Then the smells arrived. A foul, sulfurous stench that would waft through specific rooms and then vanish as quickly as it came.
Jack tried to brush it off. He was a practical man—a former Marine and a truck driver. But the practical explanations ran out the night the television turned on by itself, blasting static at 3:00 AM, and the crucifix hanging on the wall flipped upside down. The Smurls did what any logical family in the 80s would do: they called the cops. They called the media. They called plumbers to check the gas lines for the smell. Nothing helped.
According to his testimony, the floorboards buckled beneath his feet, the lights exploded, and a deep, guttural laugh echoed through the house. The Warrens, along with a Catholic priest (reportedly Bishop James Timlin), performed a series of blessings and a full exorcism on the home. Unlike the movies, this wasn't a single night of spinning heads. It was a long, grueling siege of holy water, prayers, and commands in the name of Jesus Christ. jack smurl
According to the Warrens, the entity was eventually driven out of the home and "pushed" into the nearby Susquehanna River. The activity subsided, though Jack reported low-level harassment continued for years afterward. Naturally, not everyone believes the Smurl story. Skeptics point out that the family sold the rights to their story to a TV movie ( The Haunted , 1991) and that the Warrens had a financial incentive to sensationalize claims.
The Smurl case remains one of the most documented—and controversial—hauntings in American history. Whether you believe it was a demon, a delusion, or geology gone wild, one thing is certain: Have you ever experienced something in your home that you couldn’t explain? Share your story in the comments below. And if you want to dive deeper, check out the 1991 film The Haunted , which features a cameo by Ed Warren himself. Then the smells arrived
That is the story of .
But things escalated quickly. This is where the Smurl case separates itself from a "noisy ghost" story. Janet Smurl reported being thrown from her bed onto the floor. Jack witnessed his mother, Mary Smurl, being pinned to her bed by an invisible force. She would later describe a black, shadowy figure with glowing red eyes hovering over her, scratching her arms and legs. He was a practical man—a former Marine and a truck driver
Here is the chilling account of the Smurl Haunting. It started small. In 1984, Jack and Janet Smurl began hearing strange noises. At first, it was easy to rationalize: settling wood, creaking pipes, or a stray animal under the porch. But soon, the sounds evolved into scratching. Long, deliberate fingernails dragging across the inside of their bedroom walls.