The Séance Glow Was Chemistry, and the Chemistry Was Toxic
White phosphorus, also called yellow phosphorus, gives off a faint light as it slowly reacts with oxygen in the air. The effect is chemiluminescence—light from a chemical reaction, not evidence of supernatural energy. Phosphorus is not a safe chemical: it is toxic if swallowed, and inhaling its fumes can also be harmful.
In November 1857, at a séance in Jersey City, the medium Leah Brown claimed her body produced luminous particles. The next evening, particles found in soil where she had pressed her hands were identified as phosphorus. Brown admitted the phosphorus was there but insisted her body had produced it.
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The clever part is the alibi: Brown could concede the material was phosphorus while keeping the supernatural explanation. Admitting a chemical was present is not the same as admitting the whole act was fraud.
But the line between fraud and belief gets blurry. In 1874, the chemist William Crookes investigated self-luminous objects at séances, and he did not dismiss spiritualism as a complete hoax; his writings suggest science and spiritualism sometimes overlapped.