Ed and Lorraine Warren: Bridgeport poltergeist to Amityville haunting, paranormal investigators' famous cases
Ed and Lorraine Warren were famous paranormal investigators whose cases and experiences inspired the popular horror film franchise 'The Conjuring' and others such as 'The Amityville Horror'.
The couple gained fame as paranormal investigators in the 1970s and reportedly had several encounters with elements of the paranormal or supernatural world. The story and journey of Ed and Lorraine Warren has been covered in Travel Channel's documentary 'Devil's Road: The True Story of Ed and Lorraine Warren' which will air on September 7 and 9 pm ET.
The documentary features some of their highest-profile hauntings which include the Bridgeport poltergeist case which had several witnesses such as firefighters, policemen, reporters, and neighbors who all experienced some paranormal activity.
Here is taking a look at some of their biggest and most famous cases:
The Bridgeport poltergeist
The Bridgeport poltergeist case is believed to be one of the most documented cases of paranormal activity. The couple had gone to investigate the case that had taken place on Lindley Street in 1974 after receiving a call from a friend, Mary Pascarella. When they reached the house, it was swarmed by firefighters, police, as well as neighbors.
'Devil's Road: The True Story of Ed and Lorraine Warren' features some of the recordings captured from people's experiences with Ed asking them questions. Among the first police officers on the scene, officer Tomek revealed that the house was in a mess with everything in disarray. "We observed things lift off the shelf and fall to the ground. We observed other furniture move." When Ed asks him, "You had actually seen this yourself?" Tomek responds saying, "Some of this we saw, others happened while our backs were turned, within a split second."
Another officer, Carol John Leonzi, said, "I seen the little girl sitting in the reclining chair. And she flew back in it. I seen it about three times. I seen the picture fall off the wall." A priest, Father William Charbonneau, said he had seen a black shadow that was not in any solid form. The mass then vanished.
Ed himself saw a plastic crucifix on the wall just burst into pieces. The investigators were thus able to confirm that there was a poltergeist. The couple who lived in the house, Jerry Goodin and his wife Laura Goodin, had revealed that they had both experienced a lot of strange phenomena in the house. The night before the Warrens reached, Jerry said that something attacked them once they returned after buying groceries. The groceries were suddenly thrown around with dishes flying everywhere. They hoped it was a one-time incident and move on.
However, soon enough, Jerry recalled how he saw the table lift off the ground and suddenly fall with three recliner chairs opening and closing at the same time. City engineers were also baffled with the phenomenon. One engineer, Charlie Rader, said, "They wanted to know if it was the gas or something with the electrical service. So we went down there, we looked down the hallway and we see the refrigerator come across the kitchen floor, from the right side to the left. As soon as that happened, the two policemen said, 'you've got to leave now'."
However, law enforcement eventually wrote off the case as a hoax done by Goodin's daughter, Marcia, who herself had experienced paranormal activity.
The Perron family haunting
The Perron family -- Roger and Carolyn Perron -- and their five children moved into a country home in Harrisville, Rhode Island built in 1736, which was once inhabited by a woman Bathsheba Thayer in the 19th century. Three of Thayer's children died young with the community suspecting Thayer of witchcraft, although these claims remained unproven. It's said that Thayer hung herself in the backyard's home.
When the Perron family moved into the house in 1970, they experienced many paranormal things and called in Ed and Lorraine Warren to help. The pair allegedly conducted a seance but it led to Carolyn becoming possessed and speaking in tongues she did not know. After the seance, Roger kicked the Warrens out fearing for the mental wellbeing of his wife. It is this case that inspired 'The Conjuring' franchise.
It is reported that the new family living at the residence, who got it in 2019, have started to experience some paranormal activity, the Sun Journal reveals.
The Amityville haunting
The Amityville haunting is among Warren's most famous cases which looks at the Lutz family who lived in a Dutch Colonial house in Amityville, Long Island in 1975. Just a year before the family had moved in, the house had been a crime scene when a man, Ronald DeFeo, Jr, murdered six members of his family.
The Lutz family stayed at the house for around 28 days and reported hearing antagonistic voices, banging noises, swarms of flies, and unseen spirits. Ed and Lorraine were eventually called to investigate the house. During a press conference, Lorraine had told Yahoo!, "Amityville was horrible. It was absolutely horrible. It followed us right straight across the country ... I will never go to the Amityville house ever again."
Where are Ed and Lorraine now?
Ed Warren passed away in 2006 while Lorraine Warren died last year.