Many Tales About John Bell from My Past 8th-Grade Creative Writing & Research Class

Introduction: In 2002, I conducted a 10-week Creative Writing & Research Class. Our primary focus was the TennesseeBell Witch, the poltergeist who haunted the Bell family from 1817- 1821. This is a compilation of what my 8th-Grade students wrote about John Bell.

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
I, John Bell, have come back in Spirit form to set things straight about the story of myself. Since the day I have died, I have not been able to rest peacefully because of the false stories that have been told about me. I have come back to tell the truth. Even though I have done a lot of wrong-doing in my life, I am very sorry for what happened. This is the story about how the Bell Ghost came about.

David - 8th-Grade Boy:
My name is John Bell. Many of you know of my family's horrible treatment by that, that thing ... whatever it was. I believe it is the year of our Lord, 20 and 01. Time passed remarkably quick in the Spirit World. I have known all that has been said about my family and the hauntings. I will now reveal the entirety of my story to you and all who read or hear this. I will start at the very beginning ...

Jessica - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell is my name. To some, that name may bring to mind the story of the innocent man whose home and family were haunted by the so called "Bell Ghost." Well, actually, that is the story almost everyone knows. But there is a chapter in the story of my life that makes me seem not so innocent.

Let me start from the beginning of my adventure when I and my wife Lucy and our (at the time) 5 children lived in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. ...

Gabby - 8th-Grade Girl:
My name is John Bell. I was born in 1750 and died on December 20, 1820. For three years out of my life, I was haunted by two Spirits. Both were spirits of the men I murdered on October 5, 1803. This is my story.

John Bell Before And During His 1782 Wedding To Lucy

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
I grew up in the second half of the 1700s in and around Edgecombe County, North Carolina, which is very close to Raleigh, North Carolina. I was a very curious child and was very hard working. As I got older, I was very interested in business and money. I hate to say it, but I did cheat a lot of people out of money.

When I was 31 years old, I found out about some land that was full of rich mineral deposits. The only problem about getting the land is that it was a sacred Indian burial ground whose descendants were the owners of the land. I was so desperate for it that I would do anything for it, even blackmail. This is exactly what I had done. I had always loved Lucy, the owner's daughter. So I hatched up a plan that if John Williams, Sr. didn't let me buy his land, he would have to let me marry his daughter or I would tell everybody about the mineral deposits in the land. At age 32, I married 12-year-old Lucy Williams. This was late in the summer of 1782. Little did I know that Cate Batts, my wife Lucy's niece, got the land signed over to her.

David - 8th-Grade Boy:
It all started in the year of our Lord, 1782. I had given Mr. John Williams a decision: either let me marry his daughter or give me the deed to his so-called "sacred Indian land." Finally, he decided. He gave me his daughter's hand in marriage. It was just as well, or so I thought. I believed I could get that land through one of his children, but somehow, he was able to give it to that, ... that woman, Cate Batts. Of course, she was his grandchild. But yet, how could he give it to her? Now I'm not saying I don't think highly of her. I truly think well of her, but she's a woman!

Jenny - 8th-Grade Girl:
Lucy was twelve (12) and John Bell thirty-two (32), but he loved her so. She loved him also. John was overprotective of all the things he owned and could be quite mean. When Lucy was young, she always used to tell John to wait for her so she could be grown up enough to be his wife. John truly loved Lucy, and she truly loved him. They were both faithful to each other all through their years. He was possessive of his love for her and his children. They truly loved each other.

He killed for her and more for himself not wanting to lose his property. He was always so afraid that Lucy would leave him for a younger, more handsome, and richer man. But Lucy would never leave him, and he would never leave her. In his mind, Lucy was his true and forever soul mate. He was mean, but he never let that side show to Lucy. He sometimes showed his mean side to his children, but never ever to his precious, wonderful Lucy. I bet when he died, he still watched over her.

Donajo - 8th-Grade Girl:
I am in love with Lucy. Why can't anyone understand and believe that? Of course, I want the land, but my love means much, much more. Who cares about age? When she sits on my lap and I see those bright, shining eyes of her, I want to melt. I know she loves me too because I can see it. People may not appreciate me, and they may underestimate me, but Lucy does nothing of the sort.

Jennifer - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell was in love with a girl named Lucy. He was so fond of her, and she was very fond of him too. When he courted her, she was 12 and he was 32. Although the age difference was very great, Lucy had no problem. However, John Bell was very worried that she would find someone else, someone more her age which Lucy would like more. John Bell had nothing to worry about, because Lucy never left him. They stayed together until his death.

Cate Batts Impulsively Sells John Bell The Sacred IndianLand

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
I had been begging Cate Batts to sign me over the land many times, but she refused all of them. Me, being the sly person that I am, waited for the best time where she can't refuse to sell. Her husband and children were very sick and needed medical attention immediately. Remember, it was the early 1800s. Since there had been a drought in the summer and crops were poor, she was short on cash. On September 4, 1803, she regretfully signed the land over to me for an outrageously cheap price. When I got back home, I saw Cate actually quickly galloping to my house on a horse. She wanted the land back. I immediately said no because I had been yearning for that land. She then surprised me and angrily said, "You'll be sorry John Bell. You might just lose something you love." I thought later on that and realized my overseer John Black loved my wife because of what he does around Lucy. I decided I was going to do something about it.

David - 8th-Grade Boy:
Every time Cate came by to visit Lucy and the children, I'd hint about buying that land, hoping she would give in. She didn't for a long time. Finally, I found the perfect time to try to convince her. I came during the illness epidemic that broke out during the year of our Lord, 1803. It took her quite awhile, but I finally convinced her. I paid her only 4 pounds per 150 acres. That's nothing! I could earn that back in a couple of months from the land's rich resources.

When she came to my property very soon after I received the deed from her, I perceived something was very much amiss. I believe the term used in this time is hitting the nail on the head. She told me that she had made a "horrible mistake" and wanted to have the deed back, in exchange for the 600 pounds. I laughed! Did she perceive me to be a fool to give up such precious land?! My answer was simple. No!

Then Cate said something I will never forget. She said, "Someone you love may not be yours much longer." Little did I know, these words would ring true to my ears very soon.

Then I began watching very closely for signs of my Lucy cheating on me. I hoped they wouldn't show up, but like I expected, they appeared like fog creeping over a pond. Slowly I began seeing something between John Black and Lucy. Their short glances and Lucy's blushes gave it away. As the signs became clearer and clearer, I began loathing John Black. Soon, I had formulated a plan. A plan to kill John Black!

Jessica - 8th-Grade Girl:
My wife Lucy was a wonderful, glorious person and I loved her with every being in my body. I married her when she was only a child of twelve. I knew she was a beautiful woman and I knew she turned heads. I owned a farm and some slaves and was quite happy with my life until something happened. My wife's niece, Cate Williams Batts, sold me some land that meant a lot to her. She later wanted the land back, but I did not want to sell it back to her. She yelled at me. But I just laughed in her face. This made her mad and so she said to me that what I valued the most would not be mine for long. And that she would get that land back someday. What I valued the most was my wife, her Aunt Lucy Williams Bell.

This worried me and made me extremely jealous. So I watched carefully, every man that even so much as glanced at my wife. And so I saw the overseer of my slaves, a man by the name of John Black, staring wearily day after day at Lucy. This made me mad and worried. So I decided to do something about it and I did.

Zach - 8th-Grade Boy:
John Bell: I got it! I finally got it! She is so stupid. She probably doesn't even know what is on that land. I'm going to be rich after I mine this land. Hey, what in Sam Hill is she doing here? What do you want, Cate?

Cate Batts: I want you to give me that land and the deed back.

John Bell: What? Are you crazy, Woman? I ain't giving you that land back, after all I've done to get it.

Cate Batts: I'll give you the money and then some back. Just give me the land, please. I promised my grandfather I wouldn't sell it.

John Bell: Well, too bad! You're never gonna get it.

Cate Batts: John Bell, you're gonna get it. For all you know, someone might take Lucy from you and you'll deserve it. Bye!

John Bell: I wonder what she meant by that? But whoever it is will pay for liking Lucy. I bet it is John Black.

Kelly - 8th-Grade Girl:
Dear Journal: Sept. 5, 1803
I finally got the Sacred Indian land. That cloth-minded John Williams, my father-in-law, left the land to a friend of his, and then Cate worked hard for the land. Still I got the land anyway. Cate sold it to me. I bought it from her for four pounds to an acre. The land is finally mine. Now I'll become rich with the mineral deposits. I'll tell you when I become rich and famous. John Bell

Dear Journal: Sept. 12, 1803
Why haven't I found any mineral deposits? That Cate cheated me out of my own money. I should never have bought the land from her. I'm still not going to let her get it back from me though. She must know something I don't. I'll tell you when I find out. John Bell

Gabby - 8th-Grade Girl:
I led a happy life. I had eight wonderful children and a beautiful wife. The only thing I was missing was that sacred Indian land. John Williams, Sr., my wife's father, would not sell it to me. And when he died, he left it to his friend, who gave it to Cate Batts, his granddaughter. How would I ever get it?

Then on Sept. 4, 1803, I went to Cate to try to get the land one last time. Cate's whole family was sick. She was in desperate need of money for the doctor. So, I offered her 4 pounds per acre for 150 acres. She couldn't resist. The land was mine!

After I was home, in the barn, I saw Cate riding her horse with all her might toward me. She jumped off her horse and ran up to me and said, "John, please take your money back and give me my land back! Please!" This was very amusing to me. I had been trying to get this land for quite some time. I just laughed in her face. Her face was red with fury. She said, "You'll pay, John Bell! I will get my land. Besides, something you love may not be yours for much longer." Oh, I was mad. I wanted to know what she meant, but I somehow knew who it was about. Someone wanted to steal my Lucy. I immediately asked, "Who are you talking about?" She just turned and walked away. I was furious! I had to figure this out! Had to!

Later, I went to one of my slaves and said, "Watch for a person making eyes at Lucy. Don't say a word to anyone. Understand?" He replied with a shaky yes, and I was on my way.

As I watched people, I noticed my overseer, John Black, glancing at Lucy. My slave saw it too. I knew what I had to do. I had to dominate my problem.

Dee - 8th-Grade Girl:
My name is John Bell. Many stories try to explain why my family was haunted, but nobody knows the true reason. It all started when I bought a piece of sacred Indian burial ground. I had plans to mine the land, but I was distracted by the haunting. Cate Batts was my wife's niece. She's the person who sold me the land. After the land was sold to me, Cate had a deep regret and tried to get the land back by starting a rumor. She told me that one that I was close to might not be mine much longer.

John Bell Murders His Overseer Named John Black

Kelly - 8th-Grade Girl:
Dear Journal: Oct. 5, 1803
I found out about John Black's secret. I will be visiting him today. I'm having two slaves building a wonderful present for him. They will be making it big enough for three people, just in case. I will report how well it went later. He will love what I have in store for him. John Bell

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
A few days later on October 5, 1803, I went to John Black's cabin and pulled out a Bible from my back pocket. I read, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife." He didn't say anything. I then pulled a gun from my pocket and shot him in the crotch. He was shrieking with pain. I shot him in the heart and then shot him again in the head. I got some slaves to dig a grave for him deep into the forest.

David - 8th-Grade Boy:
As the day of his murder came, I took up my gun and my copy of the Holy Bible. I slowly walked down to Mr. Black's cabin. I opened the door, holding my anger back. I motioned for him to sit down. I began by reading the Ten Commandments. I reiterated the Commandment, "Thou shalt not cover thy neighbor's wife!"

I then brought out my gun. To right this tremendous wrong, I aimed my gun and took a shot. It hit its mark. That assured me he would never sow his wild oats with MY wife! I shot him in the heart; so he could feel the pain HE had started! I finally shot him in the head. The crack of the gun and the sickeningly sweet crunch of breaking bone brought joy to my soul! I saw him quiver with pain and laughed to myself, "That will show the fool!" I left, believing this entire thing over. To my surprise, it was not. Some strange man was looking over the body. He would not reveal my secret. I slinked up behind him and slammed the butt of my gun into the man's head. He slumped to the floor - Dead.

Dee - 8th-Grade Girl:
This started my suspicion. I didn't know who it could be who was trying to take my wife. What really worried me was I was twenty years older than my wife. So I started paying attention to my wife and her actions around other men.

We had a large farm and several slaves. I noticed that the overseer of the slaves, John Black, gazed at my wife Lucy for the longest time. This worried me because Lucy had grown up with John. I watched two weeks to be sure that it was he that Cate was talking about. Then one morning, I decided to pay John Black a small visit. With me, I took a Bible and a gun.

John Black, the overseer, was surprised to see me but invited me into his cabin. I sat down and began talking to him. I pulled the Bible from my pocket and began to read one of the 10 Commandments: "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife." I placed the Bible back in my pocket and pulled out my gun. I shot him three times: once in the groin, once in the heart, and once in the head - killing him. Everything was going as I planned.

Sarah - 8th-Grade Girl:
Journal: Oct. 5, 1803
Today I have done a horrible thing. Well see, I only meant to kill one person, but I killed two people. See John Black, our overseer, was madly in love with my Lucy. He was, as you could say, head over heels in love with MY WIFE! Anyways, back to what I did. This morning, I went to John Black's cabin to let's just say, give him a little something. I knocked on the door of his cabin. As he opened the door, the look on his face was priceless. He looked so scared. As I reached in to my pocket, it looked as if he had stopped breathing. As I read the 10 Commandments, he started sweating bullets. Hah! Hah! I scared him once, then I scared him a second time by shooting him where the sun don't shine, then the heart, and all my anger into his head. I had to eat my breakfast, so I just left him in the cabin. Afterward, to my surprise, a man was in his cabin looking at the body of John Black. I reached into my pocket for my gun. I hit him on the head with the butt of the gun. Oh, Lord, here comes Lucy. '
Til Next Time, John Bell

Tiffany - 8th-Grade Girl:
Hi! My name is John Bell. I am talking to you in your mind. Nobody can hear me except you and some other people too. I died a couple of years ago when I went into a coma and I never saw the light of day again. I am talking to you because I want to tell you my life story.

When I lived in North Carolina, I had an overseer by the name of John Black who loved my wife. So I got very angry and killed John Black. I wanted him to suffer so much because of loving my wife, so I came up with the idea to shoot him in his groin. He had his hand over his groin, but that didn't matter. It still hurt him. Then I shot him in the heart which made me feel a whole lot better. But that wasn't good enough. I had to do something better than that, so I shot him in the head. After I kicked him in the side, he got blood all over my boot. I wanted to shoot him again for getting blood on my boot, but he had went on to the better place. I just wiped it off my shoe. After I killed him, I got two of my slaves and told them to make a grave big enough for three. Then I told them if they tell anybody, I would kill them.

Jenny - 8th-Grade Girl:
I saw later that John Black was always staring at and near Lucy. Lucy always smiled and blushed when he was near, but that was it. I knew Lucy was an honest and caring and wonderful woman. I highly doubted Lucy would ever do anything toward him, but John Black, I do not know. My Lucy! My Lucy! He wants MY Lucy. Know this well, I'll make sure he will never get his hands on MY Lucy! I own her! He does not. She IS MINE! He will see if he ever gets to MY LUCY! I've made sure he will never see the light of day again!

Jake - 8th-Grade Boy:
Dear Journal, Sept. 4, 1803
I finally got that land from Cate today. She's a fool, and she's been a problem for everyone around here. She needs to go or die, whether I do it myself or not. I feel that my wife has no more love for me for she is spending hours flirting with John Black. I'll put him where he belongs. And that's in the grave! I want him to feel all of the pain and suffering as I did. I long for his blood and he will plead for his petty life. He'll die the worst death a man could ever have. I'll make sure of it! I want to do it now. I want to pry him open and kill his will to live. His death will be my jubilation. DIE! DIE! DIE! Ha Ha!

Dear "Bloody" Journal, Oct. 5, 1803
I killed him today. He just died a couple of hours ago. The first thing I did to him was show the Bell family Bible and read, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife!" I pulled my revolver out and shot him right where every man would absolutely hate. Yup! You guessed it! After several minutes, I shot him right in his still beating heart. Then for fun, I gave him a nice shot in the head!

Nick - 8th-Grade Boy:
John Bell's Diary: Oct. 5, 1803
Today I rid my life of John Black. I had to because of a hint of his craving for Lucy. Cate sold me that land exactly one month and a day ago. She must have sorely wanted it back but I merely laughed at her. She was angered by this and said in reply to my laugh that one I loved would be mine not much longer. I began pondering this and thought that Lucy was the one I loved. I later noticed that my overseer was staring at my Lucy. I was angered and went to John Black to confront him. I would be so rich after mining the land, I would simply buy another overseer.

I went to him and read the Ten Commandments. I repeated, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife!" I then shot him in the place no man wishes to be shot. My anger was not soothed. So I shot him in the heart, then the head. I also took out some anger on his ribs with my boot. I got my Negroes to dig a grave large enough for three men to hold John Black and either of them who may tell of my acts.

Courtney - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell was born in the year 1750. He was pretty much an awful man. He was an awful man because he murdered two (2) men. The first was John Black. He shot John Black three (3) times. ... Later that day, he killed the doctor, Nathan Briscoe. Nathan Briscoe was killed when he saw John Black's body lying dead on the floor of his cabin. A few minutes later, he was hit over the head with a gun - John Bell's gun. A little over 17 years later, John Bell died. He died on Dec. 20, 1820. He was placed in a coma on Dec. 19, 1820. He was put into a coma because he mixed medicine and moonshine. A few hours later, he died.

Ashlyn - 8th-Grade Girl:
Dear Journal: Oct. 5, 1803
I did it! I did it! I killed that awful John Black. He's dead - no longer living. Never again will he think about my wife -never! I can't believe he would desire my wife. I taught him a lesson. I shot him three painful times. He deserved it. And that man Nathan Briscoe, tried to get into my business. Let's just say I had to teach him a lesson too. He never saw it coming, that hit on the head with the butt of my gun. He didn't know what kind of trouble he was getting himself into. I had two of my slaves dig a hole for three in case they opened their mouths. They'd better not or they will have to learn their lessons too.

Josh - 8th-Grade Boy:
Diary Of John Bell:
I am John Bell and I live on a haunted plantation in Adams, Tennessee. I fear that they would tell on me. The ghosts, I mean. I know who they are. It is John Black and Nathan Briscoe. I killed them. John Black, I shot in his private spot, then in his chest, and finished it all off with his head. Briscoe got a headache that seriously was a show stopper. So now I am pretty much a killer.

Cory - 8th-Grade Boy:
My name is John Bell. I'm a simple man, not a crazy man as many of you may think. I only killed those men in protection of my wife. She's my little wife. I've worked too long to get her and nothing, be it natural or supernatural, shall take her away from me. John Black was the one always gawking at my wife. The other man, Nathan Nabisco or whatever, I only killed to keep my secret safe. I decided to go over to his cabin one day and make sure he never laid his beady little perverted eyes on my Lucy again. I may be a control freak, but what's mine is mine and that's it. I finally made it over to John Black's cabin. I took out my Bible and stepped in front of John Black.

"What in the wide world of sports do you want?" he asked.

I said, "I thought I'd come down and give you some preachin'," I replied. I read the 10 Commandments and emphasized on, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife!"

John Black said, "Now hold on a cotton pickin' minute here. I haven't coveted anything."

I raised my gun and fired a single shot into his groin, making sure he wouldn't ever try to mess with my Lucy.

"Owwwwwwww," he cried out before he collapsed. I shot him twice more, in the heart and in the head. After I got my slaves to dig a grave big enough for three, I started back to get John Black's body. When I entered the cabin, I saw that Nathan was leaning over his body. I crept up and hit him in the head with my gun. He collapsed and died instantly.

I lived another 17 years after killing those men. I never regretted doing what I did, even up to my death. I came to my demise after drinking some bad moonshine.

John Bell Murders A Young Doctor Named Nathan Briscoe

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
Later, I went back to the cabin and fatally hit a doctor, Nathan Briscoe, in the head with my gun. This is the beginning of the haunting.

Dee - 8th-Grade Girl:
Then I heard a knocking. I hid behind the door with my gun still drawn. The man entered, asking if anyone was there. Then he saw the body of John Black. I didn't want to kill him, but I couldn't take the risk of him telling. So I hit him in the back of the head with the butt of the gun.

I had to move fast and get everything cleaned up. I ordered two of my slaves to dig one hole big enough for three people with the threat if they told, they would go in with John Black. The other man was Nathan Briscoe. We threw his body over his horse. I took his wallet and we directed his horse away from my farm.

My excuse for the missing John Black was that he skipped town for some unknown reason. My family and I decided to move to Adams, Tennessee. The good thing was that nobody ever suspected anything and nobody ever wondered why John Black left.

Tiffany - 8th-Grade Girl:
But then someone went into John Black's cabin and saw him. His name was Nathan Briscoe. I found him in John's cabin looking at him. I had my gun with me and I took the butt of my gun and killed him instantly.

Kevin - 8th-Grade Boy:
Nathan Briscoe came to John Black's cabin. John Black had been planning to take him over to the Main House to ask John Bell to hire him as his family doctor. The two of them hoped that John Bell would take both of them with him when he moved to Tennessee the following spring. Nathan knocked on the door. No answer. He let himself inside. He saw the dead body of John Black and the three bullet holes. There was blood everywhere.

John Bell saw the open cabin door. He ran as fast as he could. He killed Nathan with the butt of his gun. He never told anybody about this.

John Bell And Family Move To Robertson County, Tennessee

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
In the spring of 1804, my family and I and some other people moved to Adams, Tennessee a few months after I killed John Black and Nathan Briscoe. Cate Batts and her husband and children and many other people from my part of North Carolina came with us.

The House Of John And Lucy Bell Is Haunted (1817-1821)

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
After we moved into our new house, strange things began to happen. There were some noises to start out with, but it got really, really worse. The children were slapped, scratched, bothered, and even got the covers pulled off of them at night. People around the state started coming to witness the workings of the ghost. The ghost was very smart too. You could ask it questions and it would answer them by banging on the walls in the form of one knock for yes, two for no. The ghost later on learned to talk. It caused great mischief and havoc to our family. You had to have been there to understand the grief it caused us.

Dee - 8th-Grade Girl:
Everything was going great until they started - the hauntings, I mean. I went through torture. Every member of my family did except for Lucy. Many terrible things happened to my family. Many people think that Cate was the reason for the hauntings, but I know different. The people I killed came back to haunt me. I truly regret killing John Black and Nathan Briscoe. I wish I could go back. Let the truth be known that I am a killer and am one reason my family suffered so much pain. I'm truly sorry!

Nick - 8th-Grade Boy:
John Bell's Diary: Oct. 12, 1817
I am becoming greatly annoyed by this spirit. It will not let us sleep. I have recently thought back to that time in 1803. I have a strong belief that the poltergeist may be John Black or Nathan ... whatever his last name is. It is now nearly midnight and the poltergeist is still pulling hair and slapping me as if with no end. I remember it started with simple knocking on the other part of our house. That is all tonight.

David - 8th-Grade Boy:
John Bell sat frozen in his chair. He looked around the room, over the faces of tonight's gallery of guests. The whole room was as silent as death. Everyone was waiting, waiting for the ghost.

"Will my secret be revealed?" John Bell thought to himself. Each night he sat here worrying, worrying that his darkest secret would be revealed. Would the ghost tell of his murdering John Black and the young doctor, Nathan Briscoe?

A guest spoke, "It's not going to show." Sighs and a chorus of disappointment spread through the room. John Bell breathed a relaxing breath. Maybe the ghost had finally left and he would be left in peace.

"I apologize," John Bell spoke, "that the ghost you seek has not come." Suddenly, the window blew open with great force. The air was bitter cold even though the night was warm. Shocked cries and screams filled the room. Furniture rattled and window panes shook. The ghost had arrived.

Reverend Gunn stood. "In the name of the Lord, who are you spirit?" John Bell shuddered. This was the part he feared the most.

The ghost's voice filled the room. "Reverend Gunn, you have posed the question so earnestly, that I would be loath to lie." The ghost paused, "I am nothing else but Cate Batts' witch. I am here to hurry the life out of Old Jack!" Fear spread through the room.

"It's happened!" John Bell thought. "My secret will be revealed and then the ghost will kill me!"

Melinda - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell's Journal: Dec. 16, 1820
Today it happened again. The hauntings still continue. The scratching and pulling of hair and other strange happenings only stop when God's name is mentioned. I can only wonder when the truth will come out. I also wonder if these hauntings have anything to do with the two men I killed on October 5, 1803. If so, I hope I die before the truth is revealed. I am feeling weak from strep throat and muscular disorders. If I die, I hope my darling Lucy never finds out I killed John Black and Nathan Briscoe.

Austin - 8th-Grade Boy:
I, John Bell, always wondered if the people of Adams would ever find out it was me that killed them. I never found out it was John Black and Nathan. I was wondering who it was. I never found out for sure. I knew that it wasn't Cate. I knew that the poltergeist was just covering up for their own actions. I never revealed my secret of knowing to no one. Besides, I guess I should have been haunted for what I did. I killed John Black for breaking one of the Ten Commandments, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife." I should have thought of the Commandment that states, "Thou shalt not kill!" I guess I was wrong.

John - 8th-Grade Boy:
Today, the spirit was at it again. People from all over had come to listen to her talk about everything from religion to who she was. I didn't know for sure, but I guessed it was John Black and Nathan Briscoe, the two guys I murdered years ago. I never spoke a word of this to anyone, not even the spirit, for fear it would tell everyone of my awful deed. Each time someone would ask the spirit who it was, it would always have a different answer. And each time it began to speak, my heart would freeze with fear. But each time it would give a new answer. Every time it did, I could almost feel its eyes staring me down and I would sweat for what seemed an eternity. I did feel a bit sad for the two men, but what had to be done, had been done.

Donajo - 8th-Grade Girl:
When I killed John Black, I felt a sensation that I wasn't going to be alone for awhile. During the hauntings, I would pray that God wouldn't let the spirits talk and confess who they were, because I had a feeling that it was my long lost "friends." Every time someone asked the spirit who it was, I held my breath. I still wonder if it is who I think it is. Each time it answers to a different name, I wonder why it hasn't told and gotten me in trouble yet? What does it owe me? Nothing ... nothing at all.

... People think the spirit is a woman named Cate Batts. I don't mind them thinking this; in fact, I love it. If they found out the truth, I wouldn't be the nice guy I'm made out to be. But I must admit, I wish the truth would come out sometime because I'm tired of holding my breath.

Ashlyn - 8th-Grade Girl:
Dear Journal: Nov. 7, 1818
It happened again today. I could feel the sweat running down my forehead to my eye brows. I was scared to death. It was going to tell on me. I knew it! "What would it say?" is all I had on my mind. I could feel the terror running through my body. "It is going to tell," is what I thought every time someone asked it, "Who are you?" What would it say, that I was the murderer of John Black and Nathan Briscoe? Would it say I did it?

Carly - 8th-Grade Girl:
This can't be. Am I going crazy? Things scraping on the floor. My poor daughter Betsy being abused. Is God punishing me? No, it was 1803 when I took the lives of John Black and the doctor, nearly 14 years ago. This can't be the ghost. It even said she was Cate. I wouldn't be surprised. I knew she had something to do with this. She has been trying to get that land back from me. Ha! She'll never get it back as long as I live. I have to be nice to her since she is my beloved wife's niece. I love Lucy with all my heart and my children. Why is this ghost hurting my children? They haven't done anything. But I am very grateful that this spirit has not harmed my lovely Lucy. My family and I have hardly slept a wink since that late fall night in 1817. It started in my children's bedroom - that awful racket that thing makes. I thought it might have been an animal, but it started to talk in the spring of 1818. The spirit told us countless stories of buried gold, lost teeth, a child dying before its time, and other exaggerated stories. When will my family and I get peace? What does this spirit want with my family?

Jennifer - 8th-Grade Girl:
Journal: March 8, 1818
I'm so scared. The hauntings have gotten worse. My poor Betsy and other children are suffering so badly. Betsy can't even be courted by Joshua Gardner. The spirit asks her not to marry him for he will be a bad husband or a slave driver, as the spirit says. Betsy always replies, "You can't tell me who to marry." That follows with a slap in the face or hair pulling or pinching or needles being stuck in her poor darling body.

I often wonder who the spirit really is. She lied before about being a child who died before its time or guarding a buried treasure or a body whose grave was disturbed. Why should I believe this is Cate Batts' witch? Cate has so many other problems with her kids and her husband being ill and people discriminating her. My wife Lucy is in a dreadful state. She is worried about the children. I love her so dearly!

I really do wonder who the spirit really is. What if I knew this spirit before it died? Hmmm ... What if the ghosts of John Black and Nathan Briscoe have come to claim my head? Oh, but it couldn't, ... they wouldn't just start coming out now. Would they? Dear Lord. Help me! Please let it not be true. Shame on me for what I have done. All of this is all my fault. My wife and kids in terror all the time. Shame on me! Shame on me! Maybe it's not them. Maybe it's nothing but a ghost that was here before we moved.

Well, I'm going to go to bed. I'm dreadfully tired! John

John Bell's Coma And Then Death

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
At the age of 70, I died. After I died, the ghost-haunting stopped terrorizing my family. The Ghost says he killed me by fatally poisoning me, but that was false. I actually died from drinking some bad moonshine.

Nick - 8th-Grade Boy:
John Bell's Diary: Dec. 18, 1820
I am very sick. I have recently gotten medication from my doctor. I am getting some moonshine to ease the pain of my throat and muscles. That is all tonight.

Meredith - 8th-Grade Girl:
Journal: Dec. 19, 1820 (early morning)
I'm getting sicker and sicker each day. My life is getting shorter. As the days go by, my muscular disorders and strep throat have gotten worse. My fever is well over 100 degrees. I couldn't imagine dying and leaving my dear wife, Lucy, and the children. That spirit who has been lurking around is to blame for my being sick. I hope, I just hope, that the spirit never gets hold of this journal. All my feelings and thoughts of that spirit is in here. But that voice, that voice that Kate the spirit has, just didn't fit who I figure the spirit is. It isn't just now that I thought of who the spirit was. On March 15, the year of our Lord, 1818, I wrote in a past entry.

Journal: 03-15-1818
Scratching, banging, covers being pulled off beds, and people being slapped is what our family has been witnessing for almost half a year now. Still, whatever it is or whoever it is, that spirit has been torturing my dear family. Our family is waiting for this haunting to stop. All of us have tried to talk to it. But all has failed. I want to know who or what this spirit is. Then ... wait ... but wait ... what if ... no, it couldn't be, could it? NO! John Black or that person who was looking over the body of John Black? But ... I had to ... I just had to kill them both. To see John Black's life seep out of him was happiness to my soul. That traitor! How could he like Lucy? And that other guy trespassing on my property and looking at that body lying there all stiff. I had to kill them. But those memories are behind me now. They are, well, dead and gone. But what if the spirit reveals the secret that I have hidden for so many years?

No, it couldn't. It can't talk. John Bell

Journal: Dec. 19, 1820 (early morning) continued
That is what I wrote earlier. Still those thoughts of the murders are in the back of my head. It is almost time for me to take my medicine and get some rest. That moonshine I take sure does help with the pain. John Bell

Melinda - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell's Journal: Dec. 17, 1820
The hauntings continue to haunt my family. It is so very strange that the spirit that we call Kate loves my darling Lucy but hates me. I take my medicine and drink moonshine to wash it down. That's all for today.

Dec. 18, 1820
I am very weak. I think that my moonshine is bad.

Dec. 19, 1820
I am even more weak than yesterday. My muscles are in spasms. ...

John Bell slipped into a coma and died the next day.

Jennifer - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell murdered John Black for having a crush on Lucy. Although nothing ever happened between Lucy and John Black, John Bell was still angry. John Bell realized he would be haunted for life. John Bell often wondered why the spirit pretended to be someone it was not. During the haunting, John Bell became very ill. People thought this was the spirit's fault. John Bell died after drinking what was thought a "poisoned drink." However, it was later found out that John Bell had muscular disorders and strep throat. He drank some bad moonshine and died. The spirit had nothing to do with it.

The Afterlife Of John Bell

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
When I died, I found out that there were three poltergeists (mischievous ghosts): the ghost of John Black, Nathan Briscoe, and Cate Batts' Grandpa John who watched over the sacred Indian land.

Meredith - 8th-Grade Girl:
John Bell died the next morning on December 20, 1820 from the bad moonshine mixed with the medicine which had put him in a coma. His old age didn't help him much to get out of the coma. Now this is when John Bell died and it isn't in a journal. It is as if he has come back to us in spirit form.

All of a sudden, I was floating above my body. There behind me were two lights. One bright with love and joy waiting for me. The other dull, dark, and unwelcoming. There, the grandest decision of them allstood in front of me. What should I do? Of course, I'll go to the bright, loving light. So I did. But when I got to it, the light slowly disappeared. "No," I thought to myself. I turned to that dull light. Staring at it closely, it brightened a little. The more I looked, the brighter it seemed to get. Was I imagining it? I looked at my body, thinking of how Lucy and the children would react to my death. Yes, I knew I was dead. I started going to the light. It started to pull me toward it. Was I going to Heaven? No, not quite. Something different - Purgatory. Purgatory is a place where you amend for your sins. I was given a second chance, I suppose. Later on, I was ready to go to Heaven. Full of joy was my heart to be allowed in such a place. I looked at John Black and the other one, whose name was Nathan Briscoe and we gave each other a big smile. Hugging them was the true acceptance to Heaven. There stood Lucy's father. We exchanged hugs. Never again would there be such a loving moment when I saw all of them and Cate. We both forgave each other. Then we waited for the rest of our friends and family to see them once again.

Joe - 8th-Grade Boy:
Right after my death, I rose from that old body on the bed. It looked just like me. I was now a spirit. I saw the light. I looked for a minute, then I walked away. The light vanished. I got wondrous hungry, so I walked to the store and I went in and bought groceries. Afterward, I went and got me a hotel room. Remember, I'm in the spiritual world. So I went in my room and ate me a ham sandwich. Then I remembered my wife. So I grabbed a brown bag, threw in a sandwich, and ran out the door of the Hotel. I ran out of the Spirit World. I went to my house. I ran up to my wife and gave her a hug and said "I love you," even though she could not feel or hear me because I had not yet learned how to move things, etc. So I took the brown bag and set it on the table and said, "Have a Ham Sandwich." Then my work was done. The light appeared. I walked in. That is all for tonight. Goodnight?!

From The Cat's Standpoint

Amanda - 8th-Grade Girl:
"Meow, Meow."

Amanda said, "If only this cat could talk. He is the Bell's old cat!"

The cat suddenly spoke, "Hey, I'm not that old."

Very confused and surprised, Amanda said, "You can talk?"

"Yeah, I'm dead, aren't I?" the cat replied.

Amanda asked, "Why didn't you go to the light?"

The cat said, "I was chasing a mouse."

"That makes sense."

Then the cat said, "I also have a story to tell."

Amanda said, "Go ahead."

"Thank you. I've been John Bell's cat for a long time. I was only a kitten when he married Lucy. It was a truly odd sight, if you ask me." The cat paused and stretched. "This is a long story, so you better do the same."

Amanda agreed, "Okay."

"After they got married, they got busy, if you know what I mean. She was just crankin' out kids ..."

Amanda interrupted, "Would you get on with the story?"

The cat said defensively, "Sorry. I get a little carried away. "Anyway, one day, Lucy was crying. Her father died." The cat choked. "I felt bad about her father. Well, she was still sad when she got back. But, John was furious! He swore he would get some sort of Indian land. I thought it was a bit strange. A few years later, he left the house. He came back home. Then I saw a woman named Cate with a spirit right behind her on a horse. I don't think she saw the spirit nor did John. But cats can always see spirits. Cate slid off the horse and begged John to give her back the land she had just sold him. He laughed. Oh, then I saw a mouse and I could just have just jumped up and scratched the living daylights ..."

Interrupting again, Amanda said, "Please continue."

"Sorry again. I was chasing that mouse when I heard Cate say something about John losing someone. Then I caught the mouse. The mouse tasted wonderful. Woops! Sorry. Uh, back to my story. John started watching Lucy every day. He saw that John Black was always watching Lucy. The next day, he went out of the house. I followed him." Then the cat yawned and started to drift off to sleep.

Amanda yelled, "Hey! Are you awake? Wake up!"

"What? Oh, yeah! Where was I? I followed John Bell to John Black's cabin. We both went in. John Bell pulled out a Bible. Then he read the part called the 10 Commandments. Then he put up the Bible and got a gun. Mr. Black was frightened, especially when he saw where the gun was aiming. He tried to protect himself, but BANG! Right where it hurts! It made me cross-eyed for a moment. Then he shot him in two more places. I thought if he saw me, he would shoot me too, so I ran."

The cat paused and then said, "A few years later, a bunch of weird things started happening. Well, I saw John Black and a couple of other people. They were ripping and tearing. Then they took to hair pulling and even cussing. This went on for many years. Then finally, John Bell dies. They heard John Black bragging that he killed John Bell with some poison. That wasn't true. I was there. That ghost didn't do a thing. He just felt like bragging I guess. I watched him take that jug of moonshine that John Bell had drunk and put some of it in a small bottle. He put that in the medicine cabinet and got rid of the jug."

Amanda asked, "What happened next?"

The cat looked sad and then said, "Well, the people wanted to see if the stuff in the small bottle was really poison. So they took a straw and stuck it in the bottle. Before I could figure out what they were up to, they grabbed me up. Then they made me open my mouth. They ran that straw over my tongue and fed the bad moonshine to me."

"How sad," Amanda sympathized.

"Thank you. Animals can't have alcohol, especially bad alcohol. I died. My body went into convulsions. It really hurt. So that is my story."

Amanda thought for a bit. Then she said, "Now you can go toward the light."

The cat said, "Actually, I still have some other details I would like to tell you about later. But for now, I need to take a nap."

The Haunting of the Bell Ghost Continues

Adam - 8th-Grade Boy:
The ghost still comes back sometimes to visit my descendants. This is the story of myself and the Bell Ghost. Now that my story has been told, I can rest peacefully.

Epilogue: These stories were written in 2002 by my 8th-Grade students after being exposed to what the archives say and what I had found out through doing two years of research on the topic of the TennesseeBell Witch. The above tales and anecdotes are a compilation of what they wrote about John Bell.

Through some rather strange circumstances, I spent from 1993 to 1995 researching and writing the real story of what happened to the family of John and Lucy Bell. My book also proves the innocence of Cate Williams Batts who was wrongly accused of being the poltergeist who haunted this family from 1817 to 1821, even though she was a living woman at the time. After meeting with actual descendants of Cate Williams Batts and her husband Frederick, visiting courthouses and libraries in four states, consulting psychics, and twice visiting the BellWitchCave in Adams, Tennessee, the book practically wrote itself. This book made up of 85 chapters and 365 pages is called "The Bell Witch Unveiled At Last! The True Story Of A Poltergeist" written under my pen name of DJ Lyons. For more information about this book and my one-woman show, please visit http://bellwitchunveiled.com.