If you read about or investigate the paranormal for a hobby, you probably have come across the story of the Amityville Horror, where a family in Amityville, New York spent twenty-eight horrific days in one of the most infamous haunted houses in the world.
The house, which is located at 108 Ocean Ave (formerly 112 Ocean Ave before the gawkers and tourists became too much to bear after the original film’s release in the late seventies and the street number was changed), also was where Ronald Defeo murdered six of his family members while they slept in November 1974.
Later the Warrens would come in to investigate the house in 1976, leading to one of the most chilling and controversial ‘real’ ghost photographs of all time, The Amityville Ghost Boy.
There is another photograph connected to the ever growing and confusing Amityville legend that has never really been brought to light.
It is said to have been taken in 1922 in the house that stood on the same property on which the Dutch Colonial the Defeos and Lutzes both lived in later stood.
And the figure within the captured image was claimed to be conjured during a seance no less…
The glass photographic plate belongs to Amityville Rock, an individual interested in the Amityville story who used to heavily post on forums and messageboards about the case and also ran several versions of his own Amityville website.
Amityville Rock said he acquired the glass plate in 2003 from another party who wished to remain anonymous.
The photographic plate was said to have been taken during a seance held in the prior house on the property (which was later moved off of the ‘horror house’ land when the Moynahan family was having the infamous dutch colonial house we all know and fear built) during the time the Ireland family owned the property.
The physical plate itself bears the inscription: “Kodak c. 1925.”
It was also claimed online that a multi media professor had examined the plate and to his knowledge the plate nor the image had been tampered with in any way.
All the current owner of this mysterious image will say is that he acquired it from an individual that had found it in a collection of belongings that was inherited by a cousin of Annie Ireland and that the party wished to remained anonymous if Amityville Rock went ahead and published the photograph on the internet.
However there is disagreement as to when ownership of the property changed hands and some sources claim the Irelands sold the property in 1924 while the 1920 Amityville census records capture to the right claims that the Moynahan family already had taken residence at the location.
Seances were indeed popular during that time period, but that would not be too hard for someone to research and the fact that the prior owner of the plate swore the current owner to secrecy as to their identity is of course a little suspicious as well.
Beyond that…well, the photograph definitely catches your eye and has its charms but to me is just looks like someone in a black cloak and some kind of mask, maybe even a inanimate prop.
Regardless, much like The Amityville Ghost Boy photograph, it is an intriguing bit of lore connected to one of the most popular paranormal cases in history.
We have been in contact with Amityville Rock even though it has been slow going but we hope to get more information on this photograph as soon as possible and will update this post accordingly.
–Thomas Spychalski
