Accession GA270 - Thomas Lacey séance collection.

GA270-1_001b GA270-1_001a GA270-2_001a GA270-2_001b GA270-131_001a

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

Thomas Lacey séance collection.

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Title notes

  • Source of title proper: Title from content of collection.

Level of description

Accession

Reference code

SCA258-GA270

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Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

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Physical description area

Physical description

154 audio reels (404 hrs., 37 min., 12 sec.)
55 audio cassettes
7 cm of textual records

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Archival description area

Name of creator

(1895-1966)

Biographical history

Thomas Lacey, a trance and direct voice medium, was born in Glossop, Derbyshire England on November 4, 1895.

Thomas married Edith Emma Lomas on March 18, 1918 in Whitfield. Edith was born in Whitfield, Derbyshire England on September 28, 1895.

Thomas and Edith immigrated to Canada in March 1923 and April 1924 respectively. Thomas worked as a mechanical engineer at companies including Dominion Rubber and Sutherland and Schultz.

Records of Thomas conducting séances in the Kitchener-Waterloo region begin in 1924. Edith, although not a medium, was an active participant in the séances. Thomas and Edith moved to Hamilton in the 1950s before returning to Kitchener-Waterloo in the 1960's. The séances recorded in the 1960s were held in the home of Otto and Nelda Smith in Kitchener. Otto Smith, a local businessman, played the organ at St. Matthews Lutheran Church in Kitchener and his organ playing can be heard throughout the séances.

Thomas and the séance sitters believed his main control during the 1960s was a spirit named Amirah and they maintained that his younger brother Walter, who died at a young age, acted as his gate keeper. Thomas Lacey purportedly channeled the spirits of Thomas Edison, Emmanuel Swedenborg, and John Wesley, amongst others. Sitters at the séances were said to have experienced apports, materializations, and automatic writing. One séance recording also contains what is believed to be an example of Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP).

The séances fall into three general categorizations: Masters Night when philosophical discussions took place; Visiting Night when spirits of friends and family were welcomed; and Rescue Night when the sitters would help spirits who had not crossed over the veil to do so.

Thomas Lacey died on June 17, 1966 at age 70. Edith Lacey died in 1993 at age 97. Thomas and Edith Lacey were buried in Parkview Cemetery, Waterloo, Ontario.

Custodial history

Scope and content

Audio reel recordings of séances held under the supervision of medium Thomas Lacey as well as other events, messages, and music. The séances were held primarily in Kitchener and Waterloo, Ontario although some were held in other areas in Ontario and the Unites States of America. Prior to donation, some of the reels were transferred to audio cassettes. The audio cassettes are also included in the collection. Also includes a cue card index to the séances and a notebook listing séances held at 362 Frederick St. in Kitchener, Ontario.

Notes area

Physical condition

Immediate source of acquisition

Donated by Stanley McMullin in 2015.

Arrangement

Tapes were arranged by title given on the box.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

Location of originals

Availability of other formats

All of the audio reel recordings are digitized and access copies are available for research purposes. Transcriptions are available for some recordings.

Restrictions on access

Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

Special Collections & Archives does not hold copyright to this collection. The material in this collection is available for research purposes only. Researchers are responsible for obtaining necessary reuse permissions.

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General note

All names and spellings have been preserved as originally written on the audio reel boxes which may include outdated, racist or otherwise harmful language. In addition, some audio reel recordings contains racist stereotypes and language that is outdated, racist or otherwise harmful. This has been flagged in files 1, 2, 3, 7, 11, 32, 65, 73, 90, 96, 97, 101, and 119 in keeping with Special Collections & Archives' approach to language in archival descriptions, which prioritizes speaking openly about and clearly identifying problematic, harmful, and otherwise offensive records in the department’s holdings. This approach, while potentially upsetting, allows for the critical assessment and questioning of historical material by contemporary researchers.

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Dates of creation, revision and deletion

Described by JB in 2015.
Revised by NM in 2024.

Language of description

  • English

Script of description

Sources

Accession area