The Story Behind the Conjuring
Ed and Lorraine Warren were a North American couple that practiced their ongoing paranormal investigation business, that founded the New England Society for Research in 1952.
To this point, it is said that the Warrens investigated and closed around 10,000 cases of the Paranormal, placing most of the 'happenings' down to everyday things like rusty pipes and squeaking floorboards. That was until the year of 1971, where Roger and Carolyn Perron come into the works.
Roger and Carloyn moved into a colonial farm house with their 5 daughters, and soon after moving in they began claiming there were paranormal hauntings and happenings occuring in the house. And if that wasn't enough, spiritual possessions. They invited the Warrens to their home to investigate. Over 9 years of living there, they claim to have been visited by countless spirits, both tame and sinister, the smell of rotting flesh and fish and routinely arrived at 5:15am to levitate their beds.
However the most recognised entiity in the movie based on these events, is suspected witch, Bathsheba Sherman. Born Bathsheba Thayer in Rhode Island in 1812, she married fellow Rhode Islander Judson Sherman (one year her senior) in Thompson, Connecticut on March 10, 1844. It is said that Bathseba had 3 children, one son, and 3 unidentified as it is believed that these 3 died before reaching the age of 7.
Though there is no solid proof that Bathsheba was infact a witch, suspicions grew as an infant mysteriously died in her care. During an autoposy of the child, they discovered that the infant had died being impaled in the skull by a large sewing needle. This led to many people in the town believing that Bathsheba sacrified the baby in some form of offering to the devil. Bathsheba also treated her staff badly and starved and beat the farm helpers.
The family's connection to the spirit of Bathsheba Sherman came at the suggestion of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. The mother, Carolyn Perron, told Ed and Lorraine about an incident that had happened a few years earlier. She said that she had been lying on the sofa and all of the sudden felt a piercing type of pain in her calf and then the muscle began to spasm. Upon examination, she noticed a puddle of blood at the point of impact. She claims it felt and looked as if she had been impaled with once again, a large sewing needle but could not find anything to support this.
According to many paranormal investigators, Bathsheba is said to have taken the Sewing needle with her to the afterlife.
So, what about the infamous doll in The Conjuring?
The doll in The Conjuring was in fact, real. However it is in no way related to the Perron families story, and is said to be from a case in 1970 that Ed and Lorraine handled. This case became known as, The Annabelle Doll Case.
A student of nursing named Donna recieved the Raggedy Ann dolll as a birthday present, from her mother.Both Donna and her room-mate Angie began noticing strange occurences including the doll switching positions, moving round their apartment on its on and completely dissapearing all together. And if that wasn't strange enough, Donna and Angie began finding childlike messages that had been written on parchment paper, which apparently came from Annabelle the doll. For a while everything subduded, until the room-mates invited their friend Lou to stay with them. Lou claims that the doll tried to strangle him to death when everyone was asleep one night, Bloody like scratches also appeared all over Lou when he went to investigate a noise from Donna's room.
In an attempt to get rid of whatever was in the doll, a séance was held. During this session it came to light that the doll was infact possessed by a girl named Annabelle, who had lived on the property before the apartments were built. It is believed that Annabelle was in fact murdered, as at just 7 years old, Annabelle's lifeless body was found in a field that the apartments would later be built on.
Ed and Lorraine Warren came to the apartment of Donna and Angie and eventually performed an exorcism. Donna requested that the Warrens take the doll into their possession. It remains there today.
