John Beaumont, born c. 1650, died 1731, was a physician and antiquarian who lived in Somerset, in the southwest of England. Through his fossil collecting, as well as papers documenting new mining techniques, Beaumont became a fellow of the Royal Society. However, Beaumont also had a secret, one which he would expose first in his "History of Genii and Familiar Spirits" and later in "Gleanings of Antiquities."

For years, Beaumont had conversations with entities that he publicly labeled "Genii," but that in personal communications he labeled "Fairies." These beings gave him advice and...