Cassadaga (a Seneca Indian word meaning ''"Water beneath the rocks"'') is a small

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

located in

Volusia County, Florida Volusia County (, ) is a county located in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Florida between the St. Johns River and the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2020 census, the county was home to 553,543 people, an increase of 11.9% from the 2 ...

, United States, just north of Deltona. It is especially known for having many psychics and mediums, and has consequently been named the "Psychic Capital of the World".

History of Cassadaga

The Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp began circa 1875, when the Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp Meeting Association was founded by George P. Colby, from

Pike, New York Pike is an incorporated town in Wyoming County, New York. The population was 1,114 at the 2010 census. The Town of Pike is on the south border of the county. Pike is also the name of a hamlet in this town. History The Town of Pike was founde ...

, a trance medium who traveled to many different states, giving readings and seances. He was well known and in his travels was referred to as the "seer of

spiritualism Spiritualism may refer to: * Spiritual church movement, a group of Spiritualist churches and denominations historically based in the African-American community * Spiritualism (beliefs), a metaphysical belief that the world is made up of at leas ...

." Colby attended summer Spiritualist Camp meetings at

Lily Dale, New York Lily Dale is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet, connected with the Spiritualist Movement, Spiritualist movement, located in the Pomfret, New York, Town of Pomfret on the east side of Cassadaga Lake, next to the Cassadaga, New York, Village of Cassad ...

, the town adjacent to

Cassadaga, New York Cassadaga (a Seneca nation, Seneca Indian word meaning "water beneath the rocks") is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in Chautauqua County, New York, Chautauqua County, New York (state), New York, United States. The village ...

that would lend its name to the Florida community.Cassadaga, Florida Yesterday and Today by Elizabeth Owens, 2001 Colby worked with several

spirit guide A spirit guide, in Spiritualism, is an entity that remains as a discarnate spirit to act as a guide or protector to a living incarnated individual. Description In traditional African belief systems, well before the spread of Christianity ...

s who would give him knowledge. One of his spirit guides was a Native American named Seneca, who had manifested to Colby during a seance in

Lake Mills, Iowa Lake Mills is a city in Winnebago County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,143 at the time of the 2020 census. History Lake Mills was platted in part of the northeast quadrant of Center Township in 1869. A gristmill had been built at ...

. According to Colby, Seneca had instructed him to travel south to Florida, where he eventually arrived at a place called the Blue Springs Landing, near Orange City, Florida. According to Colby, the area that Seneca had led him to was the same area that Colby had seen during the seance in Iowa. Colby had arrived in Florida in 1875, and on December 18, 1894, the

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

was granted to form The Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp Meeting Association. Later, on January 3, 1895, Colby had signed a

warranty deed A warranty deed is a type of deed where the grantor (seller) guarantees that they hold clear title to a piece of real estate and has a right to sell it to the grantee (buyer), in contrast to a quitclaim deed, where the seller does not guara ...

to the association for thirty-five acres. The people who came to the Spiritualist Camp in the early days of its formation were affluent and well educated. The association later received additional acreage that expanded the camp to the current fifty-seven acres.

The Cassadaga Camp today

Today, the Camp features the Cassadaga Hotel, a central auditorium, The Colby Memorial Temple, a community library, the Caesar Forman Healing Center, a Camp bookstore, a welcome center, and the Andrew Jackson Davis Educational building, used for musical performances and gatherings.Cassadaga, Spiritualist Camp Guide Book, Calendar/ Directory Annual Program, 2007 -2008 Nearby is Colby-Alderman Park. The principles of spirituality that are taught by the people at Cassadaga state, "Spiritualism has no dogma or creed, just a simple set of nine principles to help guide our lives". According to the teachings of spiritualism, it is the "science, philosophy, and religion based upon the principle of continuous life". On March 14, 1991, the Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp was declared a U.S.

Historic District A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

. The Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp is a federal tax-exempt church currently governed by a board of trustees.

Popular culture

* Bright Eyes has an album called '' Cassadaga'', which features the town in the lyrics of the single " Four Winds". *

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the leader and frontman of the Rock music, rock bands Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Mudcrutch and a member of the late 1980s sup ...

's song "Casa Dega" alludes to psychics * Gemma Hayes has a song titled "Lucky One (Bird of Cassadaga)" on her debut album '' Night on My Side'' * A lengthy chapter in

Stanley Elkin Stanley Lawrence Elkin (May 11, 1930 – May 31, 1995) was an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist. His extravagant, satirical fiction revolves around American consumerism, popular culture, and male-female relationships. Biograp ...

's novel ''George Mills'' takes place in Cassadaga.''George Mills'' (NY: Dutton, 1982), 81-192. * Served as the inspiration for the town called Grange in the

Carl Hiaasen Carl Hiaasen (; born March 12, 1953) is an American journalist and novelist. He began his career as a newspaper reporter and by the late 1970s had begun writing novels in his spare time, both for adults and for middle grade readers. Two of his ...

novel '' Lucky You''. * Investigated in the 2008 BBC documentary '' Around the World in 80 Faiths'' (Episode 5, Faith #43) * The town is briefly mentioned in the 2009 movie '' Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant''. * Featured in the August 2010 episode of '' The Glades'' on the A&E Network * Parts of the town were featured in the film '' Dunsmore'' released in 2003 and directed by Peter Spirer. * The film '' Cassadaga'' is set in and took its inspiration from the town's history. *

Cherie Priest Cherie Priest (born July 30, 1975) is an American novelist and blogger living in Seattle, Washington. Biography Priest is a Florida native, born in Tampa in 1975. She graduated from Forest Lake Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist Church, Seventh- ...

's novel ''Brimstone'' is largely set in Cassadaga in the 1920s. * '' Freakylinks'' episode "The Harbingers'", aired January 5, 2001, was set in Cassadaga, after being alluded to in a book titled ''The Harbingers'' under the alias "Valley Vista". * The Amy Hempel story “Cloudland” takes place, in part, in Cassadaga. * The town is mentioned in the Heather Graham novel ''Unhallowed Ground'' chapter 10, * Extensively investigated by Jamie Loftus in the podcast ''Ghost Church''. * Referred to and later visited by the protagonists in

Michael Connelly Michael Joseph Connelly (born July 21, 1956) is an American author of Detective fiction, detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring Los Angeles Police Department, LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch and cr ...

's short story ''The Safe Man'', adapted into a podcast series by Audible in 2022 (featuring

Jack Quaid Jack Henry Quaid (born April 24, 1992) is an American actor. The son of actors Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid, he made his acting debut with a minor role in the dystopian film ''The Hunger Games (film), The Hunger Games'' (2012). Quaid was part of th ...

and Titus Welliver)

References

Cassadaga, Florida: A Guide to the World’s Psychic Capital
* Guthrie, John J. Jr., Phillip Charles Lucas, and Gary Monroe (editors). 2000. ''Cassadaga: the South’s Oldest Spiritualist Community''. Gainesville, FL : University Press of Florida.

Notes

External links

Official website of the town and Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp

"Visiting The Psychic Capital Of The World"
Bill Geist, ''

CBS Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (frequently shortened to ''Sunday Morning'') is an American television newsmagazine that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and E.S. "Bud" Lamoreaux III, and originally hosted by Ch ...

,'' December 30, 2007.
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