The Great Amherst Mystery

The poltergeist phenomena centered on Esther Cox in Amherst, Nova Scotia, between 1878 and 1879 became one of the most famous haunting cases in Canadian history. The activity began shortly after Esther survived an attempted sexual assault and included physical attacks on her body, fires appearing spontaneously, and objects moving through the air.

Background

Esther Cox was nineteen years old in August 1878, living in a crowded cottage with her sister Olive, Olive’s husband Daniel Teed, their children, and other family members. On an evening in late August, Esther went for a buggy ride with Bob MacNeal, a local shoemaker. MacNeal attempted to assault her at gunpoint, but the appearance of another carriage frightened him off.

MacNeal fled the area, and Esther returned home traumatized. Within days, the strange phenomena began.

The Phenomena

The activity started with Esther’s body swelling dramatically as she lay in bed, accompanied by explosive sounds throughout the house. A doctor summoned to examine her witnessed scratching sounds from under the bed and watched as the words “ESTHER COX, YOU ARE MINE TO KILL” appeared carved into the plaster wall above her bed.

Over the following months, the phenomena escalated. Objects flew through the air. Lit matches materialized and fell throughout the house, starting numerous small fires. Esther was stuck with pins that appeared from nowhere. Loud banging sounds shook the house at all hours.

Dr. Carritte, the family physician, documented the phenomena over multiple visits. He witnessed objects moving, heard voices, and observed Esther’s recurring physical symptoms. He could find no medical explanation.

Public Attention

The case attracted widespread attention. Walter Hubbell, an actor interested in the paranormal, visited the Teed cottage and eventually moved in to document the phenomena. He later published “The Great Amherst Mystery,” which became a bestselling account of the haunting.

During Hubbell’s residence, he witnessed hundreds of incidents. Objects flew at him. Fires broke out constantly. Voices spoke from walls and furniture. At one point, he attempted to display Esther publicly, but the phenomena refused to perform on demand, embarrassing him considerably.

Esther’s Ordeal

Esther suffered greatly throughout the haunting. She was physically attacked by unseen forces, stabbed with pins, and terrorized by constant activity. The fires endangered everyone in the household and eventually forced her to leave the Teed cottage.

She found temporary employment on a nearby farm, but fires broke out there as well. The farmer accused her of arson, and she was convicted and briefly imprisoned. The phenomena largely ceased after this point.

Theories and Explanations

Skeptics have proposed that Esther herself caused the phenomena through trickery, motivated by the trauma of her assault. However, witnesses included doctors, ministers, and skeptics who watched carefully for deception and found none.

Believers saw the case as genuine poltergeist activity, possibly triggered by Esther’s trauma and expressed through psychokinetic energy. The connection between adolescent stress and poltergeist phenomena has been noted in many similar cases.

Assessment

The Great Amherst Mystery presents a compelling but frustrating case. The witnesses were numerous and credible, the phenomena were dramatic and sustained, and the documentation was unusually thorough for the era. Yet no definitive explanation has ever emerged.

What is certain is that something terrifying occurred in that Nova Scotia cottage, and a traumatized young woman was at its center. Whether Esther was the source, the target, or the victim of the phenomena, her suffering was real and documented.