Princess Mysteria

Princess Mysteria
Born	Vauleda Hill 1888
Died	March 14 1930 Chicago, IL
Resting place	Lincoln Cemetery, Chicago, IL
Flourished	1910s-1920s

Princess Mysteria(1888-1930), was the most famous African American mentalist of her time.

Biography

According to the official story, Princess Mysteria was born in India and that by the age of six was able to answer questions before they were asked. At the age of fourteen, so the story goes, she was bestowed with the title of Princess by the Rajah of Bengal. The Princess actually spent her childhood in the Kansas City, Missouri area. Claiming to be Hindu, Vauleda Hill took the name Princess Mysteria and along with her husband, Al Strodder, Prince Mysteria, they toured the country with their two person telepathy act playing before packed houses and to rave reviews. They were known for their ability of drawing crowds to such an extent that they would play two or even three successive weeks in the same theater. The Princess, dressed in Hindu garb, would sit on the stage, while the Prince, in formal evening clothes, would walk amongst the crowd. Questions that were whispered to the Prince by an audience member would then be instantly answered by the Princess.

Said to be the equal of Anna Eva Fay, Princess Mysteria was so popular among the African American community that she was given her own column, "Advice to the Wise and Otherwise" in The Chicago Defender, a nationally distributed black weekly newspaper. The column ran for ten years until the Princess' death in 1930

References

1. "Princess Mysteria Pens Last 'Advice To The Wise'", The Chicago Defender, 3/22/1930, pg. 1

2. O'Neal, Charles, "In Old Kaysee", The Chicago Defender, 12/11/1926, pg. 7

3. "Additional Stage News: Princess Mysteria Co.", The Chicago Defender, 9/21/1918, pg. 7