The History of Spiritualism

Arthur Conan Doyle's very well received story of Modern Spiritualism, acting as a spokesman for the cause. One of Doyle's last literary efforts, this work traces the history of spiritualism through the early 20th century, and includes profiles of such prominent spiritualists as Emmanuel Swedenborg, Edward Irving, D. D. Home, Sir William Crookes, and Eusapia Palladino. Best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) dedicated himself to the cause of spiritualism in later life. His passion for the paranormal led Doyle to such excesses as the ill-advised endorsement of Elsie Wright's and Frances Griffith's clumsily faked photographs of the "Cottingley fairies" in 1922.