The Dagg Poltergeist of Shawville

The phenomena began at the farm of George and Susan Dagg, seven miles outside Shawville in Clarendon Township, Pontiac County, Quebec, on September 15, 1889. The household at the time consisted of George Dagg, his wife Susan, three children — Eliza (age 4), Mary (age 3), and baby John — and an eleven-year-old girl named Dinah Burden McLean, taken in by the family as a domestic helper. The case is unusual in poltergeist literature for the breadth of its phenomenology, the speed with which it escalated, and the willingness of an investigator from outside the family to engage with the case in front of multiple corroborating witnesses.

The disturbances began with small objects moving on their own and quickly progressed to physical manifestations of considerable intensity. Stones were thrown through the farm’s windows. A harmonica played without being touched. A water jug, a butter tub, and a wash basin moved through the air across the property. An empty rocking chair rocked rhythmically and unaided. Most strikingly, the case generated eight spontaneous fires in a single day, all of which occurred when Dinah was present in the house. The fires appeared without ignition source on bedding, curtains, and once on Dinah’s dress; they were extinguished by family members and never produced structural damage but recurred at intervals throughout that day.

The phenomenon’s distinguishing feature was its voice. Family members and neighbours heard a deep, gruff voice — described as that of an old man — that originated from no visible source, answered questions put to it, and conversed at length with anyone who addressed it. The voice was heard by all witnesses including the children. It claimed at various points to be a devil and at other points denied being a devil; it discussed local matters with apparent knowledge; it made threats and apologies in alternation. The phenomenon’s combination of poltergeist physical disturbance with sustained verbal communication is rare in the case literature and places the Dagg case alongside the Bell Witch as one of the two most-cited talking-poltergeist events of the nineteenth century.

The artist Percy Woodcock, a credentialled professional with practices in Ottawa, Montreal, New York, and Paris, was contacted by the family and spent three days at the farm in October 1889 as an investigator. Woodcock was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy and had no prior public association with paranormal investigation. He confirmed the disturbances under his direct observation and reported that the voice, on first contact, addressed him from inside the woodshed with the statement: “I am the devil; and I’ll have you in my clutches.” Woodcock subsequently obtained signed affidavits from seventeen family members and neighbours who had observed the phenomena, and these documents were preserved in the Ottawa and Montreal press of the period.

The phenomena reportedly ceased on November 17, 1889, after the entity announced it would be leaving. The Dagg case has been investigated by subsequent researchers including the Paranormal Studies and Inquiry Canada (PSICAN) team, which has interviewed descendants and reviewed the historical record. The case retains a place in the literature as one of the most thoroughly documented poltergeist events in Canadian history.

Documentation

• Percy Woodcock affidavits, October 1889 (17 signatures)
• Contemporary press coverage: Ottawa, Montreal periodicals
• PSICAN investigation files
• Witnesses: 17 named signatories
• Date range: September 15 — November 17, 1889
• Location: Dagg farm, Clarendon Township, Pontiac County, Quebec