1 00:00:03,760 --> 00:00:08,000 Speaker 1: Our world is full of the unexplainable, and if history 2 00:00:08,039 --> 00:00:11,480 Speaker 1: is an open book, all of these amazing tales right 3 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:16,640 Speaker 1: there on display, just waiting for us to explore. Welcome 4 00:00:17,760 --> 00:00:29,840 Speaker 1: to the Cabinet of Curiosities. Everyone needs a home. Sometimes 5 00:00:29,840 --> 00:00:32,479 Speaker 1: we plant roots where we're born, choosing to stay among 6 00:00:32,479 --> 00:00:35,560 Speaker 1: what's safe and familiar. Other times we have to leave 7 00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: one home in order to find another where we can 8 00:00:37,800 --> 00:00:41,960 Speaker 1: be accepted and thrive. George Colby was in search of 9 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,680 Speaker 1: such a place in eighteen seventy five when he left 10 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:48,440 Speaker 1: his home in Pike, New York. George was a trance medium, 11 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:51,280 Speaker 1: someone who would speak as though the dead were communicating 12 00:00:51,320 --> 00:00:54,720 Speaker 1: through them during a seance. He traveled all over the country, 13 00:00:54,760 --> 00:00:58,080 Speaker 1: conducting sessions and giving readings to the public. But it 14 00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:00,760 Speaker 1: was during a stay in Iowa when his travels took 15 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:04,600 Speaker 1: him on a journey he'd never expected. He had been 16 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:07,480 Speaker 1: contacted during one of his seances by a Native American 17 00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:11,800 Speaker 1: spirit called Seneca. Seneca told George to go to Florida. 18 00:01:11,920 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 1: It was there where he was meant to establish a 19 00:01:14,319 --> 00:01:19,240 Speaker 1: community for others like him, mediums, psychics, and other spiritual 20 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:21,600 Speaker 1: men and women who would flock to this place to 21 00:01:21,640 --> 00:01:25,039 Speaker 1: practice their craft, making a home for themselves apart from 22 00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:28,760 Speaker 1: a world that called them hacks and frauds. As he 23 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:32,800 Speaker 1: made his way south, George contracted a bad case of tuberculosis. 24 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:35,399 Speaker 1: By the time he'd reached his destination, he was in 25 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:39,200 Speaker 1: bad shape and close to death. Seneca, now deemed his 26 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 1: spirit guide by the intrepid medium, led him to a 27 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:46,280 Speaker 1: spring deep in the wilds of Florida. George drank from 28 00:01:46,319 --> 00:01:49,800 Speaker 1: that spring, and according to his tail, the waters cured 29 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 1: him of his ailment. This was the beginning of a 30 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:58,560 Speaker 1: town he would call the Cassadega Spiritualist Camp Meeting Association, 31 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:02,960 Speaker 1: more commonly known as Plee Cassadega, named after a spiritual 32 00:02:02,960 --> 00:02:06,600 Speaker 1: community near his hometown back in New York. Perhaps Seneca 33 00:02:06,680 --> 00:02:09,480 Speaker 1: had been right, or maybe George just happened to tap 34 00:02:09,480 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: into something needed at the time, but Cassadega became an 35 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:17,720 Speaker 1: overnight sensation. Psychics and mediums quickly found their way to 36 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:20,720 Speaker 1: the town and built houses for themselves across its fifty 37 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:24,720 Speaker 1: seven acres. Many of the homes became makeshift business establishments, 38 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:27,680 Speaker 1: as their occupants were known to host seances for tourists 39 00:02:27,720 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: who had come to learn of their loved ones fate 40 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:34,400 Speaker 1: in the afterlife. Growth kind of stalled in the nineteen thirties, 41 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:37,600 Speaker 1: but the mediums never left, and their descendants eventually took 42 00:02:37,639 --> 00:02:41,160 Speaker 1: over the homes and the family businesses, conducting seances and 43 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:45,040 Speaker 1: readings for curious tourists who were passing through. Of course, 44 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:48,520 Speaker 1: a town populated by spiritualists was bound to attract other 45 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:52,520 Speaker 1: entities as well. The hotel Cassadega, which still looks just 46 00:02:52,639 --> 00:02:56,120 Speaker 1: like it did in nineteen seven, continues to rent rooms 47 00:02:56,120 --> 00:02:59,360 Speaker 1: to folks looking to indulge their other worldly side for 48 00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:01,919 Speaker 1: more than a a It's been said guests have even 49 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:04,519 Speaker 1: run into a friendly ghost or two during their time there. 50 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:08,160 Speaker 1: It's not surprising to learn that the hotel isn't the 51 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:10,680 Speaker 1: only part of the town that's remained the same since 52 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:14,679 Speaker 1: its inception. Hassadega itself really hasn't changed much since the 53 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: nineteen thirties, when it was a major destination for spiritualists 54 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:21,400 Speaker 1: from all over the country. Today, while the world around 55 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:25,040 Speaker 1: Cassadega marches forward, those who live there and maintain it 56 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:28,919 Speaker 1: make sure the camp remains true to its roots. Resident 57 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:31,560 Speaker 1: psychics there have claimed to have spoken to all manner 58 00:03:31,639 --> 00:03:34,560 Speaker 1: of famous spirits like that of Abraham Lincoln, and have 59 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:38,920 Speaker 1: witnessed all sorts of paranormal phenomena around town. Computers and 60 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:42,360 Speaker 1: compiers have been known in malfunction out of nowhere. Ghosts 61 00:03:42,440 --> 00:03:47,200 Speaker 1: wander around homes, peering from windows to pedestrians. Outside in 62 00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 1: the cemetery on the edge of town, there's something called 63 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:52,880 Speaker 1: the Devil's Chair, a place for mourners to rest and 64 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:56,200 Speaker 1: reflect on the passing of loved ones. However, as time 65 00:03:56,240 --> 00:03:59,200 Speaker 1: has gone by, a more sinister narrative has come to 66 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:02,480 Speaker 1: surround the chair. Allegedly, anyone brave enough to sit in 67 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: it is said to come face to face with the 68 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:08,960 Speaker 1: devil himself. There's a curfew within the camp that lasts 69 00:04:08,960 --> 00:04:12,240 Speaker 1: from dusk until dawn, discouraging anyone who might be looking 70 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:16,919 Speaker 1: to cause trouble after dark. Psychic readings, handwriting analysis, and 71 00:04:17,040 --> 00:04:20,839 Speaker 1: seances are still conducted today, and the town continues to 72 00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:23,599 Speaker 1: be a beacon for those in touch with the other side. 73 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:27,279 Speaker 1: I assume George Colby would be proud to know his 74 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:31,560 Speaker 1: little community is still around today, but he died decades ago, 75 00:04:31,880 --> 00:04:35,159 Speaker 1: long before it reached its peak. But if we really 76 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:52,440 Speaker 1: wanted to know, maybe somebody there could just ask him. 77 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:55,920 Speaker 1: Most Inventions arise in order to fulfill a need. Perhaps 78 00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:58,960 Speaker 1: there's something tedious that can be done more efficiently, or 79 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:01,520 Speaker 1: a job to differ cult for our bare hands that 80 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:04,800 Speaker 1: a machine can do for us. Inventions have the power 81 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:08,280 Speaker 1: to improve upon the world. The automobile got us from 82 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:11,080 Speaker 1: point A to point be faster and more safely than 83 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:14,280 Speaker 1: horses ever did. The printing press allowed for the mass 84 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:18,159 Speaker 1: production of books, as well as increased literacy across the world. 85 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:21,640 Speaker 1: Thanks to the press, books were no longer handwritten works 86 00:05:21,680 --> 00:05:25,159 Speaker 1: of art meant only for the wealthy. And then there's 87 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:28,600 Speaker 1: the Phonalist doubt the eighth Wonder of the World. When 88 00:05:28,600 --> 00:05:31,640 Speaker 1: it was unveiled in nineteen ten, the concept behind it 89 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:36,200 Speaker 1: wasn't entirely new. It was created in Germany by Ludwig Hupfeld, 90 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:41,560 Speaker 1: a manufacturer of player pianos and orchestrians. Orchestrions were automatic 91 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 1: music players designed to sound like full bands. Hiring live 92 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:49,039 Speaker 1: musicians to play at parties and in hotel lobbies was expensive, 93 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:52,400 Speaker 1: but a business could invest in an orchestrion and provide 94 00:05:52,440 --> 00:05:57,320 Speaker 1: customers with a live performance at any time. Many orchestrions 95 00:05:57,320 --> 00:06:01,279 Speaker 1: combined piano, drums, xylophones, and pipe organs. To get a 96 00:06:01,279 --> 00:06:05,000 Speaker 1: complete sound, a roll of paper with precisely punched holes 97 00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:07,720 Speaker 1: was spun beneath a metal bar that would trigger a 98 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:11,800 Speaker 1: series of pneumatic bellows, activating a specific tone from one 99 00:06:11,839 --> 00:06:15,400 Speaker 1: of the instruments, or several of them at once. The 100 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:19,680 Speaker 1: phono list, however, was different. Rather than including only percussive 101 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:25,920 Speaker 1: instruments like pianos and drums, Upfield's creation added something extraordinary violins, 102 00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:28,520 Speaker 1: three of them, to be exact, But it wasn't as 103 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: simple as you might expect to add them. In first, 104 00:06:32,440 --> 00:06:35,440 Speaker 1: violin isn't played like a piano. There are no keys 105 00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:38,159 Speaker 1: to press. The note was made by pressing a finger 106 00:06:38,240 --> 00:06:41,039 Speaker 1: against a string in a certain spot and then dragging 107 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 1: a bow across it. In order to achieve this without 108 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:46,080 Speaker 1: the use of a human hand, each of the three 109 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:49,760 Speaker 1: violins was reduced to only one active string that mounted 110 00:06:49,839 --> 00:06:53,880 Speaker 1: vertically above the player piano. As the paper roll was 111 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:58,159 Speaker 1: fed across the reader bar, pneumatic bellows acted like violinist fingers, 112 00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:00,960 Speaker 1: pressing each string in the right ace so the correct 113 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:04,120 Speaker 1: note could be played, and as that happened, a circular 114 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:09,360 Speaker 1: bow made of horsehairs rotated around the violins. Eliciting either 115 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: one note at a time or full chords while the 116 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: piano played underneath. The result was a feast for the 117 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:19,600 Speaker 1: eyes and the ears. No one had ever built something 118 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:23,880 Speaker 1: that's so accurately replicated an orchestral sound before, and no 119 00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:27,880 Speaker 1: one at the nineteen ten Brussels International World's Fair had 120 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:31,560 Speaker 1: heard anything like it before. A home or business with 121 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:34,200 Speaker 1: one of these on display didn't need to hire a 122 00:07:34,200 --> 00:07:37,200 Speaker 1: band or a string quartet to liven the place up. 123 00:07:37,680 --> 00:07:41,400 Speaker 1: It could do all that for them. Stores often had 124 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,400 Speaker 1: coin operated models that would play any one of several 125 00:07:44,480 --> 00:07:49,040 Speaker 1: songs on demand. Occasionally, additional performers would accompany the machine, 126 00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:53,200 Speaker 1: providing a live component to the automated sound. Customers would 127 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:56,480 Speaker 1: flock to watch the phono lists mechanisms move while they 128 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:00,800 Speaker 1: listened to the sweet music being played. All told, nearly 129 00:08:00,840 --> 00:08:03,560 Speaker 1: a thousand paper music rolls were made for it, though 130 00:08:03,720 --> 00:08:07,760 Speaker 1: sadly it's popularity didn't last too long. By the nine twenties, 131 00:08:07,960 --> 00:08:11,240 Speaker 1: as phonographs and radios became the norm, the phono list 132 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:16,240 Speaker 1: fell into obscurity. They were big and loud and very expensive, 133 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:18,920 Speaker 1: and nobody wanted to hear a fake band when the 134 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:21,840 Speaker 1: real thing was just the drop of a needle away. 135 00:08:22,280 --> 00:08:25,960 Speaker 1: Out of the thousands that were manufactured, only sixty three 136 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:30,720 Speaker 1: still exist today, and they're not cheap. One recently sold 137 00:08:30,720 --> 00:08:34,840 Speaker 1: at auction for almost nine thousand dollars, and I've got 138 00:08:34,840 --> 00:08:38,760 Speaker 1: to say, at that price, a live band doesn't sound 139 00:08:38,800 --> 00:08:44,240 Speaker 1: like a bad idea after all. I hope you've enjoyed 140 00:08:44,280 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for 141 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:50,839 Speaker 1: free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show 142 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:55,920 Speaker 1: by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was created 143 00:08:55,960 --> 00:08:59,240 Speaker 1: by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. 144 00:08:59,640 --> 00:09:02,840 Speaker 1: I may another award winning show called Lore, which is 145 00:09:02,920 --> 00:09:06,320 Speaker 1: a podcast, book series, and television show, and you can 146 00:09:06,400 --> 00:09:08,720 Speaker 1: learn all about it over at the World of Lore 147 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:12,680 Speaker 1: dot com. And until next time, stay curious.