The house was owned by a family called the Herrmann's. The supposed supernatural activity occurred in 1958 with many witnesses such as a Newsday reporter, a detective, the family, and others. Strange things happened in the house such as bottle tops popping off of containers. Items in the house breaking were frequently breaking and flying across rooms. One of the reasons why this story made it so big was the large number of witnesses. The reporting of the events of this house made the word "poltergeist" into a household word.
J Gaither Pratt of Duke University came to the house to investigate with Mr. William G. Roll, Jr. They took the events very seriously. A book was written about their investigation of the house called, the "Poltergeist."
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The Poltergeist book about the Long Island haunting. On the right, the Poltergeist movie.
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The house was located 1648 Redwood Path, Seaford, NY. This is at the other side of where the greatest number of Indians were killed on Long Island from where the famous Amityville house is located. The two movie made famous by the two separate movie series are a few minutes drive from each other. The great number of Indians were killed near the corner of Merrick and Cedar Shore Roads in Massapequa by John Underhill in 1653. In both the Amityville case and the Poltergeist case an angry Indian chief was killed. This killing was done on behalf of the Dutch. The most famous Sachem (Chief) of the Massapequa Indians was Sachem Tackapausha who sold a large part of the area in 1658. Some point to Tackapausha as being the angry Indian chief that caused the disturbances in what became the Amityville Horror movie, and later the Poltergeist movie.
Some of the activities at the the poltergeist house was seen by Detective Joseph Tozzi and Newsday reporter David Kahn. David Kahn said in a Newsday article called, A Home's Bad Vibration that "A British reporter saw a flashbulb leap from an end table, carom into drapes and bounce twice on the floor. A Nassau County detective, Joseph Tozzi, twice heard noises, ran into adjoining rooms, and found that a sugar bowl in the dinette had flipped three feet and that a porcelain statuette had flown 10 feet across the living room and smashed into a wooden secretary. I myself several times heard and once observed an event."
I find it very interesting that two series of
movies were inspired by families living in the same suburban area. The same
Indian Sachem even gets the blame!
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<<The actual, real house. Note the street sign: Redwood
Path.
At right is the house used in the first movie. It was filmed in Simi Valley on 4267 Roxbury St.>> |
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1. Suburban Neighborhood 2. A few miles from each other. 3. A regular family. 4. Haunted "average" house. 5. Indian graveyard blamed. (The major Indian killing area is located between the two houses.) 6. Made into major movie at about the same time. (1979-Amityville 1982, Poltergiest-1982) 7. Priest called to house. 8. Porcelain figurine moving around. 9. Both investigated by Duke University researchers
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Detective Joseph Tozzi. He fully investigated the story and said it was not a hoax. At right is Detective Tozzi on TV talking about the phenomenon. |
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J Gaither Pratt |
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An article about Detective Tozzi and his investigation. At right is Jimmy Herrmann with fragments of an object supposedly destroyed by the poltergeist. |
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Links:
Amityville Village Symbol and Colors: Indian Chief and Blood Red! April 6, 2006
"Haunted" Lighthouse across the bay from Amityville Feb 20, 2006
Amityville area scientifically best place to worship Lucifer Feb. 13, 2006
Christine Belford - Famous Movie Star lived in the horror house! Jan. 3, 2006
Amityville Cemetery - Mary's Grave, Bodies dug up, etc. Dec. 28, 2005
