Dixie Haygood was born Anna Jarrett in 1861, according to the New Georgia Encyclpedia and married George Haygood when she was 17 years old. In 1885, she began performing a stage act under the stage name “Annie Abbott the Little Georgia Magnet” that astonished not only audiences in the US but across Europe.

At only 100 pounds, Dixie was able to perform amazing feats of strength and resistance, such as lifting a table with four strong men on it or preventing three men from lifting a pool cue simply by touching one of the men. She was examined by doctors, who could not explain how she could do what she could do.

Many people then and now claim that Dixie’s act was a mixture of clever use of the center of gravity, illusion and charm. Dixie herself claimed to be a spiritualist. Over time, many people began to consider a…