William Mumler Back to: Spirit Photography
is that the rise of Spiritualism, the belief in spirits existing with and around the living, was on the rise and becoming a religion of sorts, itself. Spiritualists were all too eager to welcome proof of their claims which could be found in Mumler's photography.
William Mumler's work is intriguing, as he allowed many skeptics as well as photograph experts to fully examine his process from start to finish, including his equipment. No one was ever able to figure out how Mumler created his spirit photographs, as all of the known techniques of the day for creating similar apparitions were apparently not being employed by Mumler. However, his fraud trial was brought about after some of Mumler's ghosts were purportedly found to be living people, coupled with accusations swirling about that Mumler had broken into residences to steal photographs of deceased loved ones. These accusations coupled with others' ability to produce spirit photographs that looked similar, made William Mumler's work seem dubious. Mumler was eventually acquitted of the fraud charge, due to lack of proof of the claims against him; but the career of William Mumler was in effect ruined and he later died in poverty. Still, William Mumler was never proven a fraud, and this is remarkable given the number of photographic experts who examined his spirit photography from start to finish. Even using others' cameras, plates and chemicals, Mumler was able to produce spirits in photographs.
Recommended reading: The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer by Louis Kaplan. This fine book includes William Mumler's biography, news coverage from the day, and numerous photographs by Mumler. It is a wonderful book that presents all information with his story.
Below are some spirit photographs atrributed to William H. Mumler: