Rod Men of Vermont

Ask a dowsing question, tell us your gossip, chat etc. here!
Post Reply
Paul Mellor
Beginner
Beginner
Posts: 56
Joined: Mon Jun 11, 2007 9:17 pm
Location: Derbyshire

Rod Men of Vermont

Post by Paul Mellor »

Found this interesting tale on a folklore blog I think this is in Sigs neck of the woods.

http://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/ ... rmont.html
Paul Mellor
simonwheeler
Copper Supporter
Copper Supporter
Proficient
Proficient
Posts: 1001
Joined: Sat Nov 13, 2004 7:22 pm
Location: Wigtown, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by simonwheeler »

I like that these two are consecutive:
# Tell young women their clothes had the Devil in them, and should be removed
# Receive messages from God
:lol:
Don’t be so open-minded that your brains fall out. LAWRENCE FERLINGHETTI

www.simongordonwheeler.co.uk

Simon
Ian Pegler
Expert
Expert
Posts: 2824
Joined: Fri Sep 17, 2004 12:04 pm
Location: Borth, Mid Wales

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by Ian Pegler »

I wrote an article about this once, it was published in Dowsing Today, Sept. 2003. I believe the ASD published it as well but I don't know when. It was called Vermont Dowsing Roots. It's not online anymore but I can email it to you if you're interested.

This Winchell character was friendly with Joseph Smith senior, father of Joseph Smith who started the Latter Day Saints (Mormons). MIddletown is not far from Poultney, where you had a large concentration of slate miners who had emigrated from North Wales.

There seems to have been a bit of steel industry around Danville, and that requires anthracite coal - more Welsh miners!

There seem to have been multiple historical strands which all go to help explain why Vermont has become a hotspot for dowsing - the Rodsmen of Middletown were one of them.

Ian
mike
Gold Supporter
Gold Supporter
Professional
Professional
Posts: 4824
Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:46 pm
Location: Bedworth

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by mike »

Faith can move mountains, AND dig big holes !! Might have a sniff around on Google Earth tonight,not that you would get me down that hole,not with my back. :lol:
mike
Gold Supporter
Gold Supporter
Professional
Professional
Posts: 4824
Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:46 pm
Location: Bedworth

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by mike »

Looked around the Dungeon Rock hole and cannot find anything of interest at any depth, but near/close to Lynn Reservation is something buried at 3 feet I find interesting, this position is between the Saugus River and Dungeons Rock,not a great distance but perhaps trying to carry a heavy chest might have at the time took some doing.Its again interesting that the date for the chest to be buried was 400 years ago, and when I double checked the story the pirates arrived about that time, give or take 30-40 years....There she blows me Hearties...
Ian Pegler
Expert
Expert
Posts: 2824
Joined: Fri Sep 17, 2004 12:04 pm
Location: Borth, Mid Wales

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by Ian Pegler »

There seem to have been multiple historical strands which all go to help explain why Vermont has become a hotspot for dowsing - the Rodsmen of Middletown were one of them.
Other threads:-

* Abenaki Indian divining tradition.

* Renewed interest in spas, mineral springs and the hotel trade, which was boosted by the railways.

Ian
User avatar
Bonnie
Novice
Novice
Posts: 141
Joined: Fri Jul 02, 2010 9:09 pm
Location: Southwest Colorado, USA

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by Bonnie »

Has anyone here read The Centurion by Jan de Hartog? This is an out-of-print, semi-autobiographical novel in which the protagonist (Martinus Harinxma, who was the lead character in two previous works by the author) discovers that he has a gift for dowsing when - out of boredom on a road trip, and at the insistence of his wife - he attends lectures at the annual convention of the American Society of Dowsers in Danville, Vermont. The novel details his subsequent engagement with periods and persons in history, unfolding in the most wonderful ways. I won't divulge more of the plot, as that would spoil the experience for first-time readers; suffice it to say that I've read the book five times and purchased copies for several dowsing friends, who were equally enthralled. The Centurion was central to my own discovery of dowsing, and has been a touchstone ever since. I wish that de Hartog had lived long enough to write more about his personal experiences with dowsing.

I realize that this is somewhat peripheral to the topic of this thread, but since we are talking about dowsing in Vermont, I thought it was a good opportunity to raise the subject. For anyone who is interested in reading the book, used copies can be obtained at reasonable prices through Amazon UK - here is a link.
User avatar
Grahame
Site Admin
Site Admin
Proficient
Proficient
Posts: 1472
Joined: Wed Jul 28, 2004 5:52 pm
Location: Glasgow, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by Grahame »

Resurrecting an old thread here, but I just came across this fascinating archive of period articles about Joseph Smith and the Rodsmen (now there's a good band name!). According to the reports, it seems that young Mr. Smith was a bit of a shady character.

I particularly like this quote:
" Young Joseph became by degrees very much skilled in the arts of necromancy and juggling. He had the power of using the diving rod and of discovering wonders in a peep-stone; and having had the address to collect about him a gang of idle and credulous young men, he employed them in digging for hidden treasures.... "

or:

"Smith and his father were persons of doubtful moral character, addicted to disreputable habits, and moreover extremely superstitious, believing in the existence of witchcraft. They at one time procured a mineral rod, and dug in various places for money. Smith testified that when digging he had seen the pot or chest containing the treasure, but never was fortunate enough to get it into his hands... "

Here's the site - there's a lot of great historical information here: http://olivercowdery.com/smithhome/smithrod.htm
Grahame
The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it - Terry Pratchett.
mike
Gold Supporter
Gold Supporter
Professional
Professional
Posts: 4824
Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:46 pm
Location: Bedworth

Re: Rod Men of Vermont

Post by mike »

Revised the position of the chest today, its more to the west of the Dungeon Rock position and five feet deep not three, but still an interesting story, and where there is smoke there could be fire.And think about it, what better reason to learn to dowse than hearing some pirate had buried treasure in or close to Dungeon Rock.And with a lot of the locals being from the old country many would be able to dowse already, well thats my thinking. :lol:
Post Reply