One of the questions I am most often asked about the Old Arnold House is, "How many people actually died there?"
Over the years, I have spent considerable time researching the families who lived in the house and documenting the deaths that can be supported by historical records. Based on the evidence currently available, the earliest death I have found a mention of that took place in the home was that of Sally Eddy Arnold, wife of Stephen Arnold, who passed away on October 3, 1844. Her five-year-old daughter, Abigail Arnold, followed on May 4, 1848. Both deaths were believed to have resulted from typhoid.
Tragedy continued when Stephen Arnold died in the home on October 11, 1849, after suffering for more than ninety days from typhus fever. For many years, it was rumored that Levi Eddy Arnold, son of Stephen and Sally, had also died there as a young boy. However, the available records show that Levi survived into adulthood. To date, I have not located a record of his death, but wherever and whenever it occurred, he was no longer a child.The house witnessed further sorrow in later generations. Abigail Arnold Sumner, later Abigail Butterworth, lost her infant son to a hemorrhage when he was only eight days old. It is believed the child died in the house, where he had been born on December 9, 1874.
On December 18, 1883, Adeline Arnold, wife of Edwin Arnold and mother of Abigail, John, and Fremont, died in the home from tuberculosis. In 1901, Jervis (Jarvis) Smith died on the property, though not inside the house itself. While he had business dealings with members of the Arnold family and appears in various probate records, he was not related to them. His cause of death was "debauch; exposure to cold for four days.”
The twentieth century brought additional losses. William Butterworth, Abigail's second husband, died in the home on February 18, 1916, from arteriosclerosis along with cardiac asthma, dropsy, and gangrene of the foot. Abigail herself passed away there on April 25, 1930, from chronic nephritis. Her brother, Fremont Arnold, became the last known Arnold family member to die at the property when he passed away on August 16, 1938, from arteriosclerosis with necrosis of the heart.
So, do we know of any other deaths at the Old Arnold House?At this time, no. That does not mean no others occurred earlier on that we are unaware of. It simply means that no additional documented records have been found that support such claims. More importantly, I have found no evidence whatsoever of murders, suicides, drownings, or other violent deaths on the property.
This is why careful historical research matters. Many stories repeated online, portrayed in The Conjuring, or published in Andrea Perron's books are often presented as fact despite lacking documentary support. History deserves better than assumptions, rumors, and speculation. When dealing with real people and real lives, it is essential to follow the records wherever they lead, even when the truth is less sensational than the legend.The goal of historical research is not to tell the most exciting story. It is to tell the most accurate one.
(Copyright 2026- J'aime Rubio www.deconstructingtheconjuring.blogspot.com)
