Encyclopedia of Horror Lore

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The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage

The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage is one of several cursed books according to lore on the internet today. It exists in re-print today but the originals are few and far between.

Date of Discovery

The book internally dates itself to 1458. It was published in English around 1897.

Name

Two slight variations were found – “The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage” and “The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-melin”

Image of the cover of the Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage
English translated version of The Book Of The Sacred Magic Of Abramelin The Mage

Physical Description

The text exists as twelve manuscripts and several English printed editions from the 1900s on as seen on the right. There are two manuscripts from 1608 written in German which are located in Wolfenbüttel. Another two manuscripts from 1700 and 1 750 are located in Dresden.

The text can also be found online in PDF form and on various websites such as sacred-texts.com although errors, omissions, and changes would be hard to verify.

It can also be purchased on Amazon if you want to take the risk.

Mythology and Lore

The text describes rituals using magic word-square talismans and daily prayer that can summon the magician’s guardian angel and demon. Once the ritual has been completed the summoner evokes the 12 Kings and Dukes of Hell in his mind in order to remove their negative influence over him or her. After the process is complete the magician gains abilities such as finding treasures, casting love spells, gaining flight, raising the dead, and invisibility.

Historian Francis King said this about the book “The Sacred Magic of Abra Melin expresses its doctrine, and the technique which depends from it, more clearly, and more consistently, than any other grimoire. The machinery of the cosmos is seen as operated by demons under the direction of angels; man is seen as standing between the angelic and the demonic – each human being having attached to his or her soul a malevolent demon and a ‘Holy Guardian Angel The object of the processes taught in The Sacred Magic was the obtaining of ‘the Knowledge and Conversation’ of this Holy Guardian Angel – once this had been done the magician could control the demons who run the universe, raise the dead, heal the sick, find great treasures and even fly [ astrally ].”

Cover of The Book of the Sacred Mage of Abra-Melin

However, this book is believed by some to be cursed. Simply possessing the book is rumored to bring forth demons from other realms who will haunt the owner which will ultimately lead to terrible luck and the demise of the person possessing the cursed grimoire. There are two camps, however. One that says it is cursed, likely due to the demon references, and another that says it is simply the most powerful magic book in the world.

For even more on the history of the book and it’s author read this article on Wikipedia

Modern Pop-Culture References

None found yet

Books & Literature

None found yet

Television Series

None found yet

The Devil’s Toy Box – Louisiana

Date of Establishment

Allegedly the cabin was built in 2014 as part of a Halloween attraction on an orchard.

Name & Location

“The Devils Toy Box” and “Farmer Grave’s Haunted Orchard.” The cabin is located North of Louisiana on an old farm possibly near or in Alexandria. The secondary name Farmer Grave’s Haunted Orchard also implies it is on “Farmer Grave’s” farm.

Physical Description

The cabin is described as a windowless one room shack and on the inside the walls, floor, and ceiling are all mirrors

Origin

The shack was allegedly built as part of a halloween event that the farm had done each year. In 2014 Farmer Grave decided to add a new feature to the event and he created the “Devil’s Toy Box” at that time.

Mythology and Lore

Going inside the mirrored room is said to have driven several people insane. There are reports of individuals coming out kicking and screaming beyond reasoning. Several people believe the room can summon the devil himself.

Apparently, no one could last longer than five minutes inside the room. There was even a large timer set up beside the building that showed the current occupant’s length of stay under a second clock displaying the longest recorded time up to that point, which maxed out at four minutes and thirty-seven seconds before the attraction finally closed. The man who managed to last that long (Roger Heltz, age 52, father of three) had been reduced to a wide-eyed mute. To this day, he still hasn’t said a word.

Thought Catalog

Modern Pop-Culture References

None known at this time

The Lady in White of Easton

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Discovery

Union Cemetery dates back to the 1700s and is one of the most haunted cemeteries in the United States. Most of the spirits roaming its grounds do not come with a clear origin or reports recording their first sightings.

Name

The Lady in White also known as the White Lady, roam the Easton, Connecticut grounds of Union Cemetery and it’s surrounding roads.

Physical Description

The White Lady is described as having longing black hair and a white gown, possibly a wedding gown. Many have reported her floating just above the ground around the graves.

Origin

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The Lady in White’s origin is a bit of a mystery, multiple stories try to explain were her spirit came from and why she is “haunting” the cemetery. One legend says she’s the spirit of a woman who was murdered in the 1940s after killing her husband; another legend is that she was killed at the turn of the 20th century and dumped in the sinkhole behind the church. The last legend states she died in childbirth and is still roaming the earth searching for her lost child. We still can’t say for certain where her spirit came from, as she is not a talkative ghost.

Mythology & Lore

The White Lady has been seen by several visitors to the graveyard, as well as been captured in many photographs and videos (most famous being Ed Warren’s). The Lady in White also likes to appear in the middle of Route 59 seeming to be “hit” by a car, only to leave the driver shaken and confused after she disappears. She has many reports of sightings on roads nearby the Easton Cemetery, but there are also reports stating the White Lady has also been seen in a Monroe cemetery as well. It seems most reports show she is not an angry or malicious spirit, rather one that is a minor trickster playing harmless games with visitors to the grounds.

Modern Pop-Culture References

Books & Literature



Is there anything we missed about The Lady in White? Let us know in the comments section below!

The Monroe Street Bridge

Date of Establishment & General History

The Monroe St Bridge stands as a time-tested landmark for the city of Spokane, as the third bridge to break the raging currents of the river below and ferry people across. Its first construction in 1888 was funded by the City of Spokane, Cable Railway Company, and a few private investors along Monroe Street. It was wooden built and meant to keep horse-drawn wagons and carts moving swiftly on their way as the town grew. As times progressed the city needed a more modern bridge. In 1890 the new Monroe St Bridge was fully constructed of steel and became the beacon of modernism. With its over-head lighting and doubled-tracked streetcar accommodations, this bridge was a marvel to behold at the turn of the century. However, the steel bridge was deemed unsafe due to the heavy vibrations and its over-whelming mass in 1905. To add to the growing concern of the bridge, in 1907 the Ringling Brothers refused to walk their elephants across the “shaky span”. Then the final blow to the pride of the steel bridge a mudslide causing the south side to collapse, leaving the City of Spokane in need of a new bridge yet again. As Spokane saw multiple bridges collapsing and failing across the city, the town officials called in the most celebrated architects to design the new grand Monroe St Bridge. In 1911 the citizens of Spokane celebrated having the world’s largest concrete arch-bridge for that time. As well as being the visual landmark for the City of Spokane, this bridge truly gave the town a drivable bridge.

Name & Location

The Monroe Street Bridge is a major landmark for the town as well as Washington folklore and history.  It is also sometimes known as the Bison Skull Bridge because of the “lost Shine treasure” which was a bison skull cast that was for the original bridge. The bridge stretches across the Spokane River, which cuts through the middle of the town give or take some feet. Spokane was named after the native Spokane Tribe who raged bloody battles against the first American settlers. These dragged out to be very long battles and costly on both sides, but eventually, the settlers won and broke ground to build this historic town.

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August 3, 1911 During construction.

Physical Description

The Monroe St Bridge is constructed over a gorge at is 140-ft deep by 1,500- ft wide and plagued with severe windstorms, high water levels, and deathly currents. After 1914 the bridge sported the marring of beauty and structure when a railroad bridge was built right on the top. Named the Great Northern railroad bridge, sat happily above passer-byes until its removal for Expo 74. Aside from the removal of the railroad bridge and reconstruction from 2003 to 2005, the bridge still looks very much the same as the original 1911 build. The concrete behemoth stands towering over crossers, with unconventionally pale ornaments. Adorned with decorative bison skull casts, wagon wheels, and chain handrails this giant shines on the towns pioneering history. The bison we see today are reconstructions of the original replaced in the 1990s due to structural failures. It’s rumored that Patrick Shine brought one of the originals to his home, but after selling the properly the beloved treasure vanished. Thus, creating another legend surrounding this bridge.

Origin

The true origin of the reported figures of Monroe St Bridge is hard to nail down and track, as the history is filled with chaos and disaster. We do know that there were at least three deaths in the early construction years of the bridge, as well as a general numbered of workers hurt. This bridge also seems to be a beacon for suicidal tragedy, as its height and dangerous river below attract the possibility of jumpers. This is a dark, sad, and tragic portion of the history that was hard to discover.  Needless to say, pinpointing which shadowy figure was which is a rather hard and depressing task.

Mythology and Lore

The bridge’s oldest spirits are of the construction worker that died in the original wooden building of the bridge. He is rumored to have extremely old-timey clothing and often asks where the natives have gone. He is also known to throw himself off the bridge if approach, and vanish before hitting the water. In the 1900s two workers also died and over fifty were badly injured, these men are also possible worker-like spirits to be reported walking the bridge.

According to the town’s medical reports, between 2006 and 2018 Monroe St Bridge averaged 204 deaths per year due to suicides from jumping off into the river. Out of the 13 deaths 9 were reported to be caught on tape or camera, as well as the many attempts to jump. The police receive on average 20 calls a year to respond to jump attempts, and now have a task force devoted to just this bridge. Many of the shadowy figures that seem to pop up here are there are attributed to these cases.


Index
  • Haunted Rooms America – Spokane, WA
  • Spokane Historical – Monroe Street Bridge
  • Atlas Obscure – Monroe Street Bridge Bison Skull


Is there anything we missed about Monroe Street Bridge? Let us know in the comments section below!

The Old Charleston Jail

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Establishment

The Old Jail was originally built in 1802 in Charleston, SC and stands to this day in the Downtown area. It reined until 1939 as a prison, poor house, hospital, and workhouse for slaves at its full capacity to serve the town.

Name & Location

The jail has many names through-out history the two that stuck for the hundreds of years it has stood are the Old Charleston Jail and Old Jail for short. Located in the French Quarter part of Downtown Charleston the jail stands tall as a reminder to locals to the history Charleston has endured and recovered from.

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Physical Description

The Old City of Charleston, South Carolina is located in the Downtown area. It’s dark and gothic in appearance, standing four stories tall with an octagonal tower. Its moss-covered stone walls tower over the grounds, it has large windows covered with rode iron bars. It has undergone a few remodeling’s in its days, the largest being after the great earthquake of 1886

Origin

The true “first” report to come of ghostly figures haunting the halls is unknown, but since 1886 they have become more recorded. Since the jail’s start, it has been associated with hauntings for spirits and strange occurrences.

Mythology and Lore

It has housed some of the most crazed criminals over the many years including 19th-century pirates, Civil War Prisoners of Wars, and notable inmates through-out Charleston history. It’s believed to be haunted by all types of inmates who died during their incarceration, including many holding the death penalty. Some of the occurrences reported through-out time have ranged from objects simply moving on their own, strange or disembodied voices, ghostly whispers passing through the air, slamming doors, footprints in the dust, the dumbwaiter moving between floors and more. A ghost to appear is a guard on patrol with his rifle in hand, he seems to charge toward guests or workers in the jail hall before vanishing. Many reports their photographs from tours of the jail are haunted by ghostly faces or figures. Lavinia Fisher is one of the more infamous criminals to spend time behind the Old Jail’s walls, credited to be the first female serial killer. She and her husband John were owners of a Charleston inn named the Six Mile Wayfarer House. This hotel had large reports of guests disappearing, being poisoned, stabbed, and the more time went on the ghastly tales got worse. Leading the police to arrest the gang of murderous lovers, the pair waited out their final days at the Old Jail before begin hung in the courtyard and buried in the on-site cemetery. Locals and tourist report seeing Lavinia’s spirit roaming the grounds to this very day, appearing in photographs taken on the second floor of the building.

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There is not a shortage of tales and reported encounters coming from the Old Jail, though the spirits credited for them are hard to identify. The Old Charleston Jail held vast numbers of inmates and has countless dead reports to go with it. Many locals enjoy the thrill of roaming its floors and seeking out encounters, as the jail maintains its tours and viewing; just beware you may be touched or grabbed.

Modern Pop-Culture References

Books & Literature

Abode of Misery: An Illustrated Compilation of Facts, Secrets, and Myths of the Old Charleston District Jail (2010)

Hidden History of Old Charleston (2010)

TV Shows

Ghost Adventures: Old Charleston Jail (season 5 episode 10

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Is there anything we missed about the Old Charleston Jail? Let us know in the comments section below!