When the Psychics Came to Town– Madame Monsuer

Madame Monsuer — Astral and Phrenologist

Has arrived in town and will remain a short time

At the Queen’s Hotel in Carleton Place for two days.

Where she can be consulted in regards to future events relative to sickness, health, distant events, and place of residence of persons in the future. By what means she can do this is not known to herself. She is descended from a long line of French astrologists and can also tell the future by the hands and by cards.

Consultation fee fifty cents

She will be in Perth next on June 4th 1869.

Perth Courier, 1869.

In the 1860s, Spiritualism became part of Victorian subculture with its mediums, specialist newspapers, pamphlets, treatises, societies, private and public séances which included table rapping, table tipping, automatic writing, levitation, and other communications with spirits.

One of the most famous Victorian mediums was Florence Cook (1856-1904), who materialised during her séances Katie King, the spirit-world daughter of a spirit called John King, who was in life a seventeenth-century buccaneer. Florence Cook was effective at table turning, automatic writing and levitation. Once when she was in a trance, she was levitated above the heads of the sitters and her clothes fell off down on the floor, which provided additional thrill to the audience. As Katie King, she also flirted with her sitters, touched and kissed them. (Tromp 2006, 32) She was invited to many respectable Victorian drawing rooms. Her séances were reported in detail in Spiritualists journals.

Don’t forget…

THURSDAY NIGHT

Thursday is almost upon us and it is time for the Carleton Place and Beckwith Heritage’s 3rd annual Haunted Heritage Evening! This year we invite guests to attend our mock funeral and learn about death, burial and mourning rituals of the past. Tickets are $10 each and available at the Museum.Seats are limited so get your ticket soon!