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Lily Dale
Lily Dale promotes itself as
"the world’s largest center for spiritual development and the practice of
the Spiritualist religion." It was founded in
1879 as a community of spiritualists and a number of people still call this
place, located about 60 miles south of Buffalo, home.
In addition to providing the usual mediumship services, faith healing, and other spiritualist entertainments, Lily Dale charges admission to walk the grounds and visit its museum, pet cemetery, and other features such as the childhood home of the Fox sisters, generally described as the founders of the spiritualist movement in America.
Lily Dale is a favored spot of ghost hunters, the spiritually curious or confused, and true believers.
The following video from YouTube provides a tour of Lily Dale.
See also apport, Arthur Ford hoax, automatic writing, Camp Chesterfield, channeling, ectoplasm, ghost, medium, Ouija board, séance, and A Short History of Psi Research by Robert Todd Carroll.
further reading
books and articles
Brandon, Ruth. (1983). The Spiritualists. Knopf.
Houdini, Harry. A Magician Among the Spirits (New York: Harper, 1924).
Houdini, Harry. Miracle Mongers and Their Methods: a Complete Exposé (Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus Books, 1981). * Free online!
Keene, M. Lamar. The Psychic Mafia (Prometheus, 1997).
Nickell, Joe. 2000. Spirit Painting Part I: The Campbell Brothers.
Nickell, Joe. 2002. Undercover among the spirits. Skeptical Inquirer. 26:2 (March/April), 22–25.
Randi, James. Flim-Flam! (Buffalo, New York: Prometheus Books,1982).
Rawcliffe, Donovan Hilton. Occult and Supernatural Phenomena(New York: Dover Publications, 1988).
Tanner, Amy. Studies in Spiritism (Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus Books, 1994).
website
Skeptiseum: Spiritualism - Joe Nickell
Spiritualism and Channeling - Rory Coker
Lightning Process 