The Watseka Wonder

views updated

The Watseka Wonder

A story told in a pamphlet by physician E. W. Stevens, The Watseka Wonder, which details a most intriguing case of continued spirit control. In 1865, at the age of nineteen, a girl named Mary Roff who was mentally ill died in Watseka, Illinois. Thirteen years later, another Watseka girl, Lurancy Vennum, almost a stranger to the Roff family, became similarly afflicted. Stevens diagnosed her case as an obsession. In the hypnotic state, Vennum confirmed the diagnosis.

Stevens suggested that she try to induce a good spirit to control her. She answered that several spirits were about who would be willing. "There is one who was called Mary Roff." The father of Mary Roff was present, and he approved the idea. "Mary Roff" was asked to control Vennum. Supposedly she did so.

Reportedly, on February 1, 1878, she possessed Lurancy's body and remained in possession for 16 weeks in an almost unbroken continuity. As soon as she appeared, she took over Vennum's body and behaved like Mary Roff. She did not know Vennum's parents, went "home," and recognized every old object in the Roff house. She continued where she had left off over 13 years before. She exhibited paranormal faculties during this time, gave proofs of clairvoyance, made predictions, had outof-body experiences in trance, and described her astral journeys on her return to consciousness.

On May 21, 1878, she supposedly left in tears from her Roff parents and all of her friends, fell into trance, and awoke as Lurancy Vennum again. The new Vennum was mentally and physically reestablished. It is believed Vennum had been watched over for a time by "Mary Roff," who came back occasionally in trance. Three and a half years later, Vennum married and when her first baby came "Mary Roff" put her into trance to save her the pains of childbirth. "Mary Roff" never appeared to anyone at Watseka, except through Vennum's body. She never materialized independently.

The psychical researcher Richard Hodgson investigated the case on behalf of the American Society for Psychical Research and concluded:

"I have no doubt that the incidents occurred substantially as described in the narrative by Dr. Stevens, and in my view the only other interpretation of the case—besides the spiritistic— that seems at all plausible, is that which has been put forward as the alternative to the spiritistic theory to account for the trance communications of Mrs. Piper, and similar cases, viz., secondary personality with supernormal powers. It would be difficult to disprove this hypothesis in the case of the Watseka Wonder, owing to the comparative meagreness of the record and the probable abundance of 'suggestion' in the environment, and any conclusion that we may reach would probably be determined largely by our convictions concerning other cases. My personal opinion is that the 'Watseka Wonder' case belongs in the main manifestations to the spiritistic category."

The evidence obtained by Hodgson was published in the Religio-Philosophical Journal (Chicago, December 20, 1890), and his account was verified by J. Bundy, the Religio-Philosophical Journal 's editor. A detailed report also appeared in The Spiritualist (September & October 1878).