Lady Sheba--Jessie Wicker Bell--Knott County's Other Major Writer

Ever since I was old enough to understand who Albert Stewart, James Still, and William Howard Cohen were, I have been entranced by, consumed in, and a student of the literature of my native Knott County Kentucky.  In the time I have studied that literature, Verna Mae Slone came to national prominence, a couple of other Knott County natives published lesser books,  and I have been published in a variety of genres including fiction, poetry, non-fiction, Appalachian Studies, and mental health practice.  But about a month or two ago, while searching some Knott County history and genealogy, I stumbled across a major writer from Knott County whose name I had never heard mentioned in my entire life. 

Jessie Wicker Bell--Lady Sheba Photo by Amanda JH

While perusing the pages of the website Find A Grave to which I make volunteer contributions  regularly, I found the memorial page of Jessie Wicker Bell, known professionally as Lady Sheba. Jessie Wicker Bell was born and raised in Mousie, KY, where my father and his family were raised and most of them are buried.  As a child, we sometimes attended church at Ball Branch Regular Baptist Church, visited the graveyards around Mousie where my ancestors and other relatives are buried, passed through Mousie on most of our trips to the county seat of Hindman, and nary a word did I ever hear about a writer named Jessie Wicker Bell or Lady Sheba who was raised in Mousie.  Jessie Wicker Bell was born in Mousie on July 18, 1920, and died in Brown County Ohio on March 20, 2002.  I am also familiar with Brown County Ohio and have some Amish friends in the area.  But the name of Jessie Wicker Bell never crossed my attention span until two months ago when I found her on Find A Grave.  

Now that I have raised your attention level, I will explain why Jessie Wicker Bell, Lady Sheba, a nationally recognized writer from Knott County Kentucky, born, raised, and with her ashes scattered there in the Wicker Family Cemetery, was never mentioned in any discussion in which I ever took part about the literature of Knott County.  Jessie Wicker Bell, Lady Sheba, was a Wiccan, a witch, a writer, in fact the first important writer of Wiccan Literature.  Her book, "The Book Of Shadows", is a classic among the literature of Wiccans.  It is the first major work of Wiccan literature published in America because in the period before Jessie Wicker Bell came to prominence Wiccans passed down all their coven teachings orally.  In fact, Jessie Wicker Bell was ostracized by some Wiccans because she put Wiccan teachings in writing.  In all, she published three books, "The Book Of Shadows", "The Witches Work Book", and "The Grimoire Of Lady Sheba".  It is difficult to see just how many editions of her various books have been published. All of her books appear to be available on a regular basis on most Internet used book sites. If I am in error, please leave a comment with documentation in the comments section.

Now let me address the most likely objection which I will hear about because I wrote this post.  Many of you who subscribe to more traditional religions, whether those religions are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist, are likely to object strenuously about this blog post based on your own religious convictions.  You are entitled to believe anything you wish to believe in your own search for religion or spirituality.  So was Jessie Wicker Bell, Lady Sheba, and any other person in America.  The US Constitution guarantees every person in America the right to Freedom Of Religion and further guarantees Separation Of Church And State.  Get used to it!  Support it!.  And, if you cannot accept and support religious freedom and separation of church and state, buy a copy of the US Constitution, read it until you actually understand it, and do not speak out about constitutional issues until you do understand it.  Also, rest assured, I am not a Wiccan.  I am an American Citizen who was raised in a home where the US Constitution was understood and supported.  I hope you were too.

Jessie Wicker Bell, Lady Sheba, claimed that she was the 7th generation of her family to practice witchcraft and that she learned it from her elders.  Today, based on recent research, most of her relatives in the extended family claim to be members of some form of Christian religion, usually Baptist.  Most of them seem dedicated to ignoring the achievements of their relative as a writer.  She also founded the first national organization of practicing Wiccans.  She incorporated the American Order Of The Brotherhood Of Wicca on August 13, 1971.  Her personal achievements both as a writer and a public figure are worthy of recognition.  Knott County, which in recent years has sought every tourism dollar it can grab, is passing up many dollars in Wiccan based tourism arising from the fact that one of the most important figure in Wicca grew up in Knott County.  Her ashes were also scattered, mixed with the ashes of a copy of her "Grimoire" in the Wicker Cemetery in her native Mousie, KY.  If you are a student of the literature of Knott County Kentucky, your study is not complete unless you have read the books written by Lady Sheba. 

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Addendum: September 25, 2019
Recently, due to having been contacted by one of the children of Lady Sheba, I learned that I had actually known one of her sons, Jerry Osborn, who was killed in Viet Nam.  Jerry's paternal grandmother, Alafair Sparkman, had rented a small house from my parents when I was a child.   In the summer after he graduated from high school in Ohio, Jerry came to Dema, Kentucky, and spent a month or so with his grandmother and I saw him daily during that time before he was mustered into the US Army from which he would never return.  As I have heard the story since, Jerry was a door gunner on a helicopter and was killed when his tour of duty was almost over.  I have looked for and found his name on the Viet Nam Memorial in Washington, DC.  I do not remember that he ever mentioned his mother, Lady Sheba, that summer or that I ever heard anything about her at all in my childhood.  I do not know if she was living in Knott County at that time or in Ohio where she later died.  But after I posted this article, two of Lady Sheba's other children left comments on this blog post below and both seem to have appreciated the fact that I had chosen to write about their mother in a respectful manner and to speak out in support of the constitutionally guaranteed freedom of religion in this post.