Origins and Invention
In the late 19th century, a curious contraption emerged from the dimly lit séance rooms of Victorian society—the spirit trumpet. This ingenious tool, resembling a narrow cone, was first created by Jonathan Koons and his son, Nahum, in Ohio. They aimed to give the spirit world a louder voice, as communicating with spirits was like trying to hear a whisper across a noisy room.
The design was simple—metal or cardboard tubes that resembled DIY telescopes. As demand grew, these trumpets became more ornate, with some even sporting glow-in-the-dark rings. The Koons family’s Ohio farm became legendary for public séances, with Jonathan’s spirit room becoming a hot spot for the curious and brave.
Nahum, the inventive spirit behind the trumpet, thought the dead could use a little help to communicate. His creation didn’t just help spirits speak; it allegedly made them float! These trumpets would levitate around the room, supposedly buoyed by psychic energy, allowing recipients to get their ghostly greetings up close and personal.
The fancy aluminum trumpets we might recognize today stem from the work of Everett Atwood Eckel, who commercialized these ghostly gadgets from his Indiana tin shop. They evolved from simple speaking tools to complex, collapsible structures, underlining Victorian society’s remarkable knack for combining innovation with a captivating, eerie twist.
Design and Evolution
As spirit trumpets gained popularity, the demand for more sophisticated designs followed suit. The progression from humble, homemade cones to elaborate instruments marked a fascinating chapter in Victorian ghost-hunting paraphernalia. Initially crafted from metal or cardboard, these rudimentary trumpets served their purpose effectively—taking whispers from the spirit world and channeling them into the ears of the living.
The era of the extendable spirit trumpet soon arrived, allowing the instrument to stretch and retract through sliding segments. These segments slotted into each other much like a jointed telescope, granting mediums a functional tool and an impressive showpiece.
Material Evolution:
- Initial materials: Metal and cardboard
- Later advancements: Steel and aluminum
- Advantages of aluminum: Shiny finish and lighter weight
Everett Atwood Eckel played a pivotal role in the commercialization of these ghostly gadgets. From his tin shop in Anderson, Indiana, Eckel embraced the burgeoning demand for more sophisticated spirit trumpets, producing the first commercial versions. His designs capitalized on the Victorian appetite for novelty and wonder, offering an array of options that moved beyond mere functionality.
The evolution of the spirit trumpet reflected the technological advancements and artistic sensibilities of the era, highlighting the Victorian fascination with the supernatural. Through craftsmanship and imagination, the spirit trumpet became an icon of its time—a testament to humanity’s enduring curiosity with the unknown.
Function and Use in Séances
Picture a gathering in a dim salon, shadows clinging to the walls as eager Victorians sit spellbound around a table, the flicker of candlelight casting an eerie glow. At the center sits the spirit trumpet, poised like a maestro ready to unveil its ghostly symphony.
The spirit trumpet was believed to serve as a supernatural amplifier, a conduit through which whispered messages from beyond the veil could reach the ears of the living. Mediums claimed that through the trumpet, spirits could harness the medium’s vocal cords, turning whispers into discernible words.
Theatrics were woven into the very fabric of these gatherings. Mediums claimed that psychic energy could animate the trumpets, causing them to levitate and drift purposefully around the room. Picture a seemingly self-propelled trumpet floating toward its intended recipient, an ethereal mail service, with each spirit-aided oscillation adding to the evening’s enchantment.
In addition to amplifying spectral voices, spirit trumpets played a role in the intriguing practice of apports—material objects supposedly transported from another dimension, or produced from thin air by the spirits themselves. These gifts from the beyond were often delivered via the spirit trumpet’s gleaming mouthpiece, adding another layer of surreal splendor to the séance’s proceedings.
This blending of function and flourish was as much about belief as it was about showmanship. The spectacle of the séance, orchestrated amid hushed anticipation and punctuated by trance-induced declarations, forged a heightened sense of drama—one where skepticism was challenged, and the extraordinary was embraced, at least for the night.
Skepticism and Debunking
While some were captivated by the mystical allure of spirit trumpets, others saw them as a gilded facade veiling a grand illusion. Enter Harry Houdini, the great illusionist who turned his discerning eye to the spiritualist movement, determined to unmask fraudulent practices that preyed on the hopeful and the bereaved.
Houdini embarked on a mission to expose the charlatans who manipulated the séance phenomenon. Among the tools of deception he dissected was the revered spirit trumpet. It wasn’t long before the act of the levitating spirit trumpet was found to be the handiwork of deft, unseen strings and nimble, shadowy hands moved under the cloaking veil of darkness.
"Too soft-spoken to really project in a spirit room, the dead required all the sound-amplifying help they could get."
This master of escape artistically showcased how the spirit trumpet could be manipulated to mimic spectral messages. He demonstrated that the whispers from beyond were often produced by nothing more than the ventriloquism skills of a clever medium or accomplice. Houdini’s revelation was that spirit trumpets were merely a sound stage conspiracy, carrying the whispers of mediums rather than those of the dead.
Many others, like the Davenport brothers, had dabbled in both promoting and debunking these spectral theatrics. Through public demonstrations, these figures illuminated the simple mechanics behind supposedly supernatural phenomena. Such debunking efforts aimed to reveal the truth and educate the populace against being led astray by cunning performances dressed as spiritual revelations.
The impact of these revelations was profound. For some, it shattered the comforting bridge to the beyond that mediums offered. For others, it ushered in a more cautious approach to the spiritualist movement. Yet, despite the litany of exposed frauds, the allure of the spirit trumpet and the séance endured. The drama of the unknown and the yearning for contact with lost loved ones maintained the popularity of spiritualism, even as skepticism simmered beneath its surface.
Cultural Impact and Legacy
The spirit trumpet left an indelible mark on the cultural landscape, transcending the initial thrills of séances. This curious contrivance became not just a medium’s tool, but a cultural icon interwoven into a time when conversing with the deceased seemed not just plausible, but desirable. The popularity of the spirit trumpet helped elevate spiritualism from mere fringe belief to a significant cultural phenomenon, engaging people from varying walks of life in the quest to connect with the spectral and the mysterious.
In an era characterized by scientific advancements and societal shifts, the Victorian fascination with spiritualism provided solace and intrigue. The spirit trumpet, with its dramatic flair, became emblematic of this pursuit—a nod to the intersection of belief and spectacle. It became a symbol of the liminal space between the worldly and the ethereal, a manifestation of the era’s complex relationship with mortality and the afterlife.
The cultural significance of the spirit trumpet extended beyond séance circles. It intrigued writers, artists, and filmmakers, who were captivated by its mystique. Representations of séances featuring spirit trumpets appeared in literature, becoming iconic elements of gothic novels that explored the supernatural, as well as later in screen portrayals of otherworldly endeavors. These appearances cemented the trumpet’s position not only as a Victorian curiosity but as a lasting icon in the broader cultural imagination of the supernatural.
Modern paranormal investigations often pay homage to these historical tools, drawing inspiration from the spirit trumpet’s legacy as they pursue proof of the unseen. Although contemporary ghost hunters might employ advanced technology, the spirit trumpet’s simple elegance remains a reminder of the movement’s roots.
The visual and symbolic elements of the spirit trumpet transformed it into a touchstone for envisioning communication with the beyond. When today’s paranormal enthusiasts conjure images of Victorian séances, it is often with the spirit trumpet levitating over a candlelit table, whispering promises of messages from the other side. Its legacy has endured, a testament to enduring human curiosity and the desire to render the invisible, visible.
As the spirit trumpet echoes through history, it stands as a testament to humanity’s enduring curiosity about the unknown. This device, with its theatrical flair and supernatural allure, reminds us of a time when the boundary between the living and the spectral was both a source of wonder and skepticism. Its legacy continues to resonate, inviting us to ponder the mysteries that lie beyond our understanding.
- Imbler S. Ghost Megaphones: How the Victorians Spoke to the Dead. Atlas Obscura. 2017.
- Hodge B. Collecting & Preserving Vintage Spirit Communication Devices. Brandon Hodge’s Cabinet of Curiosities. 2018.
- Crawford WJ. Experiments in Physical Science. 1919.
- The College of Psychic Studies. Spirit Trumpets: Amplifying the Victorian Séance. 2020.