The Bell Witch: The Full Account Read Online Free PDF Page A

planters’ crops in the
    area that year, Bell’s cotton, tobacco, and corn crops
    failed. The financial impact of this crop failure forced
    Bell to sell several slaves in order to have money to
    live on until the next crop season. Between crop
    seasons, John and Lucy Bell had more bad luck –
    the mules died of colic, and the cows and hogs
    became sick with an incurable disease. Bell was
    forced to sell even more slaves, keeping only a few for
    the next crop season.
    Money was now a major concern for the Bells, as
    were several buildings on the farm that were in bad
    need of repair. To that end, the Bells’ future and
    livelihood depended solely on the next crop season.
    Despite fervid prayer and much hard work, the crop
    season once again failed miserably.
    Against his will, Bell decided to sell the farm to
    another planter, William Rawls, and move to the new
    land in the west and start over. 8 This was no easy
    decision, especially for a man of Bell’s strong pride
    and character.

    7 Source does not wish to be disclosed.
    8 Halifax County, North Carolina, Deed Book 19 , p.164.

    THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
    27
    The Bells Leave North Carolina
    Over the years leading up to the farm’s downfall,
    John and Lucy Bell received letters from many
    friends who had moved to the western lands from
    North Carolina. Several of these families, such as
    the Forts and Gunns, settled in middle Tennessee
    near the Red River at the edge of an area known as
    the “Barren Plains.” In their letters, they described
    this land as being the most beautiful and fertile land
    anywhere, yielding plentiful returns for the many
    families who emigrated from the east.
    Elias Fort had been a clerk with the Tar River
    Association, a religious advocacy group in North
    Carolina that included John and Lucy Bell’s church.
    Soon after arriving in the new land, Fort and two
    other clergymen successfully started a Baptist
    church in the Red River area. Given the opportunity
    to be reunited with old friends, and to start a new
    farm in an area known for its fertility, John and Lucy
    Bell decided to move their family to this land.
    In the winter of 1803-1804, John Bell and his
    family set out across the mountains of North
    Carolina and east Tennessee, on their way to middle
    Tennessee. They settled in the Red River bottomland
    area, located in what is now the western end of
    Robertson County, Tennessee. The travel party was
    large, consisting of John and Lucy Bell, and their
    children, Jesse, John Jr., Drewry, Esther, and
    Zadok.
    Along with their family, John and Lucy Bell
    brought several slaves, including a woman named
    Chloe and her son, Dean. Dean played a big role in
    getting the Bell family from North Carolina to
    Tennessee safely, and later became the most
    valuable slave on the Bell plantation.

    28 P A T
    F I T Z H U G H
    CHAPTER TWO
    The Bells’ New Home
    T HE BELLS PURCHASED 220 ACRES of land
    bordering the south side of the Red River
    from William Crawford, an earlier settler. 9
    On the property was a double-log, weather boarded
    house with six large and comfortable rooms. The
    house stood about 100 yards down a fenced lane,
    which led to the Brown's Ford and Springfield Road.
    It was one of the finest farms in the community at
    the time, boasting a large pear orchard in the back
    and several pear trees on the front lawn. The well
    was about 100 yards north of the house, and the
    family cemetery was located atop a cedar-covered hill
    about 300 yards to the northwest. Several large
    fields had been cleared before the Bells moved to the
    area, beyond which were dense forests that
    flourished with wild plants and berries, deer, rabbits
    and other animals.

    9 Robertson County, Tennessee, Deed Book E , p. 126.

    THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
    29
    The Red River Community
    Thought by many to be the prettiest stream in the
    country, nearby Red River abounded with game fish
    and carried the beautiful and melodic sounds of
    swirls and ripples.