Episode 772: The Perron Family Haunting | Forensic Files

Hey weirdos. I'm Ash. And I'm Elena. And this is Morbid. >> It is. >> I'm covered in soy sauce,
>> you guys. No, I am. Did you not see Mikey Mike? How did like a weird uh like 900 number beginning to like like some
kind of weird like >> 100% >> cut it like sexy >> that you were like hello I'm covered in
soy sauce. >> Is there a sexy way to say that? I mean >> hey big boy. >> There's something for everyone.
>> Covered in soy sauce. >> I'm not here to kink shame. >> Me either. If that's your kink that's
niche. >> Then get yourself some soy sauce. Yeah, we got Chinese food today and I opened
my like packet a little bit and I was like, it's fine. Cuz I was nervous. I was like, oh, I don't want to open it
too much cuz it'll get all over my shirt and now there's just little like sprays
of soy all over me. >> You just soy sauce. >> I do love soy sauce. But this is a brand
new Seven Up shirt. It >> is. >> She is wearing a t-shirt. A Seven Up. A cherry Seven Up.
>> Seven Up. And it's cute on the back, too. It's got like a whole thing going. >> That's a little about me.
>> But now it's got soy sauce on it. >> I know. Like the rest of my clothes. Yeah. Uh, Debb Debb also got us squishy
butter like stress things. >> We're very into like what are the are these called like fidget toys? Are these
considered that? I feel like we're very into these lately. >> They're nice. Especially when we're
recording. If they don't make sound. >> Yeah, cuz I had a dumpling that did make
it sound like I was [ __ ] myself. And Alina would look over at me and be like I'd be like, "It's not me, it's the
dumpling. I'm not [ __ ] myself in the pod lab." God. And she couldn't do it while we were recording cuz you guys
would have heard it. I think I probably did a couple times. Mikey either edited them out or did me dirty.
I did a couple times like squeeze my dumpling and it sounded like it farted. That's not a euphemism.
>> I'm just going to say what the [ __ ] is going on right now? What is happening?
No, it's a literal dumpling, you guys. God damn. All right, we're going to talk about a haunting today. You have [ __ ] to
say other than that? Oh, yeah, I do. Um, >> oh yeah, I do. >> So, I there's uh if you Okay. Hi. If you
got this, I just didn't know how to start that. If you you right there are psyched about The Butcher Legacy, which
like >> I am. >> You You better be. >> I am. >> Uh, you can read an excerpt of a chapter
of it >> right now on Crime Reads. You can do it. I'm going to post it on my socials. We
got it in the show notes. You can read a little excerpt. I believe it's chapter 4. I'm pretty sure. Not the whole
chapter, but it's an excerpt. >> Say that again. Excerpt. >> Excerpt. >> Um, and yeah, you get to read some of
the book so you can see if if it tickles your fancy. >> I bet it will. >> So, go go go do that cuz it's fun.
>> Yeah. [ __ ] yeah. Yay. >> That's really cool. That's like a huge deal. >> And then if you are on the fence somehow
somehow about pre-ordering The Butcher Legacy after you read it, you're going to be like, "Um, I'll take 10, please."
You're going to be like, I got to hop off in this fence and onto the other side where the grass is greener and
Elena's book is a plenty. >> What am I doing on the fence? >> Yeah. >> Let me jump into the the pit of the
butcher legacy. >> You'll say, "What a loser I was hanging out on that fence." >> You will. And you know what? I'll
forgive you cuz we listen and we don't judge. >> Yeah. So, period. >> Go read that excerpt. Um, you should
also buy tickets to our Radio City Music Hall. >> Yeah, do that. Um, I was going to say
episode >> episode. >> We will. It will be an episode, in fact. Um, we have come up with some really
good merch ideas that I'm really excited about. So, and you can only get them there.
>> Yeah. Only there and one night only. >> Better get tickets. Only go to Ticket
Master. >> Have some fun segments planned. >> Shit's going to get buck. >> It is.
>> All right. >> Whatever that whatever buck is, it's going to get there. >> You know, remember that song that I
wanted to play at my wedding, but everybody was like, "You can't play this at your wedding."
>> Yeah. Which I didn't understand. You can't play that. >> Everybody was being mean.
>> I supported you. got buck in here trying to drop to the ground like she ain't got
man. It's too much booty for one man to handle. That's a wedding song. The [ __ ]
>> I would have got buck at my wedding. I mean I did anyway, but >> I would have loved that.
>> There was an hour of my wedding that did in fact get so bucked that the children
needed to be removed. Like kids went home. Parents were like, "We should get them out of here."
And those parents included John. >> Yes. I WAS LIKE, "BYE, BROTHER." >> HE WAS LIKE, "BYE. I love you." He was
like, "I got to get them out. Go, go, go. I miss my wedding. I want to do it again."
>> I miss fine, too. >> Yeah. But I want to do it again, but I wouldn't. >> Yeah. I don't want to like plan.
>> That's the thing. Like the planning of it all. >> Yeah. I don't want to plan a wedding
again. >> No. >> But I want to have one again. Period. >> You know what song? I pro I promise
we're going to get into the case, but it's >> Yeah. Just tell people when it starts.
It might be 19 minutes. >> Yeah. I was going to say someone's timing. Who gives a [ __ ]
>> Several people. >> My show, not yours. >> Uh, but I I was listening to, you know, how
Spotify will give you like this band's radio, you know, like a playlist. I had a something corporate like radio, which
let me tell you, brought the used was on there. >> Oh my god. >> We had Oh, it was great. It was total
throwback. And then it had which I was like, I don't know if this one fits, but like all it kind of does. It had fun on
there, which makes sense because he's the singer from the format. The format was on it as well, and that was very of
that era. But there's a song called Some Nights. >> Is that the one where it's like some
nights I stand in my castle? >> You You're going to stand in my >> Yeah, it's not in my castle. But this
song, we we are young, >> is the last song that played at my wedding when everyone was like clearing
out. Oh yeah. And I was like, "Oh my god." like it immediately brought me back to the like but I was like oh that
just like brought me right back. That's a really good ending song. I didn't pick
mine and I should have. I forget what it ended with but I remember being like I hate this song.
>> Oh no that's not great. >> It was still fun I danced to it anyway but I was like who the hell played this?
>> No, we had a good one and everybody sang it. >> Hell yeah. >> Cuz we were young. So
>> you were in fact I feel like I was so much younger and mine was only 2 years ago.
>> Yeah. >> Anyways, we should get to the story. >> Yeah, we'll get to the story. Mark down
the number. >> I was just going to say, what's the time? Uh, >> leave it in. >> We're being so shady.
Um, I should also mention that I have a cold, so if my energy feels weird, I don't know what to tell you.
>> And you know what? Mikey will do his best to make this not >> I hope he leaves the shade in leaves in.
>> Yeah, he'll get fired. >> He'll leave some of it. All right. So, we are gonna be talking about the Parin
Family Haunting today, which apparently apparently >> was the inspiration for the Conjuring
movies. Like the first one at least. >> Dang. >> Yeah. Now, weirdly enough, from
Conjuring to this, the story of the Parin haunting begins with a simple Catholic wedding.
>> Oh, [ __ ] >> Yeah. >> All right, let's start there. >> Let's start at the wedding. Roger and
Carolyn Parin got married in 1957. Like a lot of people in New England, Roger grew up in a devoutly Catholic
household. We all know what that's like around here. >> And they're done that. >> And mine wasn't devout, but mine was not
devout. >> I knew I knew a lot of Cath Catholic bitties. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. We got We got lots of Catholic
bitties around here. They're always running around. >> I don't know what they say. But anyway,
I was like, they're always running around saying like >> they're just always running around.
>> You know what they're always running around saying? They're always running around saying and also with you.
>> Yes, it's true. They're they're always saying Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. >> And all my sainted sisters.
>> That's what my dad says, >> my grandpa. Now, Caroline grew up somewhat Christian, but she and her
family really weren't like deeply steeped in religion by any means. And as she got older, she was really less
interested in organized religion. But at the same time, she knew it was important
to her husband and even more important to his mother. So, she embraced Catholicism to keep the peace between
herself and her new mother-in-law. She said, "Sure, I'll have a Catholic wedding."
>> O. Now, they wasted no time starting a family. And within a year, Caroline was
pregnant with their first child, Andrea. Not long after Andrea was born, Carolyn
was pregnant again. And it was obvious that if their family was going to continue to grow like this, they were
going to need a bigger house. >> So, they moved to Willamantic, Connecticut, which is a small city in
the southeastern part of the state. Over the next few years, they continued to grow and grow as a family, starting with
Nancy, who was followed by Christine, and then Cynthia, and then finally April. >> Whoa.
>> So, five gals. >> Five gals. >> Oh, the dream. I hope I have five girls. >> I have three gals.
>> I know. >> And five sounds like a lot. >> You have five girls because you have the
pups. >> That's true. >> Now, in her Yeah, exactly. In her memoirs, their oldest daughter, Andrea,
describes her mother as approaching each of her daughters with quote, "a usual, thoughtful and kind consideration of
each child." >> I love that. >> Yeah. What a parenting win, >> right? That's the thing. They were all
very close in age, and they, you know, obviously had a lot in common, but Carolyn did her best to try to recognize
their individuality, and she praised their effort. She minimally criticized them. Like, she was a good mama. Now,
their dad on the other hand, he was less encouraging and he wasn't that emotionally available. He also worked as
a long haul trucker. So, there were just periods where he wasn't home. >> So, I think that was
>> kind of just like by design, you know, not like he designed it to not be home,
but just like he wasn't always available because he was literally across >> literally in a truck across the state.
>> Yes. Thank you. Author Joe Nickel, we will link his book in the show notes, wrote, "It was a fact that harmed his
marriage and kept him largely a stranger to his children." A which is very sad. >> That is sad.
>> I know. Now, Andrea is a lot less negative though in framing her father, but her description of him, at least in
their younger years, was a lot less warm than her memories of her mother. She wrote, "His acknowledgements were always
more subdued and understated, always a critical mention of room for improvement, though meaningful
nonetheless." Hm. So, obviously their mom was home more, so they were a bit closer with her.
>> Yeah, of course. >> With their father out of the house more often than not and their mom responsible
for five young kids, the girls kind of turned to each other obviously first as playmates, but then as they grew up,
they kind of became caregivers for one another. Like the older girls helped with the younger girls and so on and so
forth. >> This dynamic seemed to suit Carolyn more than the typical parent child
relationship. Andrea said that she was less a caretaker and more a playmate. She took great pleasure in their
company. So, just like six besties living in a house. >> Hell yeah. >> Now, with a big family and the need for
some extra help, Roger and Carolyn ended up moving back to Rhode Island in 1964.
And they settled in a small Cape style house in Cumberland where the schools were good and they both had family
nearby if they needed a sitter, yada yada. The parents remember their early life there fondly. They said it was an
idealic experience. But by 1970, their idealic life started to feel like it was falling apart all around them. Uh-oh.
So, by 1970, their idealic life started to kind of feel like it was falling apart all around them. The first signal
that things were changing for the family came in the form of a tragedy just days
after summer vacation started in 1970. A few months earlier, Roger and Caroline had bought a puppy that Caroline
inexplicably named Bath Sheba. >> I love that a lot. >> Yeah. She said that she just pulled that
name from the ether, I guess. Okay. Like no reason. But yeah, >> you just look at the dog and you're like
>> Bath Sheba. It's interesting because Bath Sheba I looked a little bit into like uh her origins and she had five
kids. >> Oh, and so did Caroline. So I was like weird >> vibes. >> There's also another part that you're
like >> really like interesting >> when when things align >> so one afternoon Andrea begged her mom
to let her take Bath Sheba for a walk and Caroline was like go for it. With her sisters by her side, Andrea held on
tight to the leash and Bath Sheba walked obediently beside her for a while. Um, trigger warning. We're going to talk
about animal death. The girls had been walking for a bit when a car full of teenagers came racing up over a hill
with no warning. And Andrea remembered they must have been cheerleaders because they were quote shouting out something
in unison while shaking brightly colored tassels from their open windows. >> Get it together.
>> Stop speeding and get your [ __ ] head in the window. >> Just get it together.
>> Period. >> Truly >> to to surmise. >> Get it together. >> Thank you. Bath Sheba ended up running
into the street after the car, like probably trying to protect the girls. >> Yeah. Or seeing like the brightly
colored. >> Yeah. Like thinking it was like a toy or like a treat or something. Now, luckily,
she made it to the other side of the street safely. But in a panic, Andrea called out for her to come back
immediately and didn't check to see if there was any cars coming >> and Bath Sheba did as she was told and
was tragically struck by an elderly couple who never saw her walking into the street.
>> Oh, that makes my heart hurt. Four elderly people too >> and all five girls just watching their
puppy. >> Oh [ __ ] you up. >> Yeah, big time. >> That's rough. >> That's the thing. Well, and the thing
the other thing was Caroline and Roger brought the dog home and they were like obviously this is a pet for the whole
family, but there was a bond between Andrea and Bath Sheba like immediately. Like they really vibe together.
>> So sad. >> And now her constant companion was ripped away in what felt like impossible
circumstances. I just want to rewind to come back across the street. She felt she probably wouldn't have been struck
by the car. >> So, obviously, this is a devastating incident. All five of the girls were at
the scene when she was hit. So, they ran home immediately and they explained to their mom what had happened and Caroline
was just as devastated. Also, it wasn't just the loss of a pet for her, but she was heartbroken for her children and
worried that they had seen something so traumatizing. >> Oh, yeah. >> And there was also this weird underlying
feeling that Bath Sheba's death signaled something about the subtle changes in their community. Things were shifting
that summer. >> If that carload of teenagers had actually been following the law and not
yelling and hanging out of their [ __ ] windows, maybe that entire scene wouldn't have happened.
>> Yeah. >> So, in the weeks that followed, everyone in the family dealt with their grief in
their own ways. But Andrea seemed to struggle more than the other kids. She was racked with an intense sense of
guilt and she was usually like a very chatty, outgoing girl, but this just made her kind of like pull into herself.
>> The shift in her personality was really concerning for Caroline. But at the same
time, there were other things going on that were kind of occupying most of her attention.
>> She couldn't pinpoint exactly when things started to change. But that summer, Cumberland, Rhode Island, was
actually experiencing kind of a juvenile crime wave. >> Wow. >> Which is wild. >> The hell?
>> Yeah. Boys around the neighborhood who were like once friendly, awkward little
kids had started to feel kind of menacing and dangerous. >> Ew. And according to Andrea, a list of
minor and major infractions included a number of petty thefts, gangland assaults on the schoolyard playground,
from vicious pranks to more threatening encounters with rumors of weapons involved.
>> Damn. And things took a very serious turn when, again, according to Andrea, there was a quote, "Attempted sexual
assault on a young girl who had been gagged and bound to playground equipment at their elementary school."
>> What the [ __ ] >> Yeah. So, [ __ ] was getting [ __ ] gnarly. >> I say it again. Get it together.
>> Get it together. >> What the [ __ ] >> Between 1970 and 1974, violent crime in
Rhode Island, in Cumberland, Rhode Island increased more than 60%. >> Wo. So, like this wasn't just a feeling
that something weird was happening. >> It was back [ __ ] was going on and the city was becoming more dangerous.
>> Damn. >> So, by the time the summer had come to an end, the traumatic events of the
season, which were capped off by the death of the family's cat and a break-in at their house.
>> Oh my god. >> It had all been way more than Caroline could tolerate. >> Yeah, that's a lot. When they had moved
back to Rhode Island 6 years earlier, it was to put down roots to raise their family in this safe, quiet community
with family nearby. But now this community did not feel safe and the home and town had multiple tragic memories
that Caroline wanted to shield her kids from. >> Yeah. >> To make matters worse, with Roger out on
the road more often than not, the growing stress and anxiety of all of this fell solely on Caroline to manage.
So, she was just really going through it. >> So, finally, when Roger got back from a
job that fall, she sat him down at the kitchen table and she basically said in no uncertain terms, she was straight up
not having a good time in Cumberland, Rhode Island. I am not having a good time. straight up not having a good
time, >> not killing it. >> She said, "It's not for us out here in these streets and I would like to sell
this house and move into the country." >> This place is harshing my mellow. >> It harshing the vibes
>> and I need to get out. >> So, the vibes are rancid. >> So harsh. >> There's this new thing that the kids are
saying. >> Oh no. >> It's like aura mogging or something like that. >> Just what?
>> Yeah, I don't know. >> How do you mo someone's aura? >> I don't even know if it's aura mogging.
It's aura something. I got to look this up really quick. What are the Gen Z's saying about auras?
>> What do the Gen Z's have to say about auras? >> Aura farming. That's what it is.
>> Aura farming. >> Araura fararmming is the act of consciously and sometimes desperately
trying to boost one's cool image. It is frequently used in a derogatory way to describe somebody as trying too hard.
Often seen as cringe. You know what's trying too hard? Saying or coming up with a term called orura farming. Wait,
you know what? I am kind of obsessed with obsessed with >> Stop caring. >> Whatever. You know what I'm obsessed
with though? What? >> Or a maxing. >> Or I need all the maxing to stop. I've heard too much max. You guys are all
talking about fiber maxing. We are fiber. >> I'm hearing idiots on the internet talking about looks maxing. I'm hearing
whatever the [ __ ] is it or maxing. Looks maxing is like apparently all these like
>> is that like a glow up? >> I But it's like extreme I think. Like crazy. >> Wow.
>> I like maxing. I think everyone just needs to chill the [ __ ] out. >> What about chill out, Max and relax and
all cool? >> Shooting some Bball outside of the school. >> Is that good? >> Yeah, that is cool. That's what I mean.
>> Yeah, I was just going to say that Cumberland, Rhode Island was not oraxing at this time.
>> It was not oraxing. >> In case there's any Gen Z's listening, let me translate that for you. Yeah,
there it was. >> Yeah, it was not Ouraxing. >> So, when Carolyn first made her case to
Roger, he was like, "Uh, I don't really know if we're in the financial position to do that. This feels very impulsive."
And he was like, I also don't think a few bad experiences are sufficient enough reason to leave. Like here crime
rate though. >> And I was like, the home invasion is the crime. Is that >> is the crime of it all upsetting to you,
Roger? >> Yeah, that would bum me out. >> So by the time they reached uh by the time they got to bed that night, they
reached an impass. There was no immediate solution. And as far as Roger was concerned, he said there was no
point undwelling what they couldn't change. >> It's like, well, you could you can
change your surroundings. >> You can change whatever you want to change. You can change your hair and you
can change your clothes and you can change your mind and that's the way it goes.
>> Exactly. >> And after that >> ask Hillary. >> No, that's is that that's not Hillary.
That's Hannah. >> No, that's Hillary. >> That's Hillary. >> Yeah. You can change your mind.
>> No. I was saying you can change your hair and you can change your clothes. You can change your mind and that's the
way. >> So what is Hillary? >> She says you can change your mind if you want to. You can act real tough.
It was something else. >> I'll trust you on this one cuz >> I know I'm right here.
>> Yeah. Yeah. I I know you're right here. >> And the Hannah Montana resurgence. Like
put that into my head. >> See, and I think I'm I'm for the Hillary Duff resurgence. So I had that on the
brain. >> She's not resurging at this very moment. Hannah Montana is resurging at this very
moment. >> I think Hillary's on [ __ ] tour. >> Is she? I would go to that. >> She's resurging.
>> I would go to that. >> Yeah, she's resurging. >> We can't bring John though because one
time they made eye contact. >> Yeah, he he claimed that one time at a concert when he was younger. Yes, he
went to a Hillary Duff concert. He >> He took his niece, right? >> No, he dated a girl.
>> Oh, he dated a girl. >> That had him going to Hillary Duff concerts. Uh, you know who you are. Just
kidding. >> No, you should be. >> I'm just kidding. We have three children and have been married for like,000
years, >> but we still hate her. >> Um, real girl [ __ ] >> Uh, but I'm totally kidding.
>> It's a joke. >> But he went to We're like, "This is a joke. Please know that." Uh, yeah. She
made him go to a Hillary Duff concert and he said he claims to this day they made eye. So Hillary, if you're
listening >> back cuz >> I understand him because I made eye contact with Harry Styles at a Harry
Styles concert and he definitely sang to me for a solid second. >> I know I'm the only one who has not had
this experience. >> Here's the thing too. I have photographic evidence of Harry Styles
looking at me. He's looking right at me. That's actually true. And his >> See, when John went it was a time before
the camera. So >> yeah. So, but you know what I believe as somebody who's made made eye contact
with a handsome fella/ beautiful lady. >> Yeah. >> You know, >> you know, >> you know, I haven't had that experience.
I need to add that to my repertoire. >> I bet Tobias has made eye contact with you, but you just can't see cuz
I'm going to hold on to that. >> I got you. >> I'll hold on to that. >> I love these episodes cuz they get so
loosey goosey. >> They do. I love these. >> It's my faith. So, Roger said, "Hell no,
Caroline. We can't afford that." And who cares? >> Yeah. But Carol, so Caroline started
keeping her anxieties to herself and she didn't bring up moving again. And a few
days later, Roger was back on the road. >> Oh no. >> According to Andrea, her father's latest
trip quote kept him away just long enough for the universe to intervene on their behalf. Oh boy.
>> Which I [ __ ] love. >> So while waiting for one of her daughter's music lessons to end,
Caroline was just flicking through a copy of the Windocket Call and, you know, just mulling along.
>> Just mulling along. >> Flipping through the real estate section. She came across a listing for a
9 room colonial farmhouse in Harrisville on 200 acres of land for $75,000. >> Oh, give it to me.
>> Which also >> give it to me. >> That would be $600,000. >> Damn. >> Or is it 600? Hold on. Is that I'll be
back. So, yeah, it was like $600,000, like give or take, which honestly for 200 acres of land, I'd do that if I could,
you know? >> That's sick. >> So, for the rest of the afternoon, Caroline just couldn't help but think
that that was the perfect opportunity. And the fact that she had come across it in the paper was a sign that it was the
house for them. >> Hell yeah. Despite Roger having emphatically told her that they
literally did not have the money to move that night, Caroline said 1800 listing agent and she scheduled a showing for
the following day. >> I love that. >> I love it. I'm team Caroline. >> Go get it.
>> Period. >> Yeah. I would buy it. I want to see it. >> It's the Conjuring House.
>> Yeah. >> Yeah. Oh, I thought you were saying to me, I want to see the house. I was like,
it's the Conjuring. Thank you. Thank you for that. You said you want to see. You
can. It's the Conjuring House. No, I would just be like, I I want to see it. >> Yeah. Show Show it to me.
>> Yeah, show me to me, Rachel. >> There it is. I was waiting for it. >> I know you were. So, Carolyn met the
realtor the following morning and they drove out to Harrisville together. Along the way, she gazed longingly out the
window at what was to her a quaint, idyllic, beautiful town, perfect to raise her daughters in.
>> Oh, it's going to be amazing. >> Yeah, it was exactly what she wanted for her family.
>> Yeah, I don't think anything bad is going to happen. >> No, it's not. >> This is just a nice story.
>> It's gorgeous. She's just like gazing out the window like she's in a music video. Yeah.
>> Do you remember when it would rain and you were sitting in the back seat and you'd just be like, "I'm in a music
video right now." >> Oh, yeah. Anybody who isn't the main character in their own music videos,
movies, TV shows all the time. >> Lies. >> Do it. You're either lying or you need
to do it. >> Yeah. Whimsify your life. >> Yeah. >> So, things only got better when they got
to the house. There were apple trees in the yard, a lush green lawn. The house itself was this picturesque colonial
home. According to the groundskeeper, the house was actually built by a master shipwright in uh 1736.
>> That's sick. >> And it was made of solid oak. >> Oh, hell yeah. >> And it was thanks to that masterful
construction and solid materials that the house managed to survive during so many devastating hurricane seasons that
destroyed a lot of the other colonials in town. >> It had legs. >> It had legs. By the time they finished
storing the house, Caroline was pretty much sold that it was hers, but the groundskeeper is the one who really
convinced her. After giving her a tour of the property, he walked uh both women back to the car and he shook Caroline's
hand and he gave her a genuine look of kindness and said, "This is a wonderful place to raise a family."
>> Oh, that would have sold me. >> Me, too. You know, >> they hadn't even closed their doors and
Caroline was reaching into that purse for her checkbook and she said to the realtor, "My husband is out of town. How
much does it take to hold this place? >> Good. Honestly, good for her. >> I'm obsessed.
>> Yeah, I'm obsessed because at least you got to make sure nobody else gets it.
>> Yeah. So, Andrea's account of how they came to live in the house has this like
mystical quality that strongly suggests some unseen force had intervened to ensure that Caroline found the listing,
saw the house, and made the down payment. As a science girly myself, I love that Caroline thought this was the
universe. >> Oh, hell yeah. And maybe it was. You know, the universe wants to teach you
things. Maybe this was like her Saturn return or something. Probably not. But maybe. I don't know.
>> But maybe >> she had five kids at this point, but it was a different time. >> Anyways, unfortunately for Carolyn,
Roger was upset. He was like, "Hey, it's the '7s. You can't spend money without me." I mean, here's the thing. Like,
yeah, you should probably talk together if you're, you know, that's >> But she tried to talk to him and he
wasn't listening. >> Well, that's what the What's a woman to do? >> Were steps taken that that maybe should
have waited? Yeah. But like, who? >> He's in a truck. What was she meant to do? >> We listen and we don't judge.
>> Period. >> You know, >> so more than mad, he also just wasn't interested in hearing about the house or
the beautiful grounds or how perfectly suited it was for their family. He was interested in one thing only. How the
[ __ ] they were going to get that check back from the realtor. >> Oh, no. >> But Caroline persisted. She was like,
"No, this is the right decision for us, Roger. Listen to me. >> Listen, Roger." >> And eventually he yielded and he agreed
to tour the house with her. >> Okay. >> He said, "I'm not saying we're moving, but I'll go look at it."
>> Yeah. So the ne the next day the entire family piled into the car and they headed back to Harrisville to see the
house. Once again they were met by the groundskeeper, Mr. Kenyon, who Roger was immediately charmed by and very endeared
to. The girls ran off to play in the yard and Mr. Kenyon showed the parents the house. And although he was still
pretty pissed at his wife for being so impulsive and completely disregarding his wishes on the matter, Roger did have
to admit it's a pretty great house. >> It is. >> Yeah. The interior was just as beautiful
and stately as the exterior. It was much It was more than adequate for their family. And a few hundred yards away, a
stream ran through the woods with water clear enough for Roger to legit see little fishies swimming beneath the
surface. >> Little fishies. >> It was perfect. It was picturesque. >> So, back at home that night, they put
the girls to bed and they sat down to discuss everything. For every glowing word that Carolyn had for the house,
Roger offered a critique, though he was not quite sold yet. She brought up the crystal clearar stream and the natural
spring on the property. And he pointed out the ancient plumbing and the fact that there was only one bathroom in the
entire [ __ ] house. But >> that would be rough. That would be rough. But no matter how pragmatic he
was or how many reasonable concerns he had, in the end, there was no getting around the fact that he was just as
impressed with the house as Caroline was. And he agreed that night, okay, we'll figure it out. Let's do it.
>> Let's go. So, after lots of planning, lots of preparation, moving day finally
arrived the second week of January 1971. You couldn't pay me money to move in New
England in January. >> No. >> Why? Yeah. >> Wait till at least March. >> That's That's the real horror.
>> Yeah. Here, >> it really is moving in January. >> What? >> So, having spent everything on the down
payment for the house, there was no money to hire movers, but luckily, friends and family pitched in to help
the parents get settled into their new house. As the last pieces of furniture were being carried inside, Mr. Kenyon,
the groundskeeper, appeared at the door to say hello and welcome everybody. And he was charming as ever. And Roger
appreciated having somebody nearby who was familiar with the property. But before he left that afternoon, Mr.
Kenyon said something that would haunt Roger in the days and weeks to come. >> Uhoh.
>> He said, "Leave the lights on at night. Better to light a candle than to curse
the darkness." >> Okay, that that might send me >> That would [ __ ] me up. That would send
me >> I don't know where it would send me, but it would send me. >> It would send me away.
>> Yeah. >> It would send me on my way. >> On my way. >> On my way. >> Be out of there.
>> Out of there. No thank you. >> Yeah. I'd be like I'd like to leave now. >> Also, I'm pretty sure the Conjuring
House is like closed. >> Really? >> Yeah. I think it like they >> Is it in between owners? Is that why?
>> Yeah. I think they don't have their their business license was like revoked. >> Oh. And then I think it was going up for
auction. >> It definitely was because um >> wasn't some tool trying to buy it. I
don't remember who. >> I do. >> And uh I do too. >> But I don't remember like >> Matt R. We're looking at you.
>> But I don't see who I don't see like what happened. I just looked online. I don't know what the results of all that
was. >> Interesting. >> I'm just interested now. I'm like what's going on? You going to buy it?
>> Give me the condr, huh? You're like, "Hey, can I see a haunted location? Can I see some paperwork?"
>> What? Didn't Sam and Colby buy a haunted location? They bought a school. >> They bought a school.
>> I want to. >> So, yeah. The comment, I guess, didn't really necessarily come off as menacing
to Roger anyway. But something about it put Roger off and he was very uncomfortable.
>> Something about it. >> Probably just the comment. >> Probably just the cont. The whole
comment. >> Leave the lights on at night. I'd be like, first of all, that's expensive,
Mr. Kenyon. That's when he goes to walk and you go, "Hh, yeah. >> What does that mean?" And you do the
little finger wag like, "Wait a minute." >> Wait a minute. >> Hold up, brother. >> Brother,
what's that? >> So, from the moment that they the moment, >> this is an unhinged episode.
>> I know. From the moment, >> this is the conjuring in here. >> They moved into the old farmhouse.
Caroline was very surprised by how much noise that it made like when everything was quiet.
>> The house. >> Yeah. >> Oh, >> it wasn't that surprising. They moved in during the coldest part of the year and
every New Englander obviously knows like your house is going to be creaking and cracking.
>> The clinging, the clanging, the the creaking, the cracking, >> plumbing, old floors, what have you.
>> Oh yeah. I used to love when our family from like out of town, like John's family from out of town would come stay
over and they were like, "What the [ __ ] is that?" I was like, "Just house. >> Just the pipes.
>> It's just house. >> The house is settling. >> Don't worry about it." There's like a
random crack in our wall. I was like, "What the [ __ ] is that?" And Drew goes, "I don't know. The house settled."
>> I was like, "Oh, okay. That's good." >> Like, I don't know. It's New England.
>> But even by those standards, New England standards, the Greeks and groans from
the old house were definitely eerie and like they happened much more frequently than the usual ones.
>> The house was like sort of. And they were like, "That's new." >> They were like, "Huh." Now, it was all
the more noticeable since they never got any keys to the house when they moved in.
>> Yeah. Mr. Kenyon just was like, "I never locked the doors. No need. Nobody will
bother you here." >> Okay, I love that. But like I hate that. >> I love that nobody will bother you, but
I'd like no keys. >> But why? >> And also question. >> They had they had gone through a
breakin. >> Yeah. >> Like I'm going to lock everything. If you're buying somewhere
>> um like >> to get away from crime. >> Yeah. Get keys. or even if you're not moving there to get away from crime, if
you're if you're moving into a place, get keys >> and then change the locks. >> Yeah, definitely get those keys.
>> Now, a few weeks after they moved in, Caroline was surprised to learn that it
wasn't just her who had been hearing strange sounds in the house. One day, while she was home alone with April, who
was the youngest daughter, April was like, "Yeah, I hear [ __ ] upstairs all the time."
>> She was like, "Yeah, shit's going crazy." >> Yeah. And she was like, I think she was
like four or five, and she literally said like, "Shit's going crazy." She was like, "Mom, [ __ ] is popping the [ __ ] off
upstairs." The comment caught Caroline off guard and she didn't really know how to
respond cuz she doesn't want to scare her daughter, but she's like, "Oh, cool. You're hearing it, too."
>> Yeah. And she's like, "Where'd you learn those words?" >> She's like, "Damn, I better get the Dawn
dish soap out." >> So, by the time she got around to asking what kind of things April had heard in
her room, April was like distracted with something else cuz she's a kid. >> She's got to go learn new swear words.
>> She's got [ __ ] to do. >> So, she said that, too. She's like, "I have [ __ ] to do, Mom." So, one February
day when the older girls were were all at school and Caroline was home with April, she had just put April down for a
nap and she got this eerie feeling. She got used to all the noise that the house
made, the creaking, the popping, the sush, the dropping. They'd also heard hush talking from rooms.
>> My parents also hear that. >> We hear that too. I can't even like say that that's just them. I used to hear
that when I did, >> so they were used to that. But this time something was different. It felt like
there was somebody else in the house with her, but like it was a presence that she couldn't see, but she could for
sure feel. >> She said the air felt heavy, thick and dark. So she closed her eyes and she
tried to push the heavy feeling away and within a few minutes it passed. Later that afternoon, after the girls got home
from school, Caroline gave them some milk and cookies and she was like, "Go play like over here so you don't wake
April up cuz she's still sleeping." So doing as they were told, they went to the living room to play a game and eat
their snack. But they were interrupted a few minutes later by an unhappy and obviously still sleepy April. And she
wanted to know who the [ __ ] shook me in my goddamn sleep like that. >> Thinking that their sister was over
tired or just being silly, the other girls laughed, but they were immediately admonished by Carolyn, who was like not
very happy that April was up from her nap that early. >> So, she had been in the kitchen next to
the living room. She could see and hear the girls very clearly. Like, she knew all four of them were down there
playing. So, she also knew that none of them had gone upstairs to wake up April.
So, she pulled April onto her lap and she's trying to soo her. She's like, "Nobody touched you while you were
asleep. Like, they didn't none of the girls went into your room. It was probably just a bad dream." That
technique was usually successful. But on that afternoon, April could not be soothed. She was very upset. She
insisted that one of her sisters had slapped her and pushed her while she was sleeping and then ran out of the room.
>> And she said she could even hear their footsteps as they fled into the hallway.
That's terrifying. >> Yeah. So, seeing that April was genuinely upset and like inconsolable at
this point with what she'd experienced, the rest of the girls got more serious and they joined in trying to help calm
her down. >> Oh [ __ ] >> They all told her, "None of us went into your room. Like, you probably were
dreaming." >> But after a while, even Carolyn wasn't so sure that April was dreaming. Her
mind flashed back to the feeling that she had earlier that day putting April down for her nap, that she wasn't alone
in the room. And she was sure that if there was somebody else in the house, she would have noticed them by now.
After all, the house was not that big. >> And it also seemed like every floorboard
had its own noise. >> Yeah. >> But she still couldn't help but wonder. Was there something in the house with
them? >> Ooh. Yeah. >> You don't want to have to wonder that. >> You don't. It's probably on on the like
my top 10 list of things to not want to have to worry about. >> Yeah. I want to go my whole life
wondering. Not that. >> Yeah. So since moving in that second week of January, Roger had only been
able to enjoy the new house for a few days before he was back out on the road. So when he finally got home in
midFebruary, he was just eager to relax and enjoy the house. But from the moment
he got home, he could tell that something was off with Caroline. She seemed very troubled. That night, after
the girls went to bed, he was like, "What's going on? Like you seem super off." And it took a little work, but
eventually Caroline did start to tell him about the noises that she'd been hearing and the more recent unshakable
feeling that there was somebody in the house with them. He told her that the light in the house was definitely
strange and it even played tricks with his eyes, but it was probably just that. >> But the more he talked, the more
Caroline realized that she he didn't really understand what she was saying. No, >> it wasn't just that she had an
uncomfortable feeling like everybody gets from time to time. It was a genuine like feeling that there was actually
somebody else there with her >> watching her. So, it was obvious to Roger that Caroline was upset and
something had for sure frightened her. But whether it was his Catholic upbringing or just that he hadn't had
any experiences like that himself, he just couldn't bring himself to accept that anything was going on in the house.
It had to have been reasonable. He insisted that she just was spending too much time alone or maybe she was alone
with the kids and their imag imaginations too much. So throughout most of their ordeal in the house, this
was kind of Roger's like way of handling things. Yeah. According to Nickel, Roger
eventually seemed to acquies, possibly to promote domestic harmony, but he never appears to have truly believed the
claims from his wife and daughters. >> Interesting. >> Which is rude. >> It seems like he was accusing her of
aura farming. >> Yeah. >> This haunting. >> He He was saying, "Your aura points have
gone down a lot." Yeah. So, as winter turned to spring and then to summer, the noises continued and that feeling of
being watched would come over Caroline and the girls now every so often. >> In time, the area of the hallway that
connected the kitchen and the dining room became the least comfortable place in the house. The temperature
inexplicably fluctuated wildly between hot and cold. Like super super hot or absolutely freezing. See your breath
cold. And it didn't matter what the temperature was in the rest of the house. According to Andrea, the girls
always quote moved quickly through that corridor, unconsciously sensing the presence, always feeling watched within
the dark spaces. >> Ooh. >> As time passed, they started to share their own experiences with each other
and were kind of relieved to find that they weren't alone in what was going on. >> Yeah.
>> Andrea said nobody ever lingered too long near the cellar door. And that was because on the day they moved in, two of
the girls had seen what they thought was a man standing in the dark corner just beyond the door. And at the time they
dismissed it as like a shadow or like their dad said, a trick of the light. But over time, the heavy feeling that
they got around the cellar door and the sounds that came from the cellar convinced them that it wasn't an
illusion. >> Now, it was Cynthia who first encountered the full-blown apparition of
a man. >> I don't want to see an apparition of a man. >> Neither did Cynthia. >> Yeah. The school year had just started.
She was rushing to get her things together one morning so she wouldn't miss the bus. The bus driver was
literally out front like blaring the horn and she's trying to scoop everything up and make the make it in
time. But before she could get there, a quote silky smoky figure emerged from the cellar. So she had no time to even
react to what was going on and she just rushed headlong into it, which caused the mask to disappear in an invisible
and foul smelling cloud. >> Ew. A fart cloud. >> A fart cloud. Oh, >> gross. >> A paranormal fart cloud. E. Now, as soon
as the odor entered Cynthia's nostrils, the smell was apparently so overpowering
that it sent her into a coughing fit. Oh my god, go to the doctor. >> Yeah, well, she kind of did. She made it
out to the bus and she got to school on time. But within an hour of getting to school, she was exhausted. She couldn't
concentrate. She was falling asleep at her desk. So, the teacher sent her to the nurse cuz they were like, "What the
[ __ ] is going on?" >> They said, "I think you I think you inhaled a fart cloud. I think you
inested a paranormal fart cloud >> that we don't really have treatment for that. So I guess go home and sleep it
off. >> See that often? >> Yeah. >> But a short time later, Caroline picked her up and brought her home.
>> Oh [ __ ] >> So Cynthia's encounter didn't really result in much more than the symptoms of
a cold. But like the fact that that gave her a cold insane, >> she's got pink eye from a ghost.
>> But it was an indication that whatever they shared their home with could and would interact with them when it wanted
to. And those interactions might have physical consequences. >> Damn. >> A few days later, speaking of physical
consequences, Caroline was out in the barn clearing out some of the old objects that had been left behind. And
she had an encounter of her own. As she was working, she started to hear a kind of whoosh sound come from the hay loft
above her. Like a whooshing kind of like that. Yeah. Caroline wondered if it was
like a bird or an animal that was trapped up there. And she started to climb the ladder to try to help if it
was. Then out of nowhere, a hands scythe came flying in her direction from above.
What? So she tried to move or jump out of the way, but she felt like she was paralyzed. Like she literally couldn't
move. Now to her relief, the scythe struck the ground just inches from her foot.
>> Holy [ __ ] >> Which spared her any harm. But the question remained, who or what had
thrown a [ __ ] scythe in her direction. >> Yeah, that's [ __ ] >> She didn't know wow wow or high.
>> Wow or high. >> Or how or why. But the thing Caroline did know was that the implement had not
just fallen. It had clearly been thrown like with force. >> That's crazy. >> Now, from that point on is when the
activity in the house really escalated. The worst of it always coming when Roger
was away. One afternoon, a few weeks after the attack in the barn, there was a knock on the door. And when Carolyn
opened it, she was met by her neighbor, Mrs. Pedigrew, who knew that Roger was away and was just kind of stopping in to
be like, "How you doing?" So Caroline invited her in. She went upstairs to change and into more presentable
clothes. And Mrs. Pedigrew and the children sat in the kitchen eating the cake that she brought. And suddenly they
were startled by the sound of Carolyn screaming from the bedroom down the hall. >> Oh no.
>> Now rushing to her aid, they all burst in the room just in time to they all saw
this see her being whacked across the face head and neck with a wire coat hanger held in the air just like by some
unseen force. It was not Joan Crawford. >> No, it was not. >> No, >> she doesn't like wire hangers.
>> No, she doesn't. No wire hangers. >> No wire hangers. >> What the [ __ ] >> Yeah. So, seconds after they entered the
room, the coat hanger just dropped to the floor. Whatever had held it previously was gone. And Caroline was
just sitting there in tears, >> just having been hit with a wire hanger. >> But she's also saw this.
>> What's that? >> How many people saw this? >> Six people. Her five daughters and her
neighbor. [ __ ] >> Yeah. So frightened and kind of embarrassed. Caroline ushered everybody
out of the room and back down to the kitchen where they all just kind of sat awkwardly like nobody knew what to say.
And Mrs. Pedigrew was like, "I'm head." >> So she was like, "Thanks so much for the
coffee. Enjoy the cake. Peace out." Carolyn walked her out and but before Mrs. Pedigrew left, she turned and took
Caroline's hand and told her, "The Kenyons always kept the lights on overnight. All the lights every night."
>> That would [ __ ] me up. That would [ __ ] me up. >> For that to be the second comment about
like, you should keep your lights on at night. >> And just for like her to like take your
hand and just be like, you know, that wire hanger that just beat the [ __ ] out of you.
>> Yeah. >> The previous owners kept their lights on. Maybe think about that. >> Maybe you should do that.
>> Like, no. >> Maybe the wire hangers wouldn't come for you, babe. >> Maybe. Maybe not. Who knows?
>> I don't know. Who's to say? >> So then she just let go of Caroline's hand, walked in the direction of her
house, and quite literally never came back for another visit. >> Honestly, I don't blame her. She was
like, "That house is not for me, dog." >> Rancid, >> she said, "It's oral points are low."
>> Yeah. >> So, in the months that followed, the parent family kind of just fell into a
regular routine, living alongside whatever the [ __ ] was in their house and doing their best to carry on while still
enduring strange events and strange encounters. With Roger away most of the time, Carolyn and the girls were left to
fend for themselves. And when he would return, there was always the inevitable disappointment when he refused to
believe their stories of the haunting. Yeah, the experiences themselves were incredibly stressful, but Roger's
skepticism seemed to make everything worse. According to Joe Nickel, Caroline came to feel as though she was being
overtly challenged by Roger's disbelief. As though her opinion was entirely irrelevant, her recounting of events
fraudulent. Well, it would piss me off if John just straight up didn't believe me. I'd be like, "Okay, that sucks."
Like, that would piss me off. >> I would be very upset. >> Yeah. So, the tension that grew between
Roger and Carolyn acted as kind of a wedge between them and only pushed them farther apart from each other. And that
was when Carolyn really needed a lot of support. >> Yeah. Things took a turn for the worse
when in the absence of her husband's emotional support, Carolyn turned to a neighbor, Sam, as a kind of confidant.
There's no indication that their relationship was anything but platonic. >> Thank you for that.
>> You betcha. No, Caroline's a queen. >> My my like my reality television show head just went. And with that being
said, team Sierra. >> Oh yeah, I don't even watch it in team Sierra, >> period. You're on the right side of
history. >> So they were like platonic. But just the fact that his wife had started sharing
her ghost stories with people outside of the house and a man, another man at that.
>> Yeah. >> Felt kind of like a betrayal to Roger. But it's also like I don't know, maybe
believe your wife. >> Believe her. Make her feel heard. >> And all your kids are saying this, too.
Like >> Exactly. >> But through sharing her story, Caroline finally started to feel some sense of
support. and she also started moving towards finding some answers. Now, despite their growing inability to
communicate with each other, Roger and Caroline just kind of carried on their lives like there was nothing wrong in
their relationship. It was the '7s. You know, >> when he was home, Roger was present, not
necessarily warm, but there. And his being home helped Caroline feel a little bit safer. One night, a few years into
their time at the house, Roger said, "You know what? Why don't we get a babysitter? We'll go out for a date.
Like, we need a little action here." >> So, they went out. They had a nice night
together. They got home a little after midnight. Roger thanked the babysitter, paid them. Caroline went upstairs,
checked in on the girls. Everything seemed normal, and then they went to bed. A few hours later, Caroline was
awoken by the sounds of footsteps near their door in her bedroom. She obviously assumed it was one of her five children.
So, she called out without opening her eyes, like, "Who is it? What can I do for you? What you need? What's up,
girl?" And she got no response. So she groggly opened her eyes and saw the grotesque figure of a woman standing
before her staring directly into her eyes from across the room. >> That's so much worse than a kid.
>> Yeah. >> She was also completely paralyzed. >> Oh. >> And her eyes just rapidly scanned the
entity in front of her looking for any indication of what the [ __ ] it might want.
>> A grotesque woman. >> Yeah. She said the age of the woman was difficult to discern, but based on her
outfit, she knew that she was not of a modern era. >> Her dress was a quote rusty green jersey
handmade handdyed fabric cinched at the waist with a belt. And her hairstyle was
slightly more modern. It kind of looked like a beehive, but it wasn't as well quafted because she's grotesque
>> and presumably dead. >> Yeah. Now, worst of all was the way that her body was contorted and twisted. Her
neck seemed to have been snapped, causing her head to tilt at an unnatural angle.
>> Oh, I remember hearing this one. >> And she stared greyeyed and unblinking at Caroline.
>> Ooh. >> Isn't there I seem to remember that there's like a drawing on like a wall or
something that one of the kids did of that lady. >> Yeah, it is. It's literally It's [ __ ]
It's like silly, but it's scary because you know like what it results from. >> That's [ __ ] up.
>> Yeah. And it was found on furniture like by new owners of the house later. >> And it's just the lady with like her
crazy bent neck. >> Yeah, we'll take a we'll put a picture in there. >> Yeah, that's [ __ ] scary.
>> In the in the carousel on Instagram. At first to Caroline, cuz remember she just
woke up out of nowhere to this. At first, it seemed like this woman was like floating in the darkness. But once
her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, she could see that the woman wasn't floating. She was crouched inside
of the bureau across the room. The doors flung open on both sides to reveal the full extent of Miss Girl's hideousness
>> of our girly. >> Yeah. >> Like what the [ __ ] >> Yeah. In her mind, Caroline imagined
herself shrieking, but no matter how loud she was yelling in her mind, nothing would come out of her mouth.
>> That's the worst. >> So, she watched in frozen terror as the woman thing at the other end of the room
climbed out of the bureau and started slowly moving toward her in the dark. Oh, finally feeling like the paralysis
was slipping, she started kicking Roger. But the blows must have been too soft to
register because stupid Roger didn't wake up. It was only when the thing was directly in front of her. One of its
arms literally laying across her pillow that she finally regained the functionality to move away from the
thing and it started leaning its gray face towards hers. So, she shot back against her headboard
with such force that the metal of the headboard slammed into the wall. And she said it was so loud that it should have
woken up everybody, but nobody came running and Roger stayed asleep. >> Holy [ __ ]
>> To her surprise, the only person that did seem to respond to the noise of the
clanging bed frame was the figure of the woman. Pressed as far back against the wall as she could be, she just watched
in shock as the figure started to dissolve before her eyes, leaving behind a cloudy residue and a terrible odor.
>> Oh, everyone's so stinky. >> Stank ass. >> Why is everyone so stinky? >> Girl, you stank. Take a bath. You stank.
Take a >> I don't know. >> So terrified and wanting to get out of that room ASAP, she just scooped up her
pillow and went to the living room to sleep on the couch. She was like, "You know what?" She was like, "I don't want
to deal with this." >> Yeah. She's like, "You know what? Roger's probably not going to believe me
if I tell him what just happened inches away from him." But there's no doubt in her mind their house was haunted. And
whatever it was, it was not friendly. >> So, in the days after the attack, >> stanky. What's that?
>> And stanky. >> And stanky. Not friendly and stanky. Horrible combination. >> Yeah.
>> So, in the days after the attack in the bedroom, the dam broke and Caroline started learning what her daughters were
experiencing in the house. Andrea told her, "I see shadows in my bedroom, even when the moon is small in the dark."
Ooh. The other girls had experiences, too. Their bed shook in the middle of the night. Toys moved across the room.
Shapeless figures stared at them from the dark corners. The worst was the way that the thing had approached Cindy. Not
as a menacing figure, but with tenderness. Cindy told her mom, "She loves me, Mom. She wants me to be
friends with her." >> Oh my god, this sounds that's very amityville. >> It really is. So Caroline said, "Fuck
that. I got to do something to protect myself and my babies. Roger's not going to believe us, and he's not going to
like sell our house and move even if he does." >> So I need to figure out how to make this
happen. >> Exactly. So that's a mama. >> That's a mama. So she reached out to her
good buddy Platonic Sam and told him >> love Platonic Sam. >> We do, too. Uh she told him about the
thing, and as they were talking, April looked up from the TV, pointed at the door to the cellar, and just said,
"Something real [ __ ] bad happened in there. And then she turned back to the TV like
she hadn't just dropped that lore. >> What the? >> Now, in case you weren't catching on,
I'm just like making her swear because we started that bit and it's funny. >> But she literally was like, "Something
real bad happened." >> She said something bad happened in there >> and then just like went back to the TV.
>> I'm not sure how I would recover from that as a honest like there's a lot of things I
can handle. >> That might be the moment I say, "Well, I guess I guess we're camping out." Like I
don't >> No. No. I was literally just going to say I might camp in nearby woods before
I spent another night there. >> Something real bad happened in there >> would [ __ ] me up on a level I can't
describe. It makes me think of the [ __ ] six sense. >> Yep. >> That [ __ ] cabinet.
>> Yep. >> And like and they lock them. I can't even think of that scene cuz that scene that scene scared
the the voice in that [ __ ] cabinet. The growl. Oh my god. >> No, I hate it. >> That just makes me think of it.
>> I hate it. Guys, do you know that Mikey's never seen The Six Sense? >> He doesn't know.
>> He doesn't know. We should show you that. It's such a good movie, but it's so [ __ ] up.
>> We got to show you. >> So, shocked by the statement, Carolyn and Sam were like, "Okay, given
everything we know, the seller seems like the most obvious source of the haunting." So, Sam headed out cuz he was
like, "Wow, this place is freaky as fuck." But I burped. He agreed that he would do some research and get back to
her. >> Okay. Finally, a few weeks later, he returned and among other things, he had
looked into whether there was like a legal loophole that might get them out of the mortgage. I realized I said
loophole weird. >> Okay. >> I was like, are we let that just fly by or we >> No, I didn't want to reset it, but I
realized I said it weird. Loophole. >> Loophole. >> Loo. >> There might be a legal loophole.
>> My nose is like popping. I don't know. So, in some states, if the seller had withheld any pertinent information from
the buyer at the time of the sale, that could nullify the contract. Unfortunately, that's not the case in
Rhode Island, or at least it wasn't back then. Caroline shared the information with Roger when he got back from another
work trip, but he was just not interested in hearing it. Andrea said he wasn't having the same experience as we
were having. And when he did come home exhausted, the last thing he wanted to hear was my mother saying, "Roger, I
think we have ghosts." >> I mean, yeah, but like, >> come on. Come on, man. >> Come on, Raj.
>> Come on, Raj. >> Now, years passed and the women in the parent house continued to be attacked
and terrified by all manner of scary [ __ ] while Roger just remained free of any harassment. I don't know if they
were just like, he's not worth it. He's not here. >> They were like, he doesn't care. So,
that's not fun. >> I feel like that would be fun. I'd [ __ ] him up if I was a girl.
>> I know. I'd be like, I'm going to make you believe. >> Oh, yeah. So, in time, Caroline
continued looking for an explanation. In that time, she continued looking for an
explanation for the experiences. And one day she found it in an old story once shared by the locals but mostly
forgotten by the time that they had moved into the town. She'd been visiting a local general store and she was
chitchatting with the owner, a lifelong local named Fran. Cuz that's what a lifeline a lifelong lifelong local is
named. >> Oh, hell yeah. I mean in I'm pretty sure in Gilmore Girls there's a lifelong
local named Fran. >> Yeah, there is a lifelong local name. Say lifelong local five times.
>> Lifelong local. That's hard. >> Five times. That's I don't think I can do it.
>> Yeah, I don't blame you. >> So, she's chitchatting with Fran and she finds herself telling Fran about, you
know, you tell Fran whatever you need to. >> Oh, you tell Fran everything. >> Exactly. So, she's like, "Hey, I was
attacked by a ghost woman in my house recently." >> Oh, yeah. Fran's going to take that.
She's going to >> No, she literally >> She'll know what to do. >> To Caroline's surprise, Fran knew
something about the house that nobody had ever told the family. >> It had once been the home of a woman
named Bath Sheba Sherman, and her neighbors believed that she was a witch. >> Oh, hell yeah.
>> I'm obsessed. Let's go. >> According to local legend, Bath Sheba had been a member of the Arnold family
who lived in the house all those years ago. And she was said to be in league with the devil and had sacrificed
sacrificed a child to Satan in exchange for power. >> Oh, she's a yucky one. >> No. No. When she was arrested, Bath
Sheba claimed that the child died in an in the case was dismissed. >> Oh, >> but still the rumors persisted around
town and she became an outcast, left alone in her house to her black magic. >> Oh, no. It was this Fran suggested that
was likely the source of the haunting. If the stories were true and Bath Sheba had in fact sacrificed a child, surely
an act so evil would leave a permanent stain on the land and the house. >> Oh, hell yeah it would.
>> And while there was literally no evidence to support that belief, Caroline said, "Yeah, I bet that
happened at my house." >> I mean, here's the thing. There's a lot of [ __ ] going on in that house.
>> Mhm. >> And then the kids saying something bad happened in there in the >> She wants to be my friend. all the
stinky fart smells, all the, you know, the scythes getting thrown at you. >> I might s I might, that might be my
first thought, too. It's like, you know what? I bet somebody did do some [ __ ] up [ __ ] like that in my head.
>> Oh, I would absolutely think so. >> I'd be like, that that's enough evidence for me.
>> I'd take it. So, knowing the potential origin of the haunting was one thing, but that still didn't help Caroline
solve the problem. They still had to live there. >> Then, one day in early fall of 1973,
help came from an unexpected place. By then, Caroline had been pretty open with a lot of people at that point about what
was happening in the house, including a friend who recently attended a lecture by paranormal investigator. Say it with
me now, Ed and Lorraine Warren. >> Oh, I've never heard of them. What? No. >> Are they Are they wellknown?
>> Yeah, they're like people know about them, >> are they good at what they do? >> They are. Nobody can argue that they're
good at what they do. >> Are they charlatans, perhaps? >> Oh my god, that word literally gets used
later. >> Holy [ __ ] listen to you. So yeah, maybe >> maybe Yeah. So at the time the Warren
actually hadn't really reached the level of notoriety that they have now that they really came to notoriety after
Amityville, I think. >> Oh yeah. Then they became the Warren. >> Exactly. They were not the Warren at
that point. They were just Ed and Loren Warren. Adorable couple. >> Yeah. >> So they were also easily accessible at
this point and they lived close by cuz they lived I think they lived in Rhode Island.
>> Oh [ __ ] They got in on the ground floor with Ed and Lorraine. >> Carolyn did. So, she placed a call to
the couple and they agreed. They said, "Hell yeah, I'll come down to your house." So, they tooured the house. They
reviewed the notes and the research that Caroline had pulled together and after doing so, Lorraine Warren agreed that
there was definitely an evil presence living amongst them. >> I mean, I'm with her on that.
>> Same. >> You know, >> after hearing the story about Bath Sheba, Lorraine informed the parents
that it was she who was the quote lone demonic presence in the house and all the other paranormal activity was drawn
to her or commanded by her. >> Oh [ __ ] so grateful that somebody was finally taking her plight seriously. A
wave of relief washed over Caroline when Lorine not only believed her but also said, "Hey, I think we can help you
here." Oh, hell yeah. Unfortunately, what Caroline thought was a story shared in confidence soon turned out to be
anything but. Ed and Lorraine definitely would do their best to help the family,
but they also would create a public spectacle that would benefit them more than the parents.
>> Yeah. And at that point, there was no knowledge of their uh wy ways with the media.
>> Uhhuh. >> Yeah. >> So before Caroline even knew what was happening, there were strangers showing
up outside of her house all the time to get a look at the haunted house. Every few days, ghost hunters were arriving at
the door offering their services. Um, one ghost hunter included a man who insisted that he could solve the problem
with quote, "Only one tool of the trade in his hand, his holy Bible." I don't think you can do that.
>> He didn't. It was only later that Carolyn and Roger found out that in between their first meeting and their
last one, Ed and Lorraine shared their story at an unknown number of lectures given around New England.
>> Oh, Ed and Lorraine. >> So, they were just like, "Hey, this address in Harris Harrisburg or
Harrisburg address." >> Yeah. This place in [ __ ] Rhode Island, go see it. Check it out. In
October, Ed and Lorraine came back to the house for what uh Carolyn was told would be a seance, but what turned out
to be what Joe Nickel described as part of a ghost hunting session with lots of cumbersome equipment and part intended
exorcism, including in addition to a medium, shaman, holy woman, and a parasychologist and also a priest. Whoa.
So, she was like, I thought we were just having a seance. Who are all these people?
>> Yeah, I thought we were just sitting around with some candles. >> Yeah. So she was scared about Roger's
reaction initially, so she didn't tell him about the seance. >> Oh, no. >> Until the Warren got there to perform
said seance. >> Oh, babe. >> And Roger was livid. >> Yeah. I mean, here's the thing.
>> You got to inform everybody of your >> seance. I too would be pissed if a seance was occurring without my
knowledge. >> Yeah. But he would have stopped the seance. So, I get both sides. >> He would. That's the thing. I understand
that she didn't want to say anything because he would have been like, "We're not doing a [ __ ] seance."
>> And she needed to do a [ __ ] seance >> and you need to do a [ __ ] seance. But
I can understand. I would also be aggravated if it's complicated >> if people if Ed and Lorraine Warren
showed up at my house with seance accut and like a whole entourage >> of seance people
>> of like seance people and like holy men and women. >> Yeah. >> Just unannounced and John was like I
might have set this up. >> I don't like unexpected. >> I'd be like >> sick idea.
>> Yeah. >> But you have to tell me ahead of time. >> I don't even like when solar panel
people show up at my house unexpectedly. So I get it. >> I don't like any of that,
>> you know. So he was pissed, but he was like, "Okay, do your seance." >> At least he was like, "Do your science."
You know, >> but he was he was pretty pissed about it. I mean, so over the course of the
evening, Ed and Lorraine, with the help of all of their entourage, guided Carolyn through a ritual cleansing
intended to drive Bath Sheba out of the house. Huh. >> During the cleansing, Caroline started
mumbling incoherently, and a quote low-pitched guttural utterance emerged from deep within her being as her
quaking body trembled in place. Holy [ __ ] Yeah, lots was going on. >> Wow. >> After lots of shouting, prayer, and
exorcism of what they were told was the demon that had entered Caroline's body, Roger had had enough. And he tried to
intervene in what he thought was a hoax. But when he stepped forward, Ed tried to
pull away from the exorcism, tried to pull him away, and that caused Roger to whip around and punch Ed directly in the
face, dropping him down to the ground. Bam! Ed went down. I was just going to >> Roger super [ __ ]
>> I'll send you a copy. >> Yeah. So, seeing her husband bleeding from the face.
>> Oh no. >> Lorraine ran to his side and started wiping the blood and Roger used the
break and the chaos to demand that everybody get the [ __ ] out of his house. >> Yeah. He said, "This is getting crazy."
>> And with that, the seance came to an end. >> Oh no. >> Now, in her memoirs, Andrea Parn
recalled her father's demeanor after the Warren and the others left that night. She said he bitterly resented the
intrusion, the theatrical farce of pseudo intellectual endeavor. Ooh. He also called the entire scene ritual
ritualistic nonsense and shouted at his wife, "Do you realize you're being played by a pair of two bit charlatans?"
>> Charlatans. >> I told you. >> I mean, >> that's You shouldn't yell at your wife.
>> You shouldn't yell at your wife. What he said was a little bit valid. >> Was he correct? Maybe. But I like
>> that's not nice. But like whatever, Roger, >> cuz obviously something is going on in
this house. >> If she's that desperate to get rid of it. Exactly. >> And these kids are feeling it. The kids
are saying [ __ ] Things going down. She's a mama trying to help her children. >> I'm team Carolyn.
>> Me, too. Thank you. >> You know, >> now at the time, his behavior and his perspective seemed unwarranted, but at
as an adult now, Andrea kind of gets where he was coming from giving given the circumstances. According to her,
later in life, Roger quote admitted that he didn't want to believe his wife because he didn't want to think that he
had put his family in a perilous situation with the purchase of the house. >> I wondered if there was some like guilt.
>> I think so >> going on there and and also that he's not home a lot to protect them. So,
>> I definitely think >> he doesn't want to believe that there's any kind of danger that's happening that
he can't be around to help, >> right? He probably like put it out of his head and and just not reacting in a
way that is >> telling us that. >> Yeah, it's the ' 70s. He's a man. What's he to do?
>> What's he to do? So, after the seance, things did seem to calm down in the house, but the activity never did
completely. They kept living in the house until 1980 when they finally decided it was time to move. Andrea
said, "My mother told my father she would not survive another winter in that house. She'd been under attack in that
house for 10 years." >> Damn, you must be tired after that. >> Yeah. In the decades since they moved
out, other people have lived in the house, and nobody's reported supernatural activity that's lived
there. Non-supnatural harassment, on the other hand, has been occurring regularly
since the parents story was made public. Uh, reaching a peak with The Conjuring in 2013, that movie that was released. I
don't know if you've heard of it. >> According to former homeowner Norma Sutcliffe, she and her husband were
quote plagued by a Conjuring instigated siege of their property. >> That's included countless uh harassing
phone calls and people just randomly showing up at their house. Damn. >> Which is shitty.
>> Yeah. As for Andrea, who has now had decades to consider her own experiences and her family's experiences, she kind
of lands somewhere in between skeptic Joe Nickel and true believers Ed and Lorraine Warren.
>> Okay. >> She definitely believes that the house was haunted, but when it comes to the
cause, she's not sure. >> Yeah, I could see that. >> The release of the film based loosely on
her family's experiences uh prompted a significant interest, too, in the legend of Bath Sheba Sherman, who Andrea and
local historians now believe was unfairly maligned. Oh, Bath Sheba. >> Yeah, not only by history, but also by
the Warren. In a recent interview, Andrea said, "Essentially, Bath Sheba cpped the blame for everything evil."
And it simply wasn't the case. >> A not long after moving out of the house, Carolyn and Roger divorced, and
they went their separate ways, but they both did their best to maintain positive
relationships with their kids. >> That's good. >> And they occasionally appear in uh media
relating to the to the haunting, but they lived their lives mostly out of the spotlight.
>> Oh, good for them. >> Yeah, >> I'm glad they live. They kind of just separated from it.
>> Yeah, me too. I think it was for the best. And I really do believe that this was like I do I think Roger reacted
great in all those circumstanc It was a little poor. >> But I do think Andrea, like the
daughter, is correct. That probably was a lot >> of guilt. >> Oh yeah, an underlying guilt thing for
sure. I want to go to the Conjuring House so badly. >> I want to too. And they said, I know. I forgot about that.
>> John got me tickets to go there and have a medium there. >> That would have been sick.
>> For our anniversary >> and then he had to go and get vertigo. >> And then he got a horrible case of
vertigo. >> Yeah. >> And we couldn't go. You and I should have gone. >> I know. On our on my anniversary. He
honestly wanted us to. >> So yeah, that's my story of the Conjuring House. But yeah, Karin and
Sabrina spent the night there. >> Yeah. I forget what they said. I remember they said it was definitely
like [ __ ] >> They felt some [ __ ] >> Yeah. >> Yeah. I want to go, but I think I don't
I can you go now? >> Yeah. It leads you to like a weird empty page. So I don't think you can go. If
you look on the Google page, like the homepage way, when you search it, it says closed temporarily.
>> Well, temporarily. >> Yeah, >> at least there's that. >> I would like to go. >> I want to go. Maybe we'll go.
>> But yeah, that's crazy. >> It is. I am by it. >> But I love haunted episodes. They're so
much fun. >> I love hauntings. I know they're horrifying for the people who live
through them, but I >> I love hearing them. >> I really love hearing the stories of
hauntings. So guys, we hope that you love us and we hope that you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird,
but not so much that you also don't love hauntings. >> Yeah, love hauntings. >> Love them cuz it's almost spooky season.
>> Oh my god, we're so close. >> We're so close. We're out of winter. That means it's spooky season.
>> Only like 5 and 1/2 months. >> Oh, that's [ __ ] nothing. Zero. >> Less than half a year.
>> All right, party. We're here. It's Halloween.

When Carolyn and Roger Perron moved into a small farmhouse in Harrisville, Rhode Island, they thought they’d found the perfect house in which to raise their five daughters and enjoy the rest of their lives. Before long, the Perron’s dream home turned into a nightmare. It started small—disembodied voices, unpleasant odors—but soon the unpleasant and obnoxious experiences developed into an all-out attack of ghostly apparitions, assaults from unseen hands, and the presence of something far worse than the spirits of the undead.

At first, the Perron family ignored or dismissed the various incidents that disturbed them, but after several years in the house, the experiences had become too numerous and too severe to dismiss. Faced with the unimaginable scenario of losing their house to forces beyond their comprehension, the Perron’s decided to fight back.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

Read an excerpt from THE BUTCHER LEGACY on Crime Reads RIGHT NOW!!

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References

Langston, Keith. 2024. The True Story Behind The Conjuring: Where Is the Perron Family Now? October 20. Accessed March 26, 2026. https://people.com/the-conjuring-true-story-8645388.

Nickell, Joe. 2016. "Dispelling Demons: Detective Work at The Conjuring House." Skepticakl Inquirer 20-24.

Nickell, Joe. 2014. "The Conjuring: Ghosts? Poltergeist? Demons?" Skeptical Inquirer 22-25.

Perron, Andrea. 2013. House of Darkness, House of Light, vol. 2. Providence, RI: AuthorHouse.

—. 2011. House of Darkness: House of Light, vol. 1. Providence, RI: AuthorHouse.

Rhode Island Governor's Justice Commission. 1995.

Highlights and Analysis from 25 Years Collecting Serious Crime Data.

Data analysis, Providence, RI: Rhode Island Statistical Analysis Center.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022) Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023) Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025) Listener Tale Theme Music licensed from https://www.purple-planet.com Main Theme: Matti Paalanen — Trick or Treat — Provided by Jamendo Ad Music: Title: Artist: BlueJay Studio — Spooky Waltz — Provided by Jamendo

Brief Summary

The episode details the Parin Family Haunting, the inspiration for the Conjuring films, and the family's terrifying experiences in their Rhode Island home.

Key points

The Butcher Legacy Excerpt. Excited about The Butcher Legacy? Read an excerpt now!
Tragic Loss of Bath Sheba. The family's puppy, Bath Sheba, is tragically killed, impacting the girls deeply.
Cumberland's Crime Wave. A juvenile crime wave hits Cumberland, making the community feel unsafe.
Aura Farming Explained. Aura farming is the act of trying to boost one's cool image, often seen as cringe.
Caroline's Bold Decision. Despite financial concerns, Caroline schedules a showing for a house she believes is perfect for her family.
Strange Noises in the House. Caroline discovers her daughter hears strange sounds, confirming her own suspicions about the house.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Damn.

2:11WatchApr 3, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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