The Amityville house

Would you live at 112 Ocean Ave Amityville, NY 11701?


If you’ve seen the films based on what happened in this house probably would not. But when it comes to hauntings, never trust the media. In this post I will be looking at one of the most infamous haunted houses, the Amityville home located in Amityville, New York. 


So if you have watched the films you know what they think happened, but what actually happened? 



Here is a time line of the home received from homeinfomax.com: ("Basic property report," 2012)

• Jan 14, 1924 - Jan 1960      John & Catherine Moynahan
• Jan 1960 - Oct 16, 1960      Eileen Fitzgerald
• Oct 17, 1960 - June 27, 1965      Joseph & Mary Riley
• June 28, 1965 - Nov 13, 1974      Ronald & Louise DeFeo
• Nov 14, 1974 - Dec 17, 1975      (vacant — owned by DeFeo estate)  
• Dec 18, 1975 - Jan 14, 1976      George & Kathleen Lutz
• Jan 15, 1976 - Aug 29, 1976      (vacant — owned by Lutzes)
• Aug 30, 1976 - March 17, 1977      (vacant — owned by bank)
• March 18, 1977 - Aug 10, 1987      James & Barbara Cromarty
• Aug 11, 1987 - June 9, 1997      Peter & Jeanne O'Neill
• June 10, 1997 - September 2010      Brian Wilson
• September 2010 - present      David & Caroline D'Antonio

As you can see in the list above, there have been several owners of the home, the story behind the home rest with the DeFeo family and the Lutz family. 

“On the night of November 14, 1974, 23-year-old Ronald DeFeo, Jr., took his rifle and shot his farther. Within the next 15 minutes, he would murder all six members of his family. The brutal crime made headlines in many newspapers. Unfortunately, this was not the last time people would hear about the shocking events taking place in the home.” (Williams, 2008)

"On December 18, 1975, the Lutz family moved into the DeFeo home." ("The amityville murders," 2006)

During their stay the Lutz family experienced:

• Threatening and malicious voices,
• Drastic personality changes, 
• Phantom smells, 
• Green slime that dripped from the walls, 
• Black stains on toilets that could not be removed, 
• Hundreds of random flies despite it being the dead of winter, 
• An upside down crucifix, 
• Physical abuse and changes,
• Hallucinations, 
• Invisible forces that caused property damage, and
• The Lutz family dog, Harry, became lethargic even though her was known to be very active (Anson, 1977)

Also, "The youngest child, Missy, described speaking to "an angel" that was living in her room. This angel, Missy claims, was named 'Jodie'. Jodie was able to present itself as a "large pig" to Missy and change shape and form at will. George and Kathy claimed to have witnessed two red eyes peering in at them from the upstairs bedroom window. Missy believed it was Jodie wanting to come inside." ("The story ," 2012) 

Are the Lutz family's claims valid? Many still argue today that they are not and some believe that they are. I personally would love to investigate the home and find some real evidence. Would you?

Resources

Anson, J. (1977). The amityville horror. New York : Simon & Schuster, Inc.


Basic property report. (2012). Retrieved from https://www.homeinfomax.com/cgi-bin/generateReport.cgi

Capitalizing on a Tragedy (2006). Retrieved from http://www.amityvillemurders.com/capitalizing.html

The story. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.amityvillefiles.com/haunting/

Williams, D. (2008). Haunted houses. (p. 17). New York : Bearport Publishing Company. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Ut9vPvOhnRcC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=the amityville house murders&ots=KQyOyCy0kr&sig=v01KwtQWDFVaY0nwy04zn0b5bJQ