1887 C. W. Chesnutt in Atlantic Monthly Aug. 257/1 Aun' Peggy say dat bein' ez Henry didn' know 'bout de goopher,..she reckon she mought be able fer ter take de goopher off'n him.

1926 N. N. Puckett Folk Beliefs Southern Negro iii. 215 Some hoodoos burn a kind of powder called ‘goopher dust’, which represents the person being hoodooed, who is perhaps miles away at the time. This causes the conjured individual to lose his personality and to become sick or insane.

1932 B. De Voto Mark Twain's Amer. iii. 69 That the residue has not vanished is attested by the appearance of goofers and hexes.

1935 Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men ii. v. 281 It will be noted how frequently graveyard dust is required in the practice of hoodoo, goofer dust as it is often called.

1941 Sat. Evening Post 20 Sept. 56/3 No goofer dust..could kill an enemy.

1957 W. C. Handy Father of Blues x. 142 Goofer dust all about—I'll fix him!