Many of the original Cassadaga spiritualists are buried about a mile up the road in the Lake Helen cemetery. Each Halloween, guards must be posted at the cemetery to ward off outside pranksters and curiosity seekers looking for goblins. One of the big evil attractions at the cemetery has always been the sinister “Devil’s Chair.”
According to the stories, if you sit in this big, brick chair at midnight, the Devil will communicate to you. The Prince of Darkness also enjoys a cold beer once in awhile, for I’m told that if you place an unopened can of beer on the chair it will be empty the next morning. He’s probably a pretty thirsty fellow after working in all that fire and brimstone.
When it comes to Cassadaga, Louis Gates is not only a medium; he’s a regular historian and folklorist. I knew he would know about the Devil’s Chair. He laughed as he began telling me the truth behind the legend. “There’s nothing to it, kids started that story. The real story goes back to a man who lost his wife, it was a quick death and unexpected, this was back in the twenties. She was buried in the cemetery, and he would walk there each day and sit beside her grave. The man had arthritis real bad in his legs and the walk was hard on him. He needed something to sit on, so he built that big, brick chair so he could rest beside his wife’s grave. There are all kinds of stories, how if you sit in it the Devil will talk to you…it’s just a story…it has nothing to do with the Devil.”
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Dark Figures Lurking |
