Bell Witch Mystery:
John Bell, a farmer from North Carolina,along with his wife and children settled in northern Robertson County Tennessee in 1804. Their farm consisted of 320 acres of rich farm land that laid along the Red River. They lived a quite peaceful life here for the first 13 years. They were members of the Red River Baptist Church where John became a deacon. The family grew and became somewhat prosperous.
In the late summer of 1817 something would happen that would change their lives forever. Some members of the family began seeing strange looking animals around the property. Then late at night they started hearing knocking sounds on the doors and outer walls of the house. Later sounds were being heard in the house. Sounds of a rat gnawing on the bed post, chains being drug through the house, stones being dropped on the wooden floors, then gulping and choking sounds.
The family was terrified but kept the problem to themselves for over a year. When things became intolerable John confided in a neighbor, James Johnson. He invited Mr and Mrs Johnson to spend the night. After several nights of witnessing these strange things, Mr. Johnson suggested that more people should be told. And a committee was formed and an investigation started.
It was not long before people were coming from miles around to hear and witness this unseen force that was terrorizing the Bell home. Before long this unseen force had gained enough strength that it now had a voice. When asked who and what it was, it gave different identities. It once stated that it was the witch of a neighbor woman named Kate Batts. This is what many people believed, and from then on, this unseen force was called "Kate" the "Bell's Witch".
It seemed that Kate had two main reasons for visiting the Bell home. The main one was to kill John Bell. For what reason no one knows because Kate never gave a reason why. The second reason was to stop John's youngest daughter Betsy from marrying a certain neighbor boy named Joshua Gardner.
On December 19, 1820, when John Bell became fell into a coma-like state.
The next morning he died, and his family found a small bottle of fluid that they did not recognize. They gave some to one of the farm cats, which promptly died. At this point, the entity gleefully accepted responsibility for the apparent poisoning of John.
Although Bell’s Witch then departed, it promised to return in 7 years. In the meantime, where had it gone?
On the Bell property lays a cave. Little is known about the cave from the historical records of the Bell’s Witch. Perhaps the cave was used for storage, perhaps the children occasionally played in it as children so often do, or perhaps it was truly a gateway to hell. Perhaps the Bell’s Witch had simply retreated to the cool comfort of the limestone passageways and private rooms.
Visitors to the Bell Witch Cave can make their own determinations. Some have heard voices in distant, inaccessible parts of the cave. Others have felt oppressive weights that have caused them to literally collapse to the ground. Lights and globes can be seen flitting throughout the cave and surrounding skies at night.
The original Bell farm is still a farm, but the Bell family no longer owns it, and it is not open to the public. The Bell’s Witch Cave is located just off Keysburg Road in Adams, Tennessee. It is open to the public for tours by appointment only and is listed on the National Historical Registry by the United States Department of the Interior.
Likely she still languishes there, how about a visit?