Spirits And Treasures Of Schooley`s Mountain

Salem, Massachusetts was not the only colony that found the subject of witches intriguing. Ghosts and goblins were part of the spiritual mindset of the time, for wherever there was good, there must be evil as well. The zealot`s goal to rid the colonies of witches was finally taken over by reason and the burning of innocent people ended.

However, the belief in the super natural never faded. It was believed, in many towns and villages that treasures were buried in secret places and spirits were left to guard them. So was the case in Morristown. This story was first written in a pamphlet by an unknown author in 1792. It tells about the search for buried treasure in Schooley`s Mountain in 1788.

There were two men that were convinced that Schooley`s Mountain hid an abundant treasure trove but they were too afraid to approach the area for fear of the spirits left there to guard the treasures. They heard about a man in Connecticut that had an ability to communicate with spirits and send them away. The man was Ransford Rogers and he was a schoolmaster. As you may have guessed the two men went to Connecticut to employ Rogers to come to Morristown and rid Schooley`s Mountain of the spirits, thus leaving the treasures free for the taking. Rogers thought that this would be a golden opportunity and accepted their offer. He moved to Morristown and in order to keep his true identity a secret, he got a job as a schoolmaster.

Rogers was eager to get started in his new business so he immediately tried to enlist more people in his undertaking. He held secret meetings at night, conjuring up supernatural events such as explosions to convince his followers that he was in fact communicating with the spirits. He eventually had 40 men meeting secretly in the woods and dark rooms all the while conjuring up signs of spirits with his chemistry knowledge. Rogers could see a golden opportunity and knew he would need help to deliver more convincing spirits to his followers. He left for a short while and went back to Connecticut to gain the assistance of another schoolmaster. His friend returned with him to Morristown where they devised a plan to gain as much money as possible from the unsuspecting group of treasure seekers.

During their meetings Rogers would call out to the spirits while his accomplice would make strange sounds that only a ghost could make, or so they thought. In some instances they would use sheets to make quick flights through a darkened room or forest. The biggest event of all was conducted late at night, in a blackened forest. Each man was given a blank sheet of paper and instructed to lay face down with arms spread and the paper in one hand. They were told that a spirit would write on one of the papers the instructions on what course to take next. Rogers joined in and of course his paper had writing on it while the others were all blank. After a while of lying on the ground each man took his paper and crimped it together with the others.

Amazingly one paper had writing on it. The handwriting was so precise it must have been written by a spirit, or was it? The instructions did not give them the directions to the hidden treasure but told them that the spirits demanded 12 pounds in gold or silver from each member to be given to Rogers for safekeeping. This was an impossible task for some of the members because they could not possibly come up with that kind of money. Most of them were farmers and although some of them even sold cattle to raise the money, others could only come up with 4 or 6 pounds. Rogers being the good Sheppard that he was relented and allowed some to pay less. By this time it was winter and not the time to dig for treasures in the frozen ground. They decided to wait until May when they would meet again and get instructions from the spirits.

May came and the group met late at night in the woods. All types of sounds and scenes were taking place. Explosions and fireworks were going off all over, voices could be heard and spirits whisking about. It was a horrible scene for the fearful group especially when they were told that were some among them that had not kept their secret and had spoken to others about their activities. They were told to go home and wait until the spirits were ready to call them back. This gave Rogers more time to devise a scheme to gather another group of followers that were wealthier. It did not take him long to form the second group. Rogers got so confident and greedy that he enlisted two more men to act as spirits for more flamboyant events. Through his nighttime shows of sights and wonders he convinced the second group to give the 12 pounds of gold and silver to him.

Rogers` knowledge of chemistry gave him access to skills that most people did not have. He used his ability to cheat innocent victims out of very hard earned money. He preyed on the superstitions of people and made quite a living at it. Yet, all good things must come to an end and Rogers met his after being found out by a follower when he left a trail of horse prints to his house. He had gone to the home of one of his followers disguised as a spirit. Being suspicious the man followed the hoof prints to Rogers` front door. Word got out and more investigations uncovered his ungodly acts. Rogers was arrested but some of his followers still believed in him and bailed him out of jail. He was arrested again a short time later at which time he confessed to everything.

It is not surprising that Rogers used all of his cunning and skill to escape. He left Morristown and was never heard of again. Schooley`s Mountain was never excavated for treasures. The people went back to their way of life having learned a valuable lesson and as for the spirits, well, they probably thought the whole thing was very entertaining.

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Author: Vickie Van Antwerp