Lectures
Whether you’re looking to make Christmas creepy again, interested in sharing women’s history, or want to bring the Traveling Museum of Memento Mori to your establishment, you can choose from these pre-made presentations for your event! Also available is our most popular option: 5 Haunted Locations Near You, which is personalized just for your event.
Have an idea for a presentation but don't see it on the list? Reach out and we can create something for you!
Prices shown are the starting point and an additional cost will be added based on travel time.
The Art of Grieving
With the death of her husband, Queen Victoria spent the rest of her life in deep mourning, and the Victorians followed her lead! Get to know some of the strange and unusual funeral and mourning customs practiced by those in the 19th and early 20th Century. From clothing requirements to postmortem photography and even jewelry made from human hair, guests will get to see just how obsessed the Victorians were with death (and what we can learn from them). Copies of The Art of Grieving: The Beauty Behind Victorian Mourning Customs will be available for purchase.
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Starts at $80
A Very Frightful Victorian Christmas
Charles Dickens wasn’t the only one to write a Christmas ghost story! Learn why the Victorians loved to tell ghost stories on Christmas Eve and why the tradition gradually fell away throughout the 20th Century. Then, hear an actual ghost story written in the 1800s. Available for purchase will be Amanda's A Very Frightful Victorian Christmas, filled with twelve Victorian ghost stories and six traditional recipes guaranteed to help make Christmas creepy again!
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Starts at $80
Unlocking the Secrets of Cemetery Symbolism
Have you ever found yourself wandering through a cemetery, wondering if the stones had a story to tell? Join local author and dark historian Amanda R. Woomer as she reveals the meaning of the symbols carved on graves and what they mean for the individual buried there. From flowers to animals and hands to chains, you'll learn how to decipher the unspoken stories hidden on graves. Copies of her books A Mortal's Guide to Cemeteries and A Child's Guide to Cemeteries will be available for purchase.
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Starts at $80
The Spiritualists & The Suffragists
Learn a brief history of the Spiritualist Movement (which started right here in Western New York!), the Fox Sisters (pictured here), and the evolution of mediumship as the 19th Century transformed into the 20th Century. We’ll look at how physical mediumship was a viable job for women in a time when opportunities were scarce and how the Spiritualist Movement connected to the Suffragist and Women’s Rights Movement. Guests will also get to see an authentic spirit trumpet used during a seance!
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Starts at $80
Women in the Paranormal
Women have been part of the paranormal since the beginning… so why does no one know their names? Get to know some of the ladies who helped found paranormal research and investigation as we know it today, including Catherine Crowe and Eleanor Sidgwick (pictured here) of the 19th Century, the creator of the modern-day tarot deck, and Lorraine Warren of The Conjuring fame. Available for purchase will be volumes of The Feminine Macabre, the all-female paranormal journal started by Amanda.
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Starts at $80
The Sexuality of Vampires
They're some of the sexiest monsters in literature and cinema, from Count Dracula to Edward Cullen. But the history of the vampire is ancient and surprisingly feminine. Get to know the history of vampires from mythology and folklore to 18th and 19th Century literature and the monsters that have graced the silver screen in the 20th Century. Then, dive into the world of real vampires with cases of women accused of being vampires after their deaths. Available for purchase will be copies of Pocket-Sized Terrors: Vampires.
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Starts at $80
Harlots & Hauntings
It’s said to be “the world’s oldest profession,” and yet the history surrounding sex work is filled with lies, stigma, and misunderstandings. Throughout history, many of these ladies were nameless blips… except for the few that have chosen to haunt. Get to know some femme phantoms of negotiable affections still haunting their former places of employment, the history of prostitution, and why it is so important to tell the true stories of history’s unknowns and undesirables when we explore the paranormal. Due to the content, discretion is advised. Available for purchase will be copies of Amanda’s book, Harlots & Hauntings.
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Starts at $80
Yuletide Monsters
Why do we leave out milk and cookies for Santa? Where did the idea of stockings come from? Little do we know that many of our holiday traditions stem from the need to survive the winter and the monsters that lurked in those dark, cold nights of days gone by. Get to know the original characters of Christmas before Santa Claus such as Krampus, the Yule Cat, the Tomtar, and others. Available for purchase will be the picture book, Krampus’s Great Big Book of Yuletide Monsters. Can be made for kids or adults.
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Starts at $80
The Traveling Museum of Memento Mori
One of our most popular events! Combined with our Art of Grieving lecture, you can bring a one-of-a-kind experience to your venue. Guests will be able to wander through our three exhibits--Suffer the Little Children, 50 Shades of Black, and Coping with Grief--with over 100 artifacts. The museum includes postmortem photos, jewelry and artwork made from human hair, memorial cards, clothing, spirit photos, a death mask, "frozen Charlottes," sheet music, personal letters, a spirit trumpet, and a "tear catcher," all from the Victorian Era. This museum creates an environment where people can safely discuss death and grief. To learn more about the museum, click here.
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Starts at $200
5 Haunted Places Near You
Our #1 lecture! Want a presentation unique to your event? Amanda will research and put together a one-of-a-kind lecture for you, including the history and ghost stories of five haunted locations in your region. This is particularly popular during the Halloween season so we recommend you book your lecture in advance. Available for purchase will be copies of Amanda's first book, A Haunted Atlas of Western New York.
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Starts at $120