Robert the Doll // 31

Robert Eugene Otto or, Gene, as everyone called him, was just 10 years old when he was given a doll that he names, Robert. Robert is child sized, made out of a cork like material, he wears a sailor outfit that was Genes as a kid.. and holds a small dog in his lap. Gene receives Robert as a gift (UNCLEAR) from his grandfather or (Insert maid)  

So he quickly becomes obsessed with Robert. (Normal for a kid to drag around their favorite toy tho, right?? )Not so much in this case. It gets a little unnerving when that toy starts to be blamed for unexplainable things happening around the house, which was built between 1890 and 1898 and is located at 534 Eaton street, Florida.  (Referred to as artist house) 

Now there is a lot of energy that gene placed on robert growing up, he had a pretty unhealthy relationship with the doll, he took it everywhere with him, talked to it like a person, and he blamed things on him a lot, if he did something he wasn't supposed to, it was, "robert did it" (did he actually??) 

It was reported that his parents would often hear him talking to the doll and hear responses back that were not Gene's voice. Things started to go missing a lot, get broken, or they were getting turned upside down. Im talking furniture like couches and big things that would be hard for a little kid to flip. His relationship with the doll continued after he grew up. 

He actually became an artist, and a pretty well known one too. He designed a lot of the art at the museum that Robert is at and he wanted to eventually turn his home into his own art gallery, with wax "artists hands".  tho he never was able to make his dream a reality, this is how it got its name, The Artist's House.

So his parents pass away he ends up inheriting and moving back into his childhood home, with his wife, Anne, and decided the Robert needed his very own room, which had a window with a perfect view of the street. Robert was making Anne feel weird and uncomfortable, so she asked Gene to move him to the attic. He complied but robert was NOT happy. People quickly started hearing footsteps and giggling when no one was upstairs. Kids started reporting seeing Robert in the bedroom window watching them as they walked to school. Gene finds out about people seeing robert in the window, but he KNOWS he locked him in the attic. When gene gets to the bedroom and opens the door, Robert was sitting in his rocking chair, right in front of the window. Gene proceeds to lock robert in the attic several more times but he always finds him right back in his room. Gene unfortunately ends up passing away in 1974 and his wife a few years later, and the doll is left behind, in the attic, at the house. 

Myrtle Reuter purchased the house and becomes Robert's new caretaker. Hes up the same antics as usual, watching people out the window, maniacally giggling upstairs, some people even claimed his expression would change when people talked about or bad mouthed Gene, guests felt uncomfortable and reported shifting energies when they visited. Myrtle claimed robert moved around the house on his own and she basically got tired his crap after 20 years and donated him to, The East Martello Museum in 1994. 

This is where he currently resides in a glass box and STILL reaks havoc on people. Guests report seeing his expression change, feeling uneasy being around him, and some think they see him move slightly. Its said that Robert requires respect and you need to introduce yourself. You must say hello and goodbye to him and most importantly, If you want to take a picture of him, you must first ask permission and absolutely NO mocking him. If you do choose to not follow these vital rules, theres a chance he will cause you great misfortune such as broken bones, car issues and accidents, and sudden illnesses. People also report their electronics malfunctioning, pictures coming out blurry, him just not being in the picture at all, pictures being blacked out, some peoples cameras will stop working while they are at the museum, then be totally fine once they leave, or all of their pictures just completely disappear. Poof gone. 

Not just pictures they took of him either,, all the pictures on their camera.. 

Many Staff have been reported feeling the energy in the room shift when they around him and some wont even go near him. They've said that they will turn off all lights and leave for the night and when they get back the next day, theres lights turned on in random places, and some staff could swear he sometimes changes positions. He does have designated caretakers and they are the only ones allowed to touch him when they have to bring him out for any type of upkeep or maintenance he might need.

So Robert actually receives multiple letters a day from people all over the world. And they are apology letters for disrespecting him, or offending him, asking him to please stop causing them misfortunes (literally Out of desperation,) people also leave letters at his display case and some even leave candy or other random items as a gift to him.

Robert has his very own tour and has been featured in many movies, podcasts, and TV shows, such as: deadly possessions and a loosely based horror film series, and continues to freak people out all over the world from the comfort of his little glass box at the The East Martello museum in Key West, Florida

RESOURCES 
TripAdvisor.com 
Ghostsandgraveyards.com
Wikipedia 
Robertthedoll.org
Reddit

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