Lily Dale New York: America’s Most Haunted Town of Mediums, Ghosts, and Spiritualism

0:00 Speaker 1: Hey, friends, Welcome back to the Strange History Podcast, where

0:03 Speaker 1: we dust off the cobwebs of history and sometimes find

0:05 Speaker 1: actual ghosts underneath. I'm your host, Amy, and today we're

0:09 Speaker 1: going to a village so small, so peaceful, and so

0:13 Speaker 1: spectral it could only be lily Dale, New York. Now

0:17 Speaker 1: this isn't just a town with a ghost or two

0:19 Speaker 1: in the attic. This is a town built for ghosts,

0:23 Speaker 1: founded by people who not only believe the dead could talk,

0:26 Speaker 1: they wanted them to. So grab your lavender sachet, your

0:31 Speaker 1: most open mind, and maybe a salt pouch or two,

0:34 Speaker 1: because we're about to take a journey into the world's

0:36 Speaker 1: most famously haunted hamlet.

0:39 Speaker 2: Spiritualism blooms, and so do the ghosts.

0:43 Speaker 1: To understand how lily Dale came to be, we have

0:46 Speaker 1: to travel back to the mid nineteenth century, an era

0:49 Speaker 1: of corsets, cholera, and copious grieving. It all starts in

0:54 Speaker 1: eighteen forty eight in the quiet hamlet of Hydesville, New York,

0:58 Speaker 1: with two teenage sisters, Margaret and Kate Fox, and a

1:02 Speaker 1: very noisy spirit. The girls claimed to hear strange raps

1:07 Speaker 1: and knocks in the night. They started asking questions and

1:10 Speaker 1: the spirit, allegedly a murdered peddler buried in their cellar,

1:14 Speaker 1: knocked back answers. This became known as the Hydesville Rappings.

1:20 Speaker 1: Soon their home was the hottest ticket in town. Neighbors

1:24 Speaker 1: came from miles around to hear the ghost knock out

1:27 Speaker 1: yes no answers like a supernatural Morse code machine. The

1:31 Speaker 1: story made headlines, and before you could say phantom telegram, Spiritualism,

1:37 Speaker 1: the belief that the dead can communicate with the living,

1:40 Speaker 1: was everywhere. Now, this wasn't just a passing fad. Spiritualism

1:45 Speaker 1: took root at a time when Americans were being devastated

1:48 Speaker 1: by disease, high infant mortality, and the looming Civil War.

1:53 Speaker 1: For many, it wasn't about showmanship. It was about hope.

1:58 Speaker 1: Losing a child, a pairentrant, a spouse, and then being

2:02 Speaker 1: offered the possibility of speaking to them again. That was

2:06 Speaker 1: revolutionary and comforting in a time when grief felt like

2:10 Speaker 1: a permanent wound. By the eighteen fifties, there were tens

2:14 Speaker 1: of thousands of practicing spiritualists across the US, including major intellectuals, abolitionists,

2:21 Speaker 1: and suffragettes. Even Mary Todd Lincoln held seances in the

2:25 Speaker 1: White House after the death of her son Willie.

2:28 Speaker 2: The camp that became a village.

2:31 Speaker 1: As the spiritualist movement grew, its followers began gathering for

2:35 Speaker 1: summer camp meetings spiritual retreats where people could hear lectures,

2:40 Speaker 1: witness demonstrations of mediumship, and talk about the afterlife over

2:45 Speaker 1: tea and biscuits. In eighteen seventy nine, a group of

2:48 Speaker 1: believers purchased twenty acres of woodland along the shore of

2:52 Speaker 1: Cassadaga Lake in western New York. They called it the

2:56 Speaker 1: Cassadaga Lake Free Association. Originally in tended as a seasonal retreat,

3:02 Speaker 1: it quickly became something more permanent. By eighteen eighty there

3:05 Speaker 1: were tents, lecture halls, and a healing temple. By nineteen

3:10 Speaker 1: oh three, they were selling cottages. By nineteen oh six,

3:14 Speaker 1: they renamed it lily Dale Assembly after the wild lilies

3:19 Speaker 1: that bloomed around the lake, and just like that, lily

3:22 Speaker 1: Dale became the epicenter of American spiritualism. The early founders,

3:27 Speaker 1: and like George Colby, a trance medium from Florida, believed

3:31 Speaker 1: they were divinely guided to the land. According to legend,

3:34 Speaker 1: Colby was led to Cassadaga lake by a spirit guide

3:38 Speaker 1: named Seneca, who told him the land was sacred. He

3:41 Speaker 1: followed visions across state lines and upon arriving said, this

3:46 Speaker 1: is the place which is kind of like house Hunters,

3:49 Speaker 1: but with ghosts.

3:50 Speaker 2: A town where the dead outnumber the living.

3:55 Speaker 1: Today lily Dale looks like a storybook village that got

3:58 Speaker 1: a little two into crystals. Victorian cottages line the narrow streets,

4:03 Speaker 1: each with small wooden signs like certified medium readings today

4:08 Speaker 1: or my favorite ghosts. Welcome skeptics, we'll see You can

4:15 Speaker 1: attend a lecture on reincarnation at ten am, a group

4:18 Speaker 1: seance at two, and an aura cleansing before dinner. But

4:23 Speaker 1: what sets lily Dale apart is this. It isn't a

4:26 Speaker 1: tourus trap or a theme park. The people who live

4:29 Speaker 1: here and many who visit genuinely believe and to be

4:33 Speaker 1: a practicing medium in lily Dale you have to be

4:36 Speaker 1: tested and registered. You're expected to give multiple accurate readings

4:40 Speaker 1: to a panel often blind, and adhere to ethical and

4:44 Speaker 1: spiritual standards. It's like American Idol, but for clairvoyance. One medium,

4:50 Speaker 1: Reverend Janet Nohavic, once gave a reading to a woman

4:53 Speaker 1: who had recently lost her father. She paused and said,

4:57 Speaker 1: he says, tell her I left the coins the cookie jar.

5:01 Speaker 1: The woman gasped, she just found hundreds of dollars in

5:05 Speaker 1: quarters her father had hidden in a cookie jar no

5:08 Speaker 1: one else knew. A skeptical school teacher from Boston, visiting

5:12 Speaker 1: on a dare, sat for a reading. The medium said,

5:16 Speaker 1: you sleepwalk You went outside last week in your pajamas.

5:20 Speaker 1: The man turned pale. He'd never told a soul. He

5:23 Speaker 1: now attends lily Dale every summer.

5:26 Speaker 2: Ghosts, fairies and stumps.

5:30 Speaker 1: Oh my, let's dive into some of the town's most

5:34 Speaker 1: iconic and most haunted places. Nestled in the heart of

5:38 Speaker 1: lily Dale, just a short walk from the iconic gates

5:41 Speaker 1: of the spiritualist community, stands a stately and mysterious building,

5:46 Speaker 1: the Leolin Hotel. For over a century, this Victorian era

5:51 Speaker 1: structure has served as a hub for mediums, seekers, and

5:56 Speaker 1: allegedly spirits who never checked out. But to understand why

6:01 Speaker 1: the Leolin is so significant, you have to understand lily

6:05 Speaker 1: Dale itself. The Leolin Hotel was built in the late

6:09 Speaker 1: nineteenth century during the big boom in spiritualist tourism. After

6:14 Speaker 1: lily Dale's founding in eighteen seventy nine, the town grew rapidly.

6:19 Speaker 1: It wasn't just a place for lectures and seances, it

6:23 Speaker 1: was becoming a destination. By the eighteen eighties, lily Dale

6:27 Speaker 1: needed more than tents and cottages. It needed a proper

6:31 Speaker 1: hotel for the wave of visitors descending on the town

6:34 Speaker 1: each summer, people from New York City, Boston, even Europe,

6:38 Speaker 1: all seeking to speak with the dead or explore metaphysical teachings.

6:43 Speaker 1: The Leolin Hotel was built to accommodate that need. It

6:47 Speaker 1: offered charm, quiet and convenience, and unlike some of the

6:52 Speaker 1: rougher lodging of the era, it had a certain class

6:55 Speaker 1: to it. Victorian in design, the hotel was surrounded by

6:59 Speaker 1: trees in greenery, giving it an almost cloistered feel, like

7:04 Speaker 1: a spiritual retreat hidden in plain sight. Though there's no

7:08 Speaker 1: official record of the exact construction year, most sources place

7:12 Speaker 1: the building's origin around eighteen ninety to nineteen hundred, making

7:17 Speaker 1: it one of lily Dale's oldest and most historically significant structures.

7:22 Speaker 2: The Golden Age spiritual celebrities and specters.

7:28 Speaker 1: During the height of spiritualism in the early twentieth century,

7:31 Speaker 1: the Leolin wasn't just a place to sleep. It was

7:34 Speaker 1: a social hub, a sacred space, and, according to many

7:39 Speaker 1: a portal. Famous mediums and lecturers stayed there while giving

7:44 Speaker 1: public readings at the nearby auditorium. Guests claim to see

7:48 Speaker 1: lights flickering with no cause, feel cold breezes on still

7:52 Speaker 1: summer nights, and more than once hear soft footsteps in

7:57 Speaker 1: empty corridors. But the most persistent legend of the Leolin

8:01 Speaker 1: revolves around a spirit known as Miss Abigail. According to

8:05 Speaker 1: lily Dale lore, miss Abigail was a spinster school teacher

8:10 Speaker 1: and devout spiritualist who traveled to lily Dale in the

8:13 Speaker 1: early nineteen hundreds. She returned year after year, staying in

8:18 Speaker 1: the same corner room on the second floor. She never married,

8:22 Speaker 1: never missed a seance, and one summer she simply didn't leave.

8:27 Speaker 1: She died of a stroke in her sleep, they say,

8:29 Speaker 1: peacefully in her favorite rocking chair. But ever since, guests

8:33 Speaker 1: in that room have reported that the chair rocks on

8:36 Speaker 1: its own, particularly in the early hours of the morning.

8:40 Speaker 1: Some claim they've seen her knitting, others say they've heard humming,

8:44 Speaker 1: and once a man reportedly woke up to find his

8:47 Speaker 1: blanket had been neatly folded at his feet. One guest

8:51 Speaker 1: allegedly told the front desk, your housekeeper is very kind.

8:56 Speaker 1: The clerk replied, we don't have anyone on duty upstairs

9:00 Speaker 1: this time of night.

9:01 Speaker 2: Fire and survival.

9:03 Speaker 1: In nineteen ninety two, a devastating fire ripped through part

9:07 Speaker 1: of lily Dale, destroying several nearby buildings, but the Leolin

9:11 Speaker 1: stood firm. Locals said it was like the Spirits themselves

9:15 Speaker 1: protected it. A few claim they saw figures in the smoke,

9:19 Speaker 1: standing in the windows watching. Even today, when renovations are

9:24 Speaker 1: done on the hotel, tools go missing, lights flicker, and

9:27 Speaker 1: workers report strange sensations. One medium claim the building has

9:32 Speaker 1: its own energy vortex. Not dangerous, just very crowded with

9:37 Speaker 1: unseen residents. Today, the Leolin remains one of the few

9:41 Speaker 1: functioning hotels within lily Dale, offering a charming and yes,

9:45 Speaker 1: a bit creaky stay to visitors from around the world.

9:49 Speaker 1: Rooms are basic, no TVs, no air conditioning, but hey,

9:53 Speaker 1: if you're in lily Dale, you're probably not here for Netflix,

9:57 Speaker 1: You're here for the Spirits. Guests still rep strange encounters,

10:02 Speaker 1: cold spots, the occasional apparition of a woman in nineteen

10:05 Speaker 1: hundred's clothing objects moved ever so slightly, dreams that feel

10:10 Speaker 1: too real, but they also report a deep peace, like

10:14 Speaker 1: the building itself is holding space for something larger than

10:17 Speaker 1: life and death. The Leland Hotel isn't just a historic building.

10:24 Speaker 1: It's a living artifact, or maybe a post living artifact.

10:29 Speaker 1: From the height of the spiritualist movement, It's seen decades

10:33 Speaker 1: of hope, healing, grief and connection between the worlds. Whether

10:38 Speaker 1: or not you believe in ghosts, you'd be hard pressed

10:41 Speaker 1: to deny the strange energy that lingers there. Some come

10:44 Speaker 1: to rest, some come to connect. The history of inspiration

10:49 Speaker 1: Stump lily Dale's most spiritual tree trunk. This isn't your

10:53 Speaker 1: average tree stump. Tucked deep in the woods, this site

10:57 Speaker 1: has been the epicenter of spirit communications the eighteen nineties.

11:01 Speaker 1: Every day in summer, mediums stand and deliver messages from

11:05 Speaker 1: the beyond to the crowd seated on benches beneath the trees.

11:09 Speaker 1: In the cool shaded woods behind the Assembly Hall in

11:12 Speaker 1: lily Dale, there's a clearing where people gather every summer,

11:16 Speaker 1: not to hike, not to picnic, but to talk to

11:19 Speaker 1: the dead. At the center of it all stands what

11:22 Speaker 1: looks like a weathered old stump, and it is. But

11:26 Speaker 1: this is no ordinary log. This is inspiration Stump, one

11:30 Speaker 1: of the most sacred and mysterious sights in all of spiritualism,

11:35 Speaker 1: where for over a century mediums have stood and spoken

11:39 Speaker 1: with the dead, often to complete strangers sitting quietly on

11:43 Speaker 1: wooden benches among the trees. Let's rewind to the early

11:46 Speaker 1: eighteen nineties. Lily Dale, still in its infancy but rapidly growing,

11:52 Speaker 1: was hosting more visitors every year. Spiritualists came for lectures, healing,

11:57 Speaker 1: and most of all, messages from the spirit world. While

12:01 Speaker 1: many demonstrations took place indoors in auditoriums and parlors, a

12:06 Speaker 1: group of mediums began using a small wooded area as

12:09 Speaker 1: a natural stage. This spot, set in a tranquil grove,

12:14 Speaker 1: had one very prominent feature, a large tree stump left

12:18 Speaker 1: behind after the tree had been struck by lightning. The

12:21 Speaker 1: tree was gone, but the energy remained. Mediums began standing

12:26 Speaker 1: on the stump to deliver public spirit messages the open air.

12:30 Speaker 1: The natural setting it felt deeply spiritual. The stump gave

12:35 Speaker 1: the speaker just enough height to be seen, and somehow

12:39 Speaker 1: messages seemed to come through stronger in that space. Before long,

12:44 Speaker 1: the community gave it a name, Inspiration.

12:47 Speaker 2: Stump, Public Mediumship, ghosts reporting live from the forest.

12:53 Speaker 1: Here's how it works. Every afternoon during Lilydale's summer season,

12:58 Speaker 1: crowds gather in the wood. Dozens, sometimes hundreds of people

13:03 Speaker 1: sit quietly on rustic benches waiting. There's no sign up,

13:07 Speaker 1: no ticket, no guarantee. A medium or a few walk

13:12 Speaker 1: to the stump. They pause, they listen, and then they

13:16 Speaker 1: point into the crowd and say something like.

13:19 Speaker 3: I have a woman here. She's showing me a red sweater.

13:24 Speaker 3: She says, Tell Mary, I'm proud of her, and yes,

13:28 Speaker 3: she saw the graduation.

13:30 Speaker 1: A woman in the third row gasps. Her mother died

13:33 Speaker 1: five years ago. She wore a red sweater every Christmas.

13:37 Speaker 1: Her daughter just graduated, and the whole audience gets goosebumps.

13:42 Speaker 1: This is what the stump is all about, not theater,

13:44 Speaker 1: not showmanship, but public, raw, unpredictable communication from the beyond.

13:50 Speaker 1: Inspiration Stump is more than just a place for readings.

13:54 Speaker 1: It has become a kind of holy site for spiritualists.

13:57 Speaker 1: For many standing on the stump, or even visiting it

14:02 Speaker 1: is like walking into a church. Mediums say that the

14:05 Speaker 1: veil between worlds is thinner. There, the trees act like antennas,

14:10 Speaker 1: the energy is pure. Some claim to see orbs, flickers

14:14 Speaker 1: of light, or shadow figures flitting among the trees during services.

14:19 Speaker 1: Others describe hearing whispers, feeling gentle touches, or experiencing overwhelming

14:25 Speaker 1: waves of emotion, joy, grief, peace, even when no message

14:31 Speaker 1: was directly for them. It's a space that transcends belief.

14:35 Speaker 1: You don't have to be a medium to feel something.

14:38 Speaker 1: Some of the most respected mediums in the history of

14:41 Speaker 1: American spiritualism have given readings at Inspiration Stump. This includes

14:46 Speaker 1: Emma Harding Britain, one of the religion's founders, and later

14:50 Speaker 1: figures like Reverend Mavis Patilla and John White, who drew

14:54 Speaker 1: huge crowds. In the nineteen seventies, a visiting medium reportedly

14:58 Speaker 1: went into a full t trance at the stump and

15:01 Speaker 1: began speaking in fluent Swedish, despite never having studied the language.

15:06 Speaker 1: A woman in the audience, a Swedish immigrant, recognized the

15:10 Speaker 1: voice and message as being from her late sister. She

15:13 Speaker 1: collapsed in sobs the message.

15:16 Speaker 3: You want alone, I was with you when you cross

15:19 Speaker 3: the sea.

15:21 Speaker 1: Many visitors say that even when a message isn't meant

15:24 Speaker 1: for them, it resonates as if it is. The stump

15:28 Speaker 1: has a way of making people feel seen, even by

15:31 Speaker 1: spirits who aren't their own. Visitors often leave small offerings

15:35 Speaker 1: near the stump, feathers, stones, flowers, notes. It's not a

15:41 Speaker 1: tourist attraction. It's hallowed ground. Talking, photography and phones are discouraged.

15:48 Speaker 1: There's a reverence there that's palpable. The path leading to

15:52 Speaker 1: it is called the Trail of Remembrance, lined with plaques

15:55 Speaker 1: and memorials for spiritualists who have passed on a symbolic

15:59 Speaker 1: journey between worlds. And yes, there's a sign that literally

16:03 Speaker 1: says please do not sit or stand on the Inspiration Stump,

16:08 Speaker 1: not because it's unstable, but because it's sacred. Only approved

16:12 Speaker 1: mediums are allowed to stand there. It's like the pulpit

16:16 Speaker 1: of a church, made from roots and time. Today, Inspiration

16:20 Speaker 1: Stump remains the emotional and energetic center of lily Dale.

16:25 Speaker 1: Services are still held there daily in summer. People still

16:29 Speaker 1: gather in the woods. Mediums still walk the pine Needle

16:32 Speaker 1: path to stand on the same ground as those who

16:35 Speaker 1: came before and the spirits. According to many, they're still

16:39 Speaker 1: showing up every day, whether you believe in the other

16:43 Speaker 1: side or not. A visit to Inspiration Stump is unforgettable.

16:47 Speaker 1: It's peaceful, charged, strange, comforting, and more than anything, it's alive.

16:55 Speaker 1: A woman named Karen, who was visiting, was sitting in

16:58 Speaker 1: the back row. A medium stepped forward and said, there's.

17:02 Speaker 3: A dog here, brown fur. Very loud, she says, her

17:06 Speaker 3: name is Beans.

17:08 Speaker 1: Karen burst into tears. Beans had passed a few months earlier,

17:13 Speaker 1: and yes, she was very loud.

17:15 Speaker 2: The fairy Trail, and yes.

17:19 Speaker 1: There's a fairy trail. Adults and kids alike leave offerings

17:22 Speaker 1: to woodland, spirits, crystals, toys, handwritten notes, even snapcakes. It's whimsical,

17:29 Speaker 1: a little silly and strangely moving. Tucked at the edge

17:33 Speaker 1: of the woods in lily Dale, past the Healing Temple,

17:37 Speaker 1: beyond the tree lined streets of quaint Victorian cottages, and

17:41 Speaker 1: not far from the legendary Inspiration Stump, there lies a

17:45 Speaker 1: winding path that feels like it stepped straight out of

17:47 Speaker 1: a storybook. This is the Fairy Trail, a whimsical woodland walk,

17:52 Speaker 1: where the veil between worlds is thin. But not just

17:55 Speaker 1: the world of the dead. Here you're stepping into something

17:59 Speaker 1: even older, even weirder, maybe even smaller, because here fairies

18:06 Speaker 1: are real if you believe hard enough, and in lily Dale,

18:10 Speaker 1: a town built on belief, that's more than enough.

18:14 Speaker 2: The magical meets the metaphysical.

18:17 Speaker 1: The exact year the fairy Trail became an official feature

18:20 Speaker 1: of lily Dale is a bit fuzzy, like many things

18:23 Speaker 1: in this town. It likely started organically in the early

18:26 Speaker 1: two thousands, when residents and spiritualist visitors began noticing a

18:31 Speaker 1: growing interest in nature, spirits, elementals, and earth energy. In

18:36 Speaker 1: traditional spiritualist practice, most communication is with human spirits, but

18:41 Speaker 1: as the movement evolved, blending with New Age philosophies, environmentalism,

18:47 Speaker 1: and global folklore, interest in non human entities grew gnomes

18:53 Speaker 1: three spirits, guardians of the natural world, and yes, fairies.

18:59 Speaker 1: So someone or perhaps many someonees began to transform a

19:04 Speaker 1: quiet path in the woods into a magical garden trail,

19:09 Speaker 1: and like a fairy ring, it grew. Today it's one

19:14 Speaker 1: of lily Dale's most popular attractions, especially for those who

19:18 Speaker 1: come seeking a lighter kind of magic. What you'll see

19:22 Speaker 1: and feel the Fairy Trail is not grand or flashy.

19:26 Speaker 1: It's subtle, as fairies tend to be. Along the trail,

19:30 Speaker 1: you'll find tiny fairy houses handmade by visitors and residents,

19:35 Speaker 1: painted stones with uplifting messages, little bridges made from twigs,

19:40 Speaker 1: tree stumps turned into thrones, glitter ribbons, crystals, wind chimes, feathers,

19:47 Speaker 1: and the occasional plastic dinosaur. They're inclusive, apparently. At the

19:52 Speaker 1: entrance is a sign that reads, Welcome to the Faery Trail.

19:56 Speaker 1: Please walk with love and respect. The spirits here are

19:59 Speaker 1: shy but kind. It's not just for kids. Adults leave

20:04 Speaker 1: offerings too, notes, shiny objects, snacks, flowers, and many say

20:10 Speaker 1: they feel something shift the moment they step onto the trail.

20:14 Speaker 1: The air changes, time slows. It feels lighter, playful, but

20:20 Speaker 1: not silly. One visitor, a retired marine named Walt, left

20:24 Speaker 1: a candy bar for the fairies that night. He swears

20:28 Speaker 1: something brushed his cheek as he fell asleep in his cabin.

20:32 Speaker 1: He said it felt like a wing, or a feather,

20:35 Speaker 1: or maybe just peace. A woman named Linda, a retired

20:39 Speaker 1: schoolteacher from Ohio, visited lily Dale grieving the death of

20:43 Speaker 1: her son. She wandered onto the fairy trail just to

20:47 Speaker 1: clear her head, but felt a sudden breeze and a

20:50 Speaker 1: tiny voice in her mind said, he is laughing now.

20:54 Speaker 1: She burst into tears. Later that night, she had a

20:59 Speaker 1: dream of her son as a child, surrounded by glowing lights.

21:03 Speaker 2: Belief and the elemental realm.

21:06 Speaker 1: Spiritualists who believe in fairies often describe them not as

21:10 Speaker 1: the winged creatures from cartoons, but as interdimensional nature spirits,

21:15 Speaker 1: elementals that exist just outside our sensory range. They are

21:20 Speaker 1: said to guard forests, rivers, stones, and animals. They're mischievous, yes,

21:26 Speaker 1: but also ancient, wise and deeply connected to the health

21:31 Speaker 1: of the planet. Some mediums in lily Dale even claimed

21:34 Speaker 1: to communicate with fairies, describing them as curious, high vibration

21:39 Speaker 1: beings that respond best to joy, music and genuine wonder.

21:45 Speaker 1: In twenty sixteen, a visiting healer claimed she saw a

21:48 Speaker 1: swirl of glowing orbs hovering in the trees along the trail.

21:52 Speaker 1: She called them light elementals. A skeptic next to her,

21:57 Speaker 1: a businessman from Rochester, reportedly said, well, damn, I saw

22:01 Speaker 1: them too. Another frequent visitor, a man named Terry, leaves

22:06 Speaker 1: offerings of honey and coins. He swears that every time

22:10 Speaker 1: he returns they're gone. Animals don't eat quarters, he says.

22:15 Speaker 1: The Fairy Trail has become more than just a path.

22:19 Speaker 1: It's a ritual space, a quiet sanctuary where people come

22:23 Speaker 1: to let go, to smile, to feel something pure and

22:27 Speaker 1: playful in a world that often forgets to be either.

22:31 Speaker 1: Some come to reconnect with their inner child. Others come

22:34 Speaker 1: hoping to feel a brush of wings or hear laughter

22:37 Speaker 1: on the breeze. Some leave changed. It's not loud, it's

22:41 Speaker 1: not dramatic, but something about that little stretch of woods

22:46 Speaker 1: is deeply, strangely sacred. Today and beyond, the Fairy Trail

22:50 Speaker 1: continues to evolve, maintained by volunteers, lovingly updated by guests,

22:56 Speaker 1: and watched over many believe by more than just squirrels.

23:01 Speaker 1: Workshops are sometimes held nearby on connecting with elemental spirits,

23:06 Speaker 1: nature based mediumship, and even fairy photography. Some visitors swear

23:11 Speaker 1: they've caught tiny glowing figures in their pictures. Others are

23:15 Speaker 1: content just to walk and feel at peace in a

23:18 Speaker 1: town known for death. The Fairy Trail is a celebration

23:21 Speaker 1: of life, magic and lightness, a reminder that the world

23:25 Speaker 1: is still full of mystery, wonder and beings we might

23:29 Speaker 1: not fully understand, and sometimes that's exactly the kind of

23:34 Speaker 1: magic we need.

23:36 Speaker 2: The town today, where the veil stays thin.

23:40 Speaker 1: Lily Dale has grown from twenty acres and a few

23:43 Speaker 1: tents to a vibrant, seasonal community. Every year, twenty thousand

23:48 Speaker 1: plus visitors pass through its gates. Some come for closure,

23:52 Speaker 1: some for curiosity, others for healing. Despite its mystical atmosphere,

23:58 Speaker 1: lily Dale has endured real world struggles, fires, floods, internal

24:03 Speaker 1: division among spiritualist denominations, But through it all, it has

24:07 Speaker 1: remained a rare and thriving community where people can speak

24:11 Speaker 1: their truth and maybe hear from someone who's already moved on.

24:16 Speaker 1: In nineteen ninety two, a fire destroyed the Maplewood Hotel

24:20 Speaker 1: and several cottages. No one was injured. The next day,

24:24 Speaker 1: residents gathered at the ruins. One woman swore she saw

24:27 Speaker 1: a glowing figure in the smoke. She said, it whispered,

24:31 Speaker 1: we rebuild with light, and they did.

24:35 Speaker 2: Stranger than fiction.

24:37 Speaker 1: So what is lily Dale really? It's a village of believers,

24:41 Speaker 1: a sanctuary for the grieving, a town where history is alive,

24:45 Speaker 1: sometimes literally, and where the veil between worlds isn't just thin,

24:49 Speaker 1: it's practically a front porch screen. Thanks for walking with

24:53 Speaker 1: me through the forests, fairies, and flickering shadows of lily Dale.

24:58 Speaker 1: If this episode gave you t chills, comfort, or just

25:02 Speaker 1: a case of the spiritual giggles, please like subscribe and

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25:15 Speaker 1: good with the ghost algorithms. Make sure you subscribe so

25:19 Speaker 1: you never miss an episode. We've got more haunted histories,

25:22 Speaker 1: cursed places, and curious tales coming your way. Until next time,

25:27 Speaker 1: I'm Amy reminding you that in history, as in life,

25:30 Speaker 1: sometimes the strangest parts are the most real