Lottie Fowler: the medium whose gift deprived her of her mind (6 photos)

Usually, the so-called mediums, who use the so-called gift as a way to earn money and take money from the population, calmly live to old age in their right mind.





But this woman, who stood at the origins of spiritualism, did not cope with the abilities sent from above or, perhaps, self-hypnosis.



Lottie Fowler

In 1881, a publication under The Medium and Daybreak published a note about the famous medium Lottie Fowler, who, as a result of strong influence at a seance, almost lost her mind. But eighteen years later she still lost him. And she ended up in the mental ward at Bellevue Hospital.

Fowler, whose real name was Charlotte Connolly, was born in Boston in 1846. In her youth, she imagined herself to be a spiritualist medium, changed her name, and began conducting séances throughout New England.





A typical 19th century seance

Although considered by most to be a run-of-the-mill fortune teller, she gained fame after moving to Bridgeport in 1870. There, she predicted that within a week, an explosion at the Union Metallic Cartridge Company factory would damage property, injure several workers, and kill one person. Many workers avoided the factory that week. The prediction came true: six days later an explosion occurred in the chemical workshop of the plant. The property was destroyed. People were injured. And yes, one person was killed.

A short period of mourning was followed by anger, and Fowler was arrested, believing that she had organized the bombing to promote herself. Some were ready to burn her as a witch. No evidence was found, but the judge strongly advised her to leave Bridgeport. Immediately.

Of course, news of her prediction spread, and with it, fame. She toured New England again, making sensational predictions that were rumored to come true. The woman then went abroad to Europe and eventually settled in London.



Fortune telling session

Fowler amazed many with her talents. One such story, published in The Medium and Daybreak in 1881, demonstrated the ability to learn personal details from the past and present and predict future events:

Several years ago, my nephew, whom I loved very much, accidentally drowned while swimming in the sea. He was a bright, intelligent boy and spent time with me from time to time. I felt his loss keenly and was anxious to receive a message from him through a medium, without knowing the circumstances. I immediately went to London and addressed Miss Fowler, without giving my name, address, or purpose of the visit. I told her that I would like to talk to her. Her first words when I went into trance were: “You came on a mission, not for pleasure.” She then told me about many important events in my life, described in detail my wife and other family members, my environment, business, etc. She told me exactly how many brothers and sisters I had living and how many had died. She said, “Your mother is dead; she died several years ago,” and described her. “You have a brother in America,” all of this was true. She then spoke in detail about two recent funerals in my family with noteworthy events associated with them. She also described and named the spirit guide, which confirmed previous messages transmitted through other mediums. Then my past, present and future affairs were described, as well as useful tips for the future.

After sitting for about half an hour, when I began to fear that I would not get what I so passionately desired, she said to me: “I see a little boy behind you”; accurately described his appearance and character and even named the name by which he was usually called, which is a shortening of his real name; told all the circumstances surrounding the accident, the discovery of the body, etc., and imitated the act of drowning in her face. To prove that this was not mind-reading, certain incidents were described in connection with this sad incident which I did not know, but which were confirmed upon returning home.

From the beginning to the end of the seance, it was one amazing unraveling of my inner life and its associations. Since much of it dealt with family issues, I cannot present them here. Suffice it to say that the seance was a great consolation and benefit for me.and is one of the most unusual events in my life. Let anyone approach Miss Fowler and ask for a reading, as I did, without prejudice, and I am sure he will not be disappointed.



Seance

Elsewhere, according to spiritualist records, Fowler predicted that the Prince of Wales would be wounded during the journey and that his coachman would be killed. In St. Petersburg, she predicted the assassination of Alexander II in 1881. Like the residents of Bridgeport, the residents of Petersburg were not happy with this creepy woman. Considering her dangerous, they forced her to leave.

For all her successes, she also had her share of failures. Before the start of the séance, one of the skeptical visitors asked how it was that “spirits come at the call of any medium who decides to advertise séances for five shillings a head.” In response, Fowler said that "the spirits have been specifically authorized to monitor these announcements, and therefore it is a business like any other."

“Almost everything I was told was the opposite of what actually happened,” he wrote. "Some things were certainly true, but seemed to be the result of guesswork rather than intuition - in fact, I'm sure the spirit asked me many more questions about my affairs than I asked her."



Sick women at Bellevue Hospital, New York, overrun by rats

Successes, as with any medium, sound louder than numerous failures. Especially for those who are inclined to believe that spirits speak from the other world.

But, in the end, her success faded away. By the time Fowler returned to the United States in 1881, she had been largely forgotten. Perhaps the obscurity led to loneliness and her madness. Or perhaps the mind was tormented by the voices of spirits that sounded in my head. Or was it thoughts about all the people she had fooled?

Fowler died shortly after being admitted to Bellevue Asylum in New York in July 1899.