We all know the names of Ed and Lorraine Warren. Not just because of The Conjuring franchise but also through the paranormal field. After their passing, what is their legacy?

Who Are The Warrens?

Although the paranormal research couple have passed on, Ed and Lorraine Warren are still one of America’s most valued experts on demonology and spirits. It’s not just those interested in the occult world that have turned towards the Warrens for help, but also religious authorities.

In 1952 Ed and Lorraine Warren founded the New England Society of Paranormal Research. Ed was a trained demonologist, Lorraine was a trance medium, and together they were the paranormal research couple.

The First Case That Made The Big Screen

The Warrens’ first case was in 1968 when a student nurse received a Raggedy Ann doll from her mother as a present for graduating from nursing school. Almost immediately, the doll moved around the house and did strange things. 

The girls were initially told that the doll inhabited the spirit of a little girl named Annabelle. The two roommates tried to accept the doll, but soon, the doll started being malicious and turned to violence. 

At that point, the Warrens were called in to help, and they pronounced the doll demonically possessed. That doll now resides in their museum behind a glass case where it can’t hurt anyone anymore. This story was used as a basis for the three movies “Annabelle.”

Two Other Cases That Made The Big Screen

Their second case in 1973 was The Perron Family, who inspired the first movie, The Conjuring, in 2013, which Lorraine Warren consulted on. Situated in Harrisville, Rhode Island, the family moved into what they thought would be their dream home. 

The home ended up being haunted by a 19th-century witch named Bathsheba Sherman. The Warrens believed the witch who cursed the land had suffered an untimely death.

One of the most famous cases in paranormal history is The Amityville Horror, which occurred in 1974. I didn’t realize that the Warrens also consulted on this case. The story begins when twenty-three-year-old Ronald DeFeo Jnr shot and killed his parents and four siblings while they slept in their beds. 

One year later, George and Kathleen Lutz ended up buying the house. The couple only stayed in the house for twenty-eight days before being terrorized out of their home by a demonic spirit. Five months after the Lutz family moved out, the Warrens investigated the house. 

They found a demonic boy at the bottom of the staircase and concluded an evil supernatural entity inhabited the house due to its violent history. Whereas most movies that feature this house focus on the murders, The Conjuring 2 featured aspects of Warren’s involvement with this case and the house.

What The Warrens Brought To Horror Cinema

The Warrens have consulted on famous cases and some lesser ones. The murder case titled The Demon Murder Trial of 1981 was one of the smaller cases they worked on. The case revolves around Arne Johnson, who stabbed his landlord, Alan Bono, in Brookfield, Connecticut, in the United States.

It was the first time a murder case occurred in a small town. Arne Johnson’s lawyer hired the Warrens to prove the boy was possessed to prove demons exist and could possess people and manipulate them into committing murder. However, there was no way to prove demons were, in fact, real, so the judge found Arne Johnson guilty of manslaughter, and he served five years.

Throughout their paranormal research lives, the Warrens collected items from their cases. From there, they built their own little museum of oddities and curiosities. The eccentric collection includes items such as the Annabelle doll, an alleged vampire’s coffin, and a child’s tombstone used as a satanic ritual.

Ed Warren passed away in 2006, and the museum was run by their son-in-law Tony, daughter Judy, and Lorraine. This was until 2019, when Lorraine passed away, and the town closed the museum due to zoning laws. The items are now being displayed in other museums and conventions around the United States.

Paula