GHOSTS BY GASLIGHT SERIESThe Spiritualist movement, like jazz, was purely an American invention. Although the idea that man was able to communicate with spirits had existed already for centuries, modern belief in such a practice came about in March 1848 in Hydesville, New York. The movement, which would come to be known as Spiritualism, would remain strong for nearly a century, enjoying its greatest revival after the Civil War. The practice was founded on the belief that life existed after death and that the spirit existed beyond the body. Most importantly, it was believed that these spirits could --- and did --- communicate with the living. Troy Taylor's GHOSTS BY GASLIGHT series takes a in-depth look at the history of Spiritualism, those who practiced it -- and the scientists, magicians and researchers who investigated the claims of those who said that the dead still walked among us. For everyone who has ever read a ghost book or watched a paranormal television show, the dawn of the Spiritualist movement is where it all began! To truly understand the history of ghost research, we have to look back to its beginnings. It has been said that if we do not understand our history, we can never learn from it, so we invite anyone with a passion for ghost research to discover where the field truly got its start.BOOK 2: ...RISE OF AN AMERICAN ORIGINALThe second book in Troy Taylor's GHOST BY GASLIGHT series reveals the mediums, strange stories and amazing feats that helped propel the popularity of the Spiritualist movement into the years of the Civil War and beyond! The book delves into the mysterious Stratford Knockings, a Connecticut haunting that earned newspaper coverage all over America, and includes the weird tales of the Koons family's "Spirit Room" in Ohio -- which seemed to defy all explanation. Discover the secrets of the legendary Davenport Brothers and see what effect they had on the way that seances were conducted. Were they mediums or magicians? And finally, plunge into the mystery of D.D. Home, dubbed "the greatest medium who ever lived." In all of his years of startling feats, he was never exposed as a fraud -- even when witnesses claimed that he could actually fly! The author's fascinating look at this little-known era in American history continues with a second volume and continues to fascinate even the most jaded readers of historical research into ghostly phenomena. Don't miss it!