The Indian Fairy by Abbie Farwell Brown
Rob, fascinated by Indians and by the mysterious noises from an old well beneath his house, learns that the well was once an Indian spring. His father believes the sounds are rats and sets a trap near the covered well, while the servant Katie insists that the place is bewitched. Rob and his father draw up clear, cold water from the deep well, but Mr. Evans refuses to let Rob drink it and orders Katie to pour it away. Hearing the water seem to sob as it runs toward the sewer, Rob persuades his father to let him return the remaining water to the well. That night Rob hears a silvery voice calling from the cellar, begging him to free a prisoner. He slips downstairs, opens the heavy well cover, and lowers the pail. When he draws it up, he finds a tiny Indian Fairy standing in it. The Fairy explains that he once lived beside the spring when Shawmut, the Place of Springs, was filled with woods, grass, flowers, and the Red Men whom he loved. After White Men drove away the Indians and built houses over the springs, he became trapped beneath the roof by their magic. For years he has mourned in the dark well, unheard or feared by those who noticed his cries. The Fairy says Rob nearly saved him earlier by preventing the spring water from being emptied into the sewer. If the water reached the ocean, its salt would destroy him. To break the spell, Rob must carry water from the spring to living forest earth. Rob brings the Fairy, perched on the pail, to a flower-pot of ferns he has taken from the woods. When he pours the water into the fern earth, the Fairy is freed from the well and joyfully rests among the moss and ferns. Yet he cannot remain beneath another house. Though Rob wishes to keep him as a secret companion, he agrees to return the fern, the spring water, and the unseen Fairy to the woods. The next morning Rob finds proof that the night’s adventure was real: the pail is in his room and the fern is wet. His parents think he walked in his sleep, and they discover that the well cover had been opened. The rat trap has caught a large rat, and no one hears the cellar noises again. Rob carries the ferns back to their original place beneath a gray rock in the woods. He never sees the Fairy again, but he hears a faint farewell and receives a charm: whenever he enters the woods, he is always especially happy.
By Abbie Farwell Brown · First published 1904 · Genre: Children's Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Children's Literature · 7,986 words
First lines
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"Katie has been complaining again of the queer noises in the cellar," said Rob's mother, as she passed the coffee cup to her husband across the breakfast table.
What this Textopian page supports
The Indian Fairy is listed on Textopian as a short story by Abbie Farwell Brown, dated 1904 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Abbie Farwell Brown
- Date: 1904 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Children's Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Children's Literature, Fantasy Adventure, Folklore-Inspired Fiction
- Length: 7,986 words
- Structure: 1 section, 139 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Indian Fairy by Abbie Farwell Brown
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
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Genres
- Children's Fantasy — The story centers on a child who discovers and frees a supernatural Indian spring fairy, using a gentle, imaginative style directed at young readers.
- Fairy Tale — It uses classic fairy-tale elements: a hidden magical being, an enchantment, a compassionate child hero, a release from captivity, and a rewarding blessing.
- Children's Literature — Rob's domestic life, curiosity, moral growth, and accessible narration make the work a children’s story with a clear ethical lesson about kindness and freedom.
- Fantasy Adventure — Rob undertakes a secret nighttime journey into the cellar, encounters the fairy, and completes a quest to return him to the woods.
Tags
children's fantasy · fairy tale · magical realism · early 20th-century American children's literature · Boston's Shawmut Hill · colonial New England history · Indian spring · underground well · cellar mystery · Native American folklore · settler colonialism · urbanization and lost nature