Annabelle, the Doll in the Case
A rag doll in a glass case carries a warning: 'Positively do not open'. The couple who kept it said it was used by something evil.
What was reported
Annabelle is a Raggedy Ann doll that, according to Ed and Lorraine Warren, was given to a nursing student in 1970. She and her roommate said it moved around their flat on its own and left notes, and a medium told them it was possessed by the spirit of a girl.
The Warrens said it was actually being used by a demon, and took it to their occult museum in Monroe, Connecticut, where it was kept in a locked glass case. It inspired the Conjuring and Annabelle horror films, in which it's a far creepier porcelain doll.
Explanations offered
The only accounts come through the Warrens, who told it in lectures and books, and there's no independent evidence. Sceptics see it as a good story that the films turned into a legend. The doll still tours occasionally.
- When
- Claimed from 1970
- Where
- Monroe, Connecticut, USA
- Witnesses
- The paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren
- Status
- Unverified
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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