"...Modern Spiritualism began in the 1840s in a small
town in New York, and quickly grew to become one of
the greatest – and most divisive – religious
movements of the 19th Century. Almost all
historians point to movement beginning in 1848 in
Hydesville, New York, where sisters Maggie and Kate
Fox began communicating with a “spirit” in their
home through rappings and knockings. The girls
became a phenomenon; before long they were
communicating with spirits around the nation in front
of hundreds of rapt audience members. Soon,
spiritual mediums could be found in almost every
town. America’s new religion had taken root and
showed no signs of stopping...." cont'd on website.
http://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default...ualism.pdf
town in New York, and quickly grew to become one of
the greatest – and most divisive – religious
movements of the 19th Century. Almost all
historians point to movement beginning in 1848 in
Hydesville, New York, where sisters Maggie and Kate
Fox began communicating with a “spirit” in their
home through rappings and knockings. The girls
became a phenomenon; before long they were
communicating with spirits around the nation in front
of hundreds of rapt audience members. Soon,
spiritual mediums could be found in almost every
town. America’s new religion had taken root and
showed no signs of stopping...." cont'd on website.
http://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default...ualism.pdf