Short Versions of the Bell Witch Legend

By Phil Norfleet

I first became aware of the Bell Witch legend in the late 1980’s when I began doing genealogical research on the early Norfleet settlers of Montgomery and Robertson Counties in Middle Tennessee.  I was intrigued by this rather unusual bit of witch folklore and made a mental note to return to this subject some day and see what elements of the legend, if any, could be substantiated by the facts as reflected in the extant official documents of the time.  By official documents I mean such records as Federal Census Reports, deed records, marriage records, probate and other court records.  At this web site, the results of my research are appended under the Official Records heading.

A complete account of the Bell Witch phenomena, by M. V. Ingram, is available at the “Red Book” hyperlink.  However, shorter, more recent versions of the legend may be of value to the beginning researcher.

Earliest Published Version

The earliest published mention of the Bell Witch, of which I am aware, appeared in the Goodspeed History of Tennessee.  This History was published in 1886 and, although no author is stated, it may have been written by the lawyer, politician and historian, Albert Virgil Goodpasture (1855-1942).  The following is a quote from page 833:

A remarkable occurrence, which attracted wide-spread interest, was connected with the family of John Bell, who settled near what is now Adams Station about 1804.  So great was the excitement that people came from hundreds of miles around to witness the manifestations of what was popularly known as the "Bell Witch."  This witch was supposed to be some spiritual being having the voice and attributes of a woman.  it was invisible to the eye, yet it would hold conversation and even shake hands with certain individuals.  The freaks if performed were wonderful and seemingly designed to annoy the family.  It would take the sugar from the bowls, spill the milk, take the quilts from the beds, slap and pinch the children, and then laugh at the discomfiture of its victims.  At first it was supposed to be a good spirit, but its subsequent acts, together with the curses with which it supplemented its remarks, proved the contrary.  A volume might be written concerning the performance of this wonderful being, as they are now described by contemporaries and their descendants.  That all this actually occurred will not be disputed, nor will a rational explanation be attempted.  It is merely introduced as an example of superstition, strong in the minds of all but a few in those times, and yet not wholly extinct.

The WPA Guidebook Account

  A short summary of the Bell Witch story is contained in the Guidebook for Tennessee, produced by the Federal Government's Works Project Administration (WPA).  This guidebook, published in 1939, presents a version of the legend at pages 392-393.  However, the reader should note that this version of the Bell Witch story differs somewhat from the Ingram book.

US 41E crosses the Kentucky Line at 0 m., 26.5 miles southeast of Hopkinsville, Ky., and at 5.4 m. crosses Red River.

The BELL WITCH FARM, 5.6 m., has long been so called because it is widely believed that a witch hag rode John Bell and his family here during the early part of the nineteenth century. At the turn of the cen­tury John Bell came to Tennessee from North Carolina, bought a tract of land here and settled with his large family and numerous slaves. To round out his holdings, Bell bought a section of land from Mrs. Kate Batts, a neighbor who had a reputation for meanness.  Bell was noted for an almost grim piety and uprightness; yet no sooner had the land transfer been completed than Mrs. Batts began declaring that Bell had cheated her. This fancied injustice vexed the old woman for years.  On her deathbed she swore that she would come back and “hant John Bell and all his kith and kin to their graves.”

Sure enough, tradition says, the Bells were tormented for years by the malicious spirit of Old Kate Batts. John Bell and his favorite daughter Betsy were the principal targets. Toward the other members of the family the witch was either indifferent or, as in the case of Mrs. Bell, friendly.  No one ever saw her, but every visitor to the Bell home heard her all too well. Her voice, according to one person who heard it, "spoke at a nerve-racking pitch when displeased, while at other times it sang and spoke in low musical tones.”

The spirit of Old Kate led John and Betsy Bell a merry chase.  She threw furniture and dishes at them.  She pulled their noses, yanked their hair, poked needles into them.  She yelled all night to keep them from sleeping, and snatched food from their mouths at mealtime.

The witch, so they say, did not confine her capers to the Bell farmstead.  She attended every revival in Robertson County and out-sang, out-shouted, out-moaned the most fervent converts.  The unseen Kate was also very fond of corn whiskey.  She constantly raided still houses, they say, got roaring drunk and went home to belabor John and Betsy Bell with renewed fervor.

When Betsy fell in love with Josiah Gardner, a young man who lived on the adjoining farm, Old Kate included Josiah in her vigorous displeasure.  Gardner finally gave up and fled from the State.

When Old Kate’s fame at length reached Nashville, Andrew Jackson and some friends determined to face the terror and 'lay” it once and for all.  In very high spirits they set out for the Bell farm.  Suddenly, on the boundary of Bell’s property, it is related, the wagon in which Jackson and his friends were riding would move no farther. The mules strained and Jackson cursed. Out of the empty air came Kate's voice:  “All right General, the wagon can move on.”  And it did.

That night Kate kept the house in an uproar. She sang, she swore, she threw dishes, overturned furniture, and snatched the bedclothes from all the beds. Next morning the harried Jackson made an early start, crying out to Bell as he left, "I'd rather fight the British again than have any more dealings with that torment."

The Bell Witch disappeared when John Bell died.  The original farmhouse has been torn down.

At intervals the newspapers revive the story with an account of how some descendant of Bell’s is due for a visitation, which they say is the lot of one person in each generation. But Old Kate is apparently frustrated by present day publicity methods.