There Are Numerous False Rumors About Cate Williams Batts – Often Spelled Kate

There are nine main rumors and facts about the Tennessee Bell Witch, a poltergeist who haunted the family of John and Lucy Bell from 1817 to 1821.

Here are the details about Rumor #8 of 9:

Rumor #1: Almost all of the archives (in courthouses, libraries, and genealogical records) state that Cate Williams Batts was the wife of Frederick Batts.

Fact: This is true. Cate Williams married Frederick Batts; thus, her married name was Cate Williams Batts.

I spent two years of my life researching the story of the Tennessee Bell Witch. One author, who interviewed many of the same people I did, erroneously wrote in his book rendition about the Tennessee Bell Witch that Cate was married to one of Frederick's brothers - Benjamin.

Rumor #2: Many archives state the Cate Williams Batts was a widow when the haunting of the Bell family took place.

Fact: Cate was never a widow. She died 13 years after the 1820 death of John Bell and one year before the 1834 death of her husband, Frederick Batts.

Rumor #3: Many archives give the impression that none of Cate's children lived long enough to have children of their own.

Fact: Most of the archives indicate that Cate Batts had two sons and one daughter, none of whom lived to have children of their own. It turns out that those three were actually her nephews and niece by an In-Law.

On my second research trip to Adams, Tennessee, I personally met three of her direct descendants. The wife of a fourth direct descendant never admitted her connection; however, she was the one who hooked me up with one of those three who introduced me to the other two. I found out that Cate Batts actually had five daughters and one son who lived into their majority. Think about it. If your mother was accused of witchcraft back in the early 1800s, what chance did you have to make a good marriage or any kind of marriage at all?

Her oldest daughter, Rebecca Batts, was the 2nd wife of Solomon James. She married before all this business of the false accusations and superstition got started. She either had 12 or 13 children by Solomon. It was difficult to know for certain the exact number of her children as all three of his wives had the first name of Rebecca. Cate’s youngest daughter, Nancy Batts, never married nor had children. Cate’s other three daughters, Mary, Sarah, and Rhoda, had several out-of-wedlock children between them. Eventually, Sarah married a man 39 years her senior. Mary and Rhoda never wed at all. Cate’s son, John, moved to Illinois when he became an adult, disassociating himself totally from the entire dramatic, traumatic situation.

Rumor #4: The poltergeist, often called Kate (with a K) or the Bell Witch, was a female entity. Many people even wrongly feel that the niece of Lucy Williams Bell, Cate Williams Batts, was the culprit. For full details of how this happened, read my book.

Fact: The three poltergeists, who frequently acted as one composite energy, were all three male. They simply chose to use a feminine-sounding voice to keep John Bell from ever figuring out their true identities. Read my book titled “The Bell Witch Unveiled At Last! The True Story Of A Poltergeist” written under my pen name of DJ Lyons to find out the full details of their identities, motivations, and strategies.

They Never Dared Marry

There are nine main rumors and facts about the Tennessee Bell Witch, a poltergeist who haunted the family of John and Lucy Bell from 1817 to 1821.

Here are the details about Rumor #6 of 9:

Rumor: Late in 1993, I learned from a direct descendant of Cate and Frederick Batts, that there was a Middle Tennessee man and woman who courted for 50 years; however, they never dared marry. I believe they both passed on sometime in the 1980’s. One was a direct descendant of John and Lucy Bell and had the last name of Bell. One was a direct descendant of Joshua Gardner, the man who was the former fiancé of Betsy Bell and had the last name of Gardner. Just as Betsy Bell felt forced to break her engagement to Joshua Gardner as she truly believed he would be killed by the poltergeist, this couple feared that they too would suffer injury or death should they actually become husband and wife.

Fact: I don’t know if this was a true fact or not. It is sad that after nearly 200 years, people in Middle Tennessee are still afraid of the poltergeist who haunted the family of John and Lucy Bell from 1817 to 1821.

For more details, please read my book entitled “The Bell Witch Unveiled At Last! The True Story Of A Poltergeist” written under my pen name of DJ Lyons.

Lights Flickering

There are nine main rumors and facts about the Tennessee Bell Witch, a poltergeist who haunted the family of John and Lucy Bell from 1817 to 1821.

Here are the details about Rumor #5 of 9:

Rumor: Way back before I moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, I had several discussions with a Knoxville-based storyteller who also had been performing the story of the Tennessee Bell Witch for years. She had always given Cate Batts, often spelled Kate, the blame in her rendition of this story. She told me that the lights would frequently flicker or go out as she told this tale. Sometimes, her sound system would malfunction. Twice, a psychic approached her at the conclusion of her performance to report that she saw the Bell Witch looming over her during the part of the performance when the storyteller announced that Cate was the perpetrator of the haunting.

Fact: I never witnessed any of these performances; however, this storyteller agreed to revise the story altogether. When she went to this one particular park to give one of her annual performances, several members of the audience requested she tell the story of the Tennessee Bell Witch. She explained that she could not tell the story at that time as she had learned some new facts that changed the entire focus of her tale. A question and answer period followed. After the performance was over, two best friends approached her. One was a direct descendant of John and Lucy Bell. The other was a direct descendant of Cate and Frederick Batts. They thanked her for revising her story. They had been aware about the cover-up perpetrated by many of the friends and relatives of both families. They were relieved that justice was finally going to be done for Cate Williams Batts and all the past, present, and future members of her extended family. For more details about what really happened, please read my book entitled “The Bell Witch Unveiled At Last! The True Story Of A Poltergeist” written under my pen name of DJ Lyons.