Tommyknockers
nature_spirit underworld Welsh single tradition · 1
Underground elves or spirits associated with mining folklore, originally brought to America by Welsh and Cornish immigrant miners in the 1820s. They are known for stealing unwatched items and giving warning knocks to miners. The American interpretation of these beings was described as more ghostly than elfish in nature.
When
- First attested
- 1820 CE
- Attested period
- 1820 – 1956
- Historical notes
- Brought to America by immigrant miners in the 1820s; belief persisted into the 20th century with documented practices as late as 1956.
Relationships
- cognate of
- Knockers
Mentioned by
Sources
wikipedia (1)
Source passages
“immigrant Welsh and Cornish miners brought tales of the Tommyknockers and their theft of unwatched items and warning knocks to western Pennsylvania...The underground elves became part of the folklore of miners throughout the American West”
#8195 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5