In the early 20th century, ghost or spirit photographs were all the rage. Newspapers across the U.S. were publishing these photos, either to marvel at the weird looking ghosts or to disprove their validity.
Prepare yourself. These photos look like nothing we see today in ghost photography. In fact, with our level of sophistication, we wonder how the people of the past were fooled by this trick photography.
A Washington Man’s Collection
Dr. Theodore Hansmann was reported to have the largest collection of spook photos back in 1906. He took the photographs himself and claimed that the faces of spirits or spirit messages appeared as he developed the film.
Seattle Spirit Photo
This photograph of ghosts was taken in a materialization studio in Seattle, Washington, 1916.
Sitting With a Spirit
A photograph of a man sitting with a spirit, published in 1914. This photograph, as you can see, is a lot different than the style of photographs other people were making.
Surrounded by Spirits
This photograph, published in 1920, shows a seated man surrounded by spirits that he himself could not see. According to the article published with the photograph, “Scientific experiments show that electric currents can be stabilized enough to be photographs. Thought photographs made through the slowing down of etheric vibrations until they are solid and tangible enough to reflect light waves, the rays being similar in character to those cast back from a reflection of a person in a mirror.”
Cosmo Girl
This spirit photograph puzzled investigators for quite some time until someone realized that the spirit woman was actually a reproduction of the cover design from the Cosmopolitan Magazine published in October, 1895.
Trance Woman
Published in 1922, this photo supposedly shows a woman in a trance and the ghost head of a man above her.
The Medium’s Ghost
The woman, a medium, had her own special, although demented looking ghost, hanging out with her for this photograph published in 1922.
