Spiritualism in the Victorian Era

This Halloween season step inside Black Point Estate and Gardens in Lake Geneva after dark for Spiritualism in the Victorian Era, a Wisconsin Historical Society experience exploring America’s 19th-century fascination with communicating with the dead. Set inside the elegant dining room of the Queen Anne-style mansion built in 1888 by Chicago beer tycoon Conrad Seipp, the event delves into the stories of the Fox sisters, widely credited with helping launch the American spiritualist movement, and examines how spiritualism evolved into a powerful social and religious movement rather than simply an occult parlor game.

The evening also explores Wisconsin’s surprising connection to Victorian spiritualism, including Whitewater’s Morris Pratt Institute, considered the first spiritualist school in the United States. Guests hear stories of mediums, the “Great Beyond,” and attempts to bridge the worlds of the living and dead while enjoying a cordial inside one of Geneva Lake’s oldest homes. With its period architecture, historic furnishings, grand veranda and authentic 1911 Chickering piano, Black Point Estate provides an atmospheric setting for an exploration of the strange beliefs, personalities and paranormal traditions that captivated Victorian America.