

7885-401: Was caught moving objects with her foot, shaking the curtain with her hands, moving the cabinet table with her elbow and touching the séance sitters. Milbourne Christopher wrote regarding the exposure "when one knows how a feat can be done and what to look for, only the most skillful performer can maintain the illusion in the face of such informed scrutiny." In 1992, Richard Wiseman analyzed

7980-559: Was delayed by the Civil War, a land grant similar to the one given the Union Pacific to construct the first transcontinental railroad was made by the federal government to Kansas in 1863, which was transferred to the newly reformed Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad (AT&SF). Finally, in 1868, construction was begun on the line in Topeka, but was aimed west and south towards the Colorado border. The connection between Atchison and Topeka ,

8075-458: Was divorced and penniless in less than 24 months. Regarding the sisters' drawings, magic historian David Witter has noted that "experts have surmised that sketches were made beforehand, hidden and slowly moved forward into the light by a free hand while the subjects were not looking." Skeptical investigator Joe Nickell has written that "the Bangses were exposed as tricksters many times." In 1901,

8170-517: Was elected mayor. The German element, largely Catholic, opposed the Sunday closing laws of the new city government, but a satisfactory compromise was reached that allowed the sale of beer on Sundays after church services. The first schools in the town were private, including parochial schools operated by the Germans. One of the first English schools was opened in 1857 by Lizzie Bay. The first school district

8265-569: Was established in October 1858, and a month later the Atchison free high school was opened at the corner of Atchison and Commercial streets. At the outbreak of the American Civil War there were three militia companies organized in Atchison, whose members enlisted in the Kansas regiments. They were known as Companies A, C and “At All Hazards”. Early in September 1861, a home guard was organized in

8360-426: Was executive director for the institute for five years. In 1933, Canadian political leader William Lyon Mackenzie King joined the institute under the name "M. K. Venice". In 1935, Carrington and Nandor Fodor released a bulletin through the institute titled Historic Poltergeists . It became the basis of their book Haunted People published in 1951. In 1908, the Society for Psychical Research (SPR) appointed

8455-477: Was finally shot and killed at some point in 1862. He is buried in St. Joseph, Missouri. In the late 1850s, plans were underway to connect California to the rest of the country by rail. The logical location for a western terminus was in or around San Francisco, California , but an eastern terminus had yet to be chosen. Atchison was in fierce competition to be selected as the terminus, and in order to bolster its position,

8550-464: Was historically a segregated school for black children. Many entities have attempted to restore Lincoln School, which is on the Kansas State Register of Historic Places. Private schools in the city include: Hereward Carrington Hereward Carrington (17 October 1880 – 26 December 1958) was an American investigator of psychic phenomena and author. His subjects included several of

8645-663: Was known as Seaton Lea for most of the 1870s, becoming the Atchison Foundry and Machine Works in 1880. A branch location was constructed in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1881, but closed in 1887. In 1905, the Locomotive Finished Materials Company was established by Harry E. Muchnic, formerly of the AT&;SF railroad, which produced finished materials for the construction of railroad locomotives in close conjunction with Seaton's foundry. The companies eventually merged in 1914 after

8740-410: Was made by John Challis. Until 1858, the city was a pro-slavery bastion, but by that year, the anti-slavery forces took control of the city. On February 12, 1858, the legislature issued a charter to the city of Atchison, which was approved by the people on March 2 at a special election. The first city officers were elected at a second special election on March 13, 1858, and Republican Samuel C. Pomeroy

8835-632: Was needed as Palladino during the 1908 Naples séances could have produced the phenomena by using her foot. Among Carrington's best known subjects was Mina "Margery" Crandon whom he observed in 1924 on behalf of the Scientific American as part of an enquiry into Spiritualism , sitting on a committee alongside Harry Houdini , J. Malcolm Bird , William McDougall , Walter Franklin Prince and Daniel Frost Comstock . The committee had differing opinions on Crandon, and eventually only Carrington inclined to

8930-449: Was not popular with spiritualists. Magician Harry Houdini had discussed magic and spiritualism on various occasions with Carrington. Houdini wrote that Carrington's book The Physical Phenomena of Spiritualism "is certainly the best ever written on the subject" but had doubts about Carrington for supporting the mediumship of Palladino, a medium who had been frequently exposed. According to the psychical researcher J. Malcolm Bird , during

9025-644: Was unable to repay. Magic historians William Kalush and Larry Sloman have noted that such factors could have biased his judgement regarding her mediumship. Carrington embraced different food fads . He experimented with fasting , fruitarianism and raw food diets. He was also a follower of the no breakfast plan . He consumed two meals a day, consisting of apples , figs , fruit salad , nuts and honey . However, Carrington suggested that honey and olive oil were admissible but unnecessary. He stated that man could live on fruits and nuts alone. Carrington's book The Natural Food of Man has been described as "one of

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