The Spirit of Old Jeffery: John Wesley & The Epworth Poltergeist

Over the Christmas of 1716, during a time of political tension and uncertainty in England, strange events began to trouble Epworth Rectory. After nightfall, the home of Reverend Samuel Wesley was disturbed by unexplained sounds. Soft footsteps thumped in hallways, as dull thuds knocked on the  walls and door latches rattled in their housings. The Wesley family spoke cautiously of a presence they called Old Jeffrey, an unseen force that seemed intent on making itself known. Whether trick, imagination, or something darker, the disturbances unsettled the household for only a short time, but held a potential influence that would be felt centuries later, through the beliefs of the son, John Wesley, who would later go on to be a founding member of the Methodist church. SOURCES Southey, Robert (1904) The Life of John Wesley. Hutchinson & Co. London, UK. Tomkins, Stephen (2003) John Wesley: A Biography. Lion Books, Oxford, UK. Wesley, John (1784) The Haunting of Epworth Rectory: An Account of the Disturbances in my Father's House. The Arminian Magazine, No.7, 1784, London, UK. ------ For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at ⁠⁠⁠⁠darkhistories.com ⁠⁠⁠⁠ Support the show by visiting our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://author.to/darkhistories⁠⁠⁠⁠ Dark Histories merch is available here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/3GChjk9⁠⁠⁠⁠ Connect with us on Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ Or find us on Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://twitter.com/darkhistories⁠⁠⁠⁠ & Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Or you can contact us directly via email at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[e-mail]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or join our Discord community: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017 Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices