The exorcism of Anna Ecklund stands as one of the most infamous and well-documented cases of alleged demonic possession in American history, steeped in paranormal phenomena that continue to captivate and unsettle those who study the supernatural.
Anna Ecklund was a pseudonym for Emma Schmidt, a woman born on 23 March 1882, whose life was reportedly plagued by otherworldly torment from the age of fourteen until her dramatic and prolonged exorcism in 1928. Conducted in Earling, Iowa, under the guidance of Father Theophilus Riesinger, a German-born Capuchin priest, this case has been celebrated by some as a triumph of faith over evil, while others view it sceptically as a product of psychological distress or religious hysteria. Regardless of one’s perspective, the paranormal events reported during Ecklund’s ordeal remain a cornerstone of 20th-century supernatural lore.
Ecklund’s troubles reportedly began in her adolescence, around 1896, when she started exhibiting signs that her family and local clergy interpreted as possession. Born into a Catholic household in Wisconsin most likely Marathon, a German Catholic enclave, though some accounts suggest Milwaukee. She was raised in a devout environment. Yet, by fourteen, she displayed an intense aversion to religious objects and places. Holy water, crucifixes, and churches themselves provoked violent reactions, including an inability to enter sacred spaces without overwhelming distress. She was said to experience “disturbed” thoughts, often of a sexual nature, which she could not control, a detail later emphasised in accounts as evidence of demonic influence. These symptoms persisted despite a first exorcism in 1912, performed by Father Riesinger in Milwaukee, which included similar aversions and was initially deemed successful but failed to provide lasting relief.
The roots of Ecklund’s alleged possession were tied to a dark family history. According to narratives, her father, Jacob, and his lover, her aunt Mina, played sinister roles. Jacob reportedly made incestuous advances towards Anna, which she rejected, prompting him to curse her with the aid of Mina, who was rumoured to be a witch. Mina allegedly laced Anna’s food with cursed herbs, deepening the supposed supernatural hold over her. Whether these claims reflect literal truth or symbolic interpretations of trauma, they set the stage for the extraordinary events of 1928, when Ecklund, then forty-six, underwent her second, and most infamous, exorcism.
This exorcism, spanning from 18 August to 23 December 1928, was conducted in secrecy at a Franciscan convent in Earling, a small town chosen for its isolation. Father Riesinger, by then an experienced exorcist with a reputation as America’s “foremost mystic exorcist of demons” (as dubbed by Time magazine in 1936), led the ritual, assisted by Father Joseph Steiger and the convent’s nuns. From the moment Ecklund arrived, paranormal phenomena erupted. She reportedly sensed the blessing on food offered by the nuns and reacted with fury, refusing to eat it. Witnesses described her hissing like a cat, a sound that reverberated through the convent, and falling into fits of rage at the mere presence of holy water.
As the exorcism commenced, the reported events grew increasingly bizarre and terrifying. Ecklund’s body allegedly defied natural laws: she levitated off her bed, sometimes clinging to walls or hanging from doorframes in defiance of gravity. Her physical form contorted grotesquely, with her head, lips, and face swelling to unnatural proportions, at times described as resembling “an inverted water pitcher” or glowing “red as embers.” She vomited copiously, expelling foul-smelling substances, including what appeared to be tobacco leaves and spices, despite her refusal to eat. Her strength was said to be superhuman, requiring multiple nuns—sometimes up to six—to restrain her, even as she was bound to an iron bed. Some nuns fainted or fell ill from the strain, a testament to the ordeal’s toll.
Perhaps most chilling were the voices that emerged from Ecklund. She spoke in languages she had no prior knowledge of, including Latin, German, and English, in tones ranging from deep growls to a high falsetto attributed to Mina’s spirit. The entities claiming possession identified themselves as a host of malevolent figures: Beelzebub, Judas Iscariot, Jacob, and Mina. These demons allegedly taunted the priests and nuns, revealing personal sins or secrets about those present, a phenomenon known as clairvoyance in possession cases. The air filled with unbearable stenches, and hordes of flies and mosquitoes reportedly materialised and vanished without explanation, adding to the oppressive atmosphere.
The exorcism unfolded over three gruelling sessions: 18-26 August, 13-20 September, and 15-23 December. Each phase tested the endurance of all involved. Ecklund’s body deteriorated as she starved herself, surviving on minimal sustenance yet displaying relentless energy. Nuns, shaken by her violence and the relentless supernatural occurrences, requested transfers to other convents. Father Steiger, too, faced repercussions; after expressing doubts about continuing, he survived a near-fatal car accident—his vehicle striking a bridge—shortly afterward, which he attributed to demonic retaliation.
On 23 December 1928, after months of prayer and struggle, Riesinger commanded the demons to depart in the name of the Holy Trinity and the Virgin Mary. Ecklund collapsed, shrieking the names “Beelzebub, Judas, Jacob, Mina,” followed by cries of “Hell! Hell! Hell!” Then, in her own voice, she exclaimed, “My Jesus, Mercy! Praised be Jesus Christ!” This marked the end of the ordeal, with witnesses claiming the demons had been expelled. Afterwards, Ecklund reportedly experienced only “milder” possessions and lived quietly until her death in 1941, suggesting a partial reprieve.
The case’s legacy was cemented by Carl Vogl’s 1935 pamphlet “Begone, Satan!”, which detailed these events and inspired later works, including elements of William Peter Blatty’s The Exorcist. Published accounts, alongside a 1936 Time profile, made it a touchstone for paranormal enthusiasts, theologians, and American Catholic fascination with exorcism. Sceptics, however, point to alternative explanations: severe mental illness, such as schizophrenia or dissociative identity disorder, exacerbated by trauma and religious fervour. The lack of modern medical scrutiny leaves these theories speculative, yet the sheer volume of eyewitness testimony, including nuns, priests, and local residents, lends the story a haunting credibility.
