Hett Art Gallery and Museum part 2

Forty-seven Years

Angel M. Villamil, Puerto Rican psychic artist making a special trip to Chesterfield for the dedication, personally supervised his own exhibit of three exquisite paintings.

Other distinguished visitors, Dr. and Mrs. R.B. Bishop, Kansas City, Missouri, were present. Dr. Bishop donated the three extremely rare psychic paintings done by the Bangs Sisters.

The colorful dedicatory program was followed immediately by opening the glittering glass doors to the public. The crowds were then able to closely inspect and enjoy the beauty and meaningful history of the numerous exhibits.

To describe all the contents of the expansive structure would be to do no less than compile and lengthy catalog of the mementoes of Spiritualism. The highlights of the many hundreds of items of rare possessions of the new gallery and museum include such things as…but let the visitor start at the beginning.

After entering the cool confines of the gallery through the swinging glass doors of the modernistic entrance, the visitor is greeted by a bronze plaque, donated by Frances and Joe Haney of Odessa, Texas. This bronze message reads: “Mable Riffle—47 years of service, 1955” and followed below by an alphabetical listing of names of mediums officially associated with the Chesterfield Camp during the past half century. A star is placed after the mediums in the following list who have passed away.

Dr. J.E. Hett Art Gallery Dedicated at Chesterfield Spiritualist Camp

Said to be the finest Spiritualist edifice of its kind in the world.

ONE of the highlights of this summer’s annual season at the Chesterfield Spiritualist Camp was the ceremony of dedication of the recently completed Dr. J.E. Hett Art Gallery.

This special ceremony, August 31st, was under the direction of the Rev. Clifford L. Bias, St. Petersburg, Florida.

One of the many imaginative and beautiful structures, the new art gallery stands as a graceful fusing of stone, steel and glass near the Western Hotel. The gallery building, designed by Arthur B. Henning, encircles an area of 200 by 75 feet, divided more or less equally between three large rooms, connected by a unique glass corridor arrangement.

Dr. J.E. Hett, principal contributor to the cost of erecting this colorful and elaborate gallery, attended the ceremony. He was accompanied here for the event by a host of his Canadian friends. The doctor hails from Windsor, across the river from Detroit, Mich., and is widely known throughout Canada for his searching experiments along highly specialized lines, particularly in the field of cancer research.

[Editor’s Note: The following article appeared in the September 25, 1955 issue of the Spiritualist publication, The Psychic Observer.]

Riffle and Pressing

The job of acquiring and arranging the numerous paintings, sketches and other treasured mementoes in the field of Spiritualism, the Rev Mrs. Riffle was ably assisted by Juliette Ewing Pressing, and many of Chesterfield’s staff mediums. Due to her wide and full acquaintanceship in the field of Spiritualism not only in America, but in England as well, Mrs. Pressing brought considerable and valuable help to the opening of the gallery.

Among notables present for the event: John Meyers, New York City, internationally-known psychic photographer. He was in charge of his own exhibit during his brief visit here with several of his friends. This showing consisted of several interesting mementoes in the field of his interest, which includes the camera used when he presented demonstrations of psychic phenomena in London and New York City.

Lest We Forget

The list includes: Marjorie Alexander (*), Mildred Schultz Austin, Mamie Bader (*), Edward Bailey (*), Lizzie and May Bangs (**), Mrs. Bart Bartlett (*), Mary Langley Beattie (*), Miss S.B. Bennett (*), Clifford L. Bias, Emily Blake (*), Etta S. Bledsoe (*), Gloria Taber-Braxton, Anna Brison, Bernice Brock, Goldie Brown (*), John H. Bunker, H. Gordon Burroughs, Evyline Burnsides (*), Bertie Lilly Candler, Emma Carpenter (*), William H. Cecil (*), Nina Challen (*), May Bute Chamberlain, Earlyne Chaney, Robert G. Chaney, Corenne Clark (*), B.F. Clark, Dollie Clark (*), E. Colvin (*), Pansy Cox, Lyda Crain (*), Pearl Crain, Anna Dennis (*), Mary Dewey (*), Ola Dewitt (*), Franchion Harwood Dorsch, Blanche Edwards (*), Myrtle Engle (*), Fred L. Felix, Brodie Felix, Maud Fox (*), Bell Fuller (*), Cecilia Gettins (*), Anna Gleason (*), Nellie Goddard (*), Lydia Gomia (*), Matilda Grunwald (*), Herbert Habig (*), Clara Metcalf Haines, Bertha Hamilton (*), Grace handel (*), Madge Hart, William E. Hart (*), Florence Hedrick (*), Delbert Herrick (*), Mae Hibbs (*), Elsie Fishburn Hicks, Fannie Conrad Hicks (*), Nellie Curry Hicock, Dorothy Hiett, Albert Hogle (*), Mabel Horton, Sarah Hugi Todd (*), Mary Jennings (*), W.C. Jessup (*), Lillian Dee Johnson, Mrs. J.B. Johnson (*), Nettie Nichols Johnson (*), J.R. Klausser (*), James Laughton, Clara Knost Larrick (*), Paul Leach, Leopold Lee (*), Thomas Lee (*), Mrs. Lynn Legett (*), Mary Murphy Lydy (*), A.E. MacBeth (*), Edward Mackey, Lillian Martz (*), Ida McDaniels (*), Dr. D.W. Medcalfe (*), Kate Mendenhall (*), Ben Nevison, Marion Nevison, A. Norman (*), Ethel Post Parrish, Minnie Reichart Pederson, , Sarah Pierce (*), Mrs. C. Piner (*), Juliette Ewing Pressing, Laura M. Pruden (*), Dollie Rasch (*), Clara Riedell (*), Mable Riffle, Loretta Schmitt, Mamie B. Schultz, Lytle Sensabaugh, Sylvia Schafer (*), Fay Shiner (*), Millie Siglar (*), Beatrice Smith (*), Sherman Smith (*), Nellie Steffen, Elizabeth Stephens (*), Josie K. Folsom-Stewart, Edith Stillwell, Elton Edricks Stouder, Anna Strong (*), Lena Strock (*), Charles Swann, Lula Taber, Harold Taber, Maina Tafe, Charlotte Taggert (*), Anna Thronsden, Marian Carpenter Vail, Maggie Vestal (*), Maggie Waite (*), Austin D. Wallace, Ruth L. Walling, Homer W. Watkins, Karl Williams (*), May Williams (*), Nellie Williams and Bessie Woodworth (*).

The Fox Relics

The impressive and interesting factors of the unusual gallery become obvious to the visitors as he leaves the plaque and glances to the left to see a life-size photographic enlargement of the statue “Hope,” donated by C.M. Nancy Hanks, Detroit, Mich. On entering the center room of the gallery, the dominating thing here is the life-size statue of “The Madonna,” which properly sets the mood for the entire building and its contents…and purposes.

In this center room is located, in three parts, the noted Fox exhibit. This exhibit has high and critical meaning for Modern Spiritualism. This exhibit consists of many personal effects of three world-noted Fox sisters, Leah, Marguerite and Katie, who were identified with the psychic field when as young girls, they were constantly accompanied by sharp and instant rappings. This was in their father’s home, John Fox, in Hydesville, New York, more than a century ago.

These exhibits were loaned for a limited time by Miriam Buckner Pond of Hudson, Ohio—a direct descendent of the noted Fox sisters.

Included in this room, as well as elsewhere in the building are rare and excellent examples of precipitated paintings. Aside from their deep meaning to Spiritualism, they still retain their interest as examples of fine art.