Ethel Post-Parrish

Ethel Post-Parrish (died 1960) was an American Spiritualist medium.

Biography

In 1932 Parrish founded Camp Silver Belle a Spiritualist summer camp situated at Mountain Springs Hotel in Ephrata, Pennsylvania.^[1] In her séances Parrish claimed to materialize her spirit guide an Indian girl known as Silver Belle.^[2]

In a séance at Ephrata, Pennsylvania, in 1953, Parrish materialized her spirit guide Silver Belle whilst sitting in her curtained cabinet. The pictures claimed to be taken at 50 second intervals in infra-red light by photographer Jack Edwards, show Silver Belle growing from a cloud of "ectoplasm".^[3]

Fraud

A related spiritualist camp known as Camp Chesterfield in Anderson, Indiana was managed by Mabel Riffle the cousin of Parrish. The camp was exposed in 1960 as infra red film had revealed that the materialized figures were all human and had entered the séance room through a side door.^[4]^[5]

Camp Silver Belle was also practicing fraudulent mediumship, and had been exposed in various newspapers. Before exposures the camp took in up to a million dollars a year.^[6]

The photographs taken by Jack Edwards of Silver Belle materializing were discovered to be a hoax. A photograph was taken of smoke and by a double exposure a cardboard figure was superimposed onto it. The woman standing outside the cabinet curtain was also an accomplice involved in the deception.^[7]

Footnotes

^ Roy Stemman. (1976). The Supernatural. Danbury Press. p. 82
^ Victoria Barnes. (1948). Centennial Book of Modern Spiritualism in America. National Spiritualist Association. p. 218
^ John Fairley, Simon Welfare. (1984). Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers. Putnam. p. 192. ISBN 978-0002166799
^ Joe Nickell. 2002. Undercover Among the Spirits. Skeptical Inquirer. 26:2 (March/April). pp. 22-25
^ Terence Hines. (2003). Pseudoscience and the Paranormal. Prometheus Books. p. 53. ISBN 978-1573929790
^ Raymond Buckland. (1993). Doors to Other Worlds: A Practical Guide to Communicating With Spirits. Llewellyn. p. 227. ISBN 978-0875420615
^ M. Lamar Keene. (1997). The Psychic Mafia. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-1573921619

[1] Roy Stemman. (1976). The Supernatural. Danbury Press. p. 82

[2] Victoria Barnes. (1948). Centennial Book of Modern Spiritualism in America. National Spiritualist Association. p. 218

[3] John Fairley, Simon Welfare. (1984). Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers. Putnam. p. 192. ISBN 978-0002166799

[4] Joe Nickell. 2002. Undercover Among the Spirits. Skeptical Inquirer. 26:2 (March/April). pp. 22-25

[5] Terence Hines. (2003). Pseudoscience and the Paranormal. Prometheus Books. p. 53. ISBN 978-1573929790

[6] Raymond Buckland. (1993). Doors to Other Worlds: A Practical Guide to Communicating With Spirits. Llewellyn. p. 227. ISBN 978-0875420615

[7] M. Lamar Keene. (1997). The Psychic Mafia. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-1573921619

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v t e Spiritualism and spiritism
History and beliefs	Apport Automatic writing Cross-Correspondences Ectoplasm Faith healing Materialization Mediumship Séance Spirit guides Spiritual healing Spirit obsession Spirit photography Spirit possession Spirit world Table-turning Theism
Spiritualists	Derek Acorah Rosemary Altea Dan Aykroyd Charles Bailey Bangs Sisters Ada Besinnet Stephen E. Braude William Breeze Rosemary Brown Sylvia Browne Eva Carrière Doris Collins Florence Cook Mina Crandon William Crookes Geraldine Cummins Pearl Curran Frank Decker Arthur Conan Doyle Helen Duncan Eddy Brothers Harry Edwards John Edward William Eglinton Colin Evans Fox sisters Leslie Flint Arthur Ford Colin Fry Eileen Garrett Kathleen Goligher Rita Goold Jan Guzyk Robert Hare Alec Harris Gordon Higginson Richard Hodgson Daniel Dunglas Home Elizabeth Hope William Hope Swami Laura Horos Cecil Husk James H. Hyslop Allan Kardec Franek Kluski Gladys Osborne Leonard Oliver Lodge Heinrich Melzer Carmine Mirabelli Francis Ward Monck William Usborne Moore Lorin Morgan-Richards William Stainton Moses Einer Nielsen Eusapia Palladino Leonora Piper Ethel Post-Parrish James Van Praagh Bert Reese Estelle Roberts Jane Roberts William Roy Rudi Schneider Maria Silbert Henry Slade Doris Stokes Emanuel Swedenborg Rosina Thompson Stanisława Tomczyk Ena Twigg George Valiantine Jack Webber Etta Wriedt Chico Xavier
Organizations	List of Spiritualist organizations Spiritualist churches Spiritist centres London Spiritualist Alliance National Spiritualist Association of Churches Spiritualists' National Union Spiritualist Association of Great Britain Spiritual church movement Arthur Findlay College International Spiritualist Federation
Skeptics	David Abbott John Henry Anderson George Miller Beard Ruth Brandon Lionel Branson Derren Brown William Carpenter Milbourne Christopher Edward Clodd Edmund Smith Conklin Millais Culpin Stuart Cumberland Eric Dingwall Joseph Dunninger Henry Evans Chris French Martin Gardner G. Stanley Hall Trevor H. Hall William A. Hammond C. E. M. Hansel Carlos María de Heredia Carl Hertz Terence Hines Harry Houdini Joseph Jastrow Stanley LeFevre Krebs Rose Mackenberg David Marks John Nevil Maskelyne Henry Maudsley Joseph McCabe Henry C. McComas Georgess McHargue Charles Arthur Mercier Albert Moll John Mulholland Fulton Oursler Joe Nickell E. Clephan Palmer Ronald Pearsall Frank Podmore Massimo Polidoro Harry Price Julien J. Proskauer James Randi Donovan Rawcliffe Joseph F. Rinn C. E. Bechhofer Roberts Chung Ling Soo Gordon Stein Amy Tanner Ivor Lloyd Tuckett Lyttelton Winslow Richard Wiseman