Annabelle: The Possessed Raggedy Ann Doll

Among the most famous possessed objects in the world is a Raggedy Ann doll named Annabelle, now housed in a specially built case at the Warren’s Occult Museum in Connecticut. The doll’s case bears a prominent warning: “Positively Do Not Open.” According to demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren, Annabelle is responsible for at least one death and countless incidents of harm to those who have disrespected or mocked her.

The Beginning

In 1970, a nursing student named Donna received the doll as a birthday gift from her mother. Donna lived in an apartment with her roommate Angie. Initially, nothing seemed unusual about the vintage Raggedy Ann doll.

Within weeks, the women noticed strange occurrences. The doll seemed to move on its own. They would leave it in one position and return to find it had changed posture. At first, the movements were subtle—a leg crossed differently, an arm raised. Then the doll began appearing in different rooms entirely.

Donna and Angie found the doll’s movements disturbing but tried to rationalize them. Perhaps they were misremembering where they had left it. But the phenomena escalated.

Escalating Activity

The roommates began finding pieces of parchment paper in the apartment with childish writing on them. The messages said things like “Help us” and “Help Lou.” Neither woman had parchment paper in the apartment. They could not explain where the notes came from.

Lou, Angie’s boyfriend, was uneasy around the doll from the beginning. He told the women it was evil and begged them to get rid of it. They dismissed his concerns.

One night, Lou had a nightmare. He dreamed he woke unable to move, and the doll was climbing up his leg toward his chest. He woke in terror. Later, visiting the apartment alone, Lou heard movement in a room. Investigating, he felt sudden, searing pain on his chest. His shirt was torn and he was bleeding from seven distinct claw marks—four horizontal, three vertical.

The Medium’s Involvement

Concerned, Donna contacted a medium, who held a séance with the doll. The medium reported that the spirit of a young girl named Annabelle Higgins inhabited the doll. Annabelle had died on the property where their apartment complex now stood, at age seven. She felt comfortable with the nursing students and wanted to stay with them.

Moved by this story, Donna and Angie gave the spirit permission to inhabit the doll. This, according to later investigators, was a terrible mistake.

The Warrens’ Investigation

The activity intensified following the séance. A priest who heard about the case contacted Ed and Lorraine Warren, well-known paranormal investigators. The Warrens agreed to investigate.

After examining the case, the Warrens reached a disturbing conclusion. The doll was not possessed by a human spirit. Instead, they believed, a demonic entity was using the doll to gain access to a human host. The spirit had pretended to be an innocent child to manipulate the compassionate nursing students into giving it permission to stay.

The Warrens arranged for Father Cooke to perform a blessing on the apartment. They then took the doll, believing it needed to be kept under careful observation.

Transport Incidents

The trip home proved eventful. Ed Warren initially placed the doll on the passenger seat. During the drive, the car repeatedly stalled and the power steering failed, nearly causing accidents. Ed sprinkled the doll with holy water. The disturbances stopped, but both Warrens sensed malevolent attention focused on them.

At the Warrens’ home, the doll continued acting out. It would appear in different rooms of the house. It levitated. It was blamed for various mishaps.

A visitor to the Warren home allegedly mocked the doll, challenging it to harm him. On his way home, his motorcycle crashed. He died instantly.

The Occult Museum

The Warrens eventually had a special case built for Annabelle. The glass enclosure is lined with passages from scripture and blessed regularly by a priest. The doll has remained in this case since the 1970s, now housed in the Warren’s Occult Museum in Monroe, Connecticut.

Visitors to the museum report feeling uncomfortable near the case. Some experience nausea, dizziness, or an overwhelming sense of dread. Others feel the doll is watching them, following them with its button eyes.

The Warrens established strict protocols around Annabelle. The case is never to be opened. No one is to touch the doll. Priests bless the case regularly. Despite these precautions, the Warrens claimed the doll remained active, moving within its case and projecting malevolence.

Pop Culture Impact

Annabelle became one of the Warrens’ most famous cases, featured in books and lectures. The doll inspired the “Annabelle” character in “The Conjuring” film franchise, though the movies portray it as a different type of doll for dramatic effect.

The original Raggedy Ann doll, with its cheerful yarn hair and triangle nose, seems almost more disturbing than the porcelain doll of the films. The contrast between its innocent appearance and its alleged malevolence is deeply unsettling.

Skeptical Analysis

Skeptics have questioned every aspect of the Annabelle case. The original events cannot be verified beyond the testimony of those involved. The Warrens’ reputation has been challenged by critics who consider them frauds.

The doll’s current containment makes investigation impossible. It sits behind glass, allegedly too dangerous to touch, conveniently unable to be examined scientifically.

Legacy

Whether Annabelle is truly possessed by a demonic entity, whether the original incidents were exaggerated or fabricated, or whether some other explanation applies, the doll has achieved legendary status in paranormal circles. It remains one of the most famous allegedly possessed objects in the world.

The Warren’s Occult Museum has been closed since Lorraine Warren’s death in 2019, and Annabelle’s future is uncertain. But the legend of the demonic Raggedy Ann doll continues to fascinate and terrify, a reminder that malevolence can lurk in the most innocent-seeming forms.