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Reel 80.
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Physical description
1 audio reel (2 hrs., 34 min., 24 sec.)
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Archival description area
Name of creator
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
One audio reel recording of séances held under the supervision of medium Thomas Lacey. A handwritten note on the original audio reel box provides the following descriptions for each side of the reel:
Side 1. Rescue Wed. June 30, 1965. Music; Amira - opens meeting; Jus Ross Regas - lost on place to Lisbon, was wealthy rancher, wanted to pay us for help; John Clarke - pilot of plane that crashed; David Stevenson - killed by polar bear while north with Esquimose [Eskimo]; Bertram - closes meeting.
Side 2. Visiting June 17, 1965. Music; Amira - opens meeting; Mr. Smith - with usual greetings to O.G. Smith; Happy Wolf - to Garnet; Mrs. Schultz - to Garnet and all; Mrs. Massel - speaks to Charlie; Mrs. Heap's grandpa - to Mrs. Heap; Mr. Heap's father - to Mr. Heap; Nelda - speaks to some length about rescue activities; Ma Clemmer - to Mr. O.G. Smith; Dr. Hoffman - to Garnet; Dr. Hall - speaks to Charlie; Bertram - closes meeting.
Notes area
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Donated by Stanley McMullin in 2015.
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- English
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This audio reel was digitized in 2022 and access copies are available for research purposes. Transcription not available.
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General note
This audio reel recording contains the term Eskimo. “Eskimo” is an outdated and pejorative term used historically to refer to Indigenous peoples who inhabit the Arctic. In Canada these peoples are known as the Inuit. The use of the term in the Scope and content note has been maintained 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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The dates listed in the handwritten note on the original audio reel box differ from the dates cited in the audio recording. Subsequently, it is possible that the subjects listed in the note are incorrect.
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Described by JB in 2015.
Revised by NM in 2024.
Language of description
- English