Everyone knows the story of Amityville horror from the film series that was made from the 1970s and its remake in 2005. But the film, as gruesome and unreal as it seemed, was based on true facts. On October 18, 1975, the young family of George and Kathleen Lutz moved into their new home in the town of Amityville on Long Island. They could not have known then what had gripped them for twenty-eight days.
History
The house in Amityville, Long Island cost eighty thousand dollars (a lot of money at the time) and the house seemed ideal. There was a spacious basement, a swimming pool, a boathouse. But the horror that had happened to the old residents turned out to be a nightmare for the future. The Lutz family knew about the atrocity, but had no suspicions. Even the priest who came to bless the house had no suspicions.
The large colonial house at 112 Ocean Avenue was destroyed on November 13, 1974 due to a mass murder committed there. Ronald DeFeo had successively shot and killed his parents, two brothers and two sisters with an automatic rifle. DeFeo was captured and sentenced to life in prison. The house was sold to the Lutz family and was in the news again twenty-eight days later because the family had fled from their home with only some clothing. The horror that hung in the house made them flee. An investigation was launched into whether this might have been what drove Ronald DeFeo to murder his family. George Lutz told reporters that he would not spend another night in the house, but that he did not want to sell it until the results were in. Afterwards, the Lutzes broke off all contact with the press, because they felt that there was a lot of exaggeration.
28 days in the grip of the supernatural
George Lutz, Kathleen Lutz, their two sons Christopher (seven years old), Daniel (nine years old) and their daughter Melissa Missy (five years old) selected bedrooms, furnished the house and everyone got their place. Melissa slept on the first floor, the two brothers on the second floor and an empty room would become the playroom. Everything was furnished and the family was ready to move on in this house.
At first, George and Kathleen experienced nothing special in the house. They had to get used to it and that made sense. A few nights later, George Lutz woke up every morning at 3:15 a.m. and went to the boathouse to check on it. He later found out that this was the time DeFeo had murdered his family. Kathleen had nightmares about the murders and saw them vividly in her mind and the rooms in which they took place, there were cold spots and strange smells emanating from various rooms in the house and the dog did not dare to go near a hidden space, which George discovered. Kathleen was always embraced by a supernatural force that loved her. Slapping doors and the change due to George, who increasingly adopted DeFeo’s habits. Footprints in the snow around the house were visible and the locks, doors and windows were repeatedly destroyed. These are some of the things that happened in twenty-eight days. At some point the family discovered that something was really wrong. That they were held in the grip of a supernatural force. Despite blessings, they decided to leave the house unexpectedly.
They stayed with Kathleen’s mother, who lived just down the road, but to no avail. The supernatural force followed them there. They finally decided to leave everything behind them. They left the neighborhood and moved. When the movers came the next day to move their belongings, they stated that they had not observed any supernatural activity, but that did not happen to the Lutz family in the beginning.
The story was eventually made into a film in 1979 and an exact copy of the original house was recreated.
Course
Some thought the Lutz family was crazy, others stated that something could definitely be going on. In 1977 the house was purchased by James Cromarty and he stated that he had not observed any supernatural activity in the house. He jokingly stated, ,Nothing will happen in this house until people come to the door because of history.,