For many years, the doll Robert fascinated and frightened the public with its mystery, and even today paranormal things continue to happen in his presence. Sure, all old dolls are a little creepy, but Robert is the scariest of them all. He is quite large and dressed like a young sailor. His eyes are black buttons staring into nothingness, and the material covering his face is so old that gaping holes have formed in his cheeks. Robert is an incredibly evil creature that, according to legend, can independently move, move his eyes, make sounds and even damage the lives of those who treat him without due respect.
About 115 years ago, the Robert doll was made by Steiff, the same toy manufacturer that created the first teddy bear for Theodore Roosevelt. The most interesting thing is that, according to the manufacturer, Robert was not supposed to be a doll, he was made as a mannequin for the store. And why it was sold like a toy is a question that will forever remain unanswered.
The first owner of the demonic doll was a little boy named Robert Otto. The story of how the doll Robert fell into the hands of its first owner has been reduced to two legends.
Those who believe in Robert's magical abilities adhere to a more mystical version, which says that the doll was presented to the boy by the servant of the Otto family. Rumor has it that she charged the toy with voodoo magic and gave it to the child as a punishment for some offense.
Those who are more skeptical about mysticism tend to believe the "official" version of events, which is that the Robert doll was bought by the boy's grandfather, who brought the toy as a gift to his grandson.
Regardless of how exactly the Robert doll appeared in the Otto family, it's no secret that the young owner of the toy instantly fell in love with the doll and played with it around the clock. “What people do remember is that this friendship with the doll was hardly healthy,” says Corey Convertito, an expert on the paranormal. "He always carried this strange toy with him and spoke of it as if it were a living person."
Before long, strange things began to happen in the Otto family. The boy claimed that his favorite toy was to blame for everything, but at first the parents did not take these statements seriously, but soon they also noticed strange things happening around Robert, which continued as the child grew up.
On one occasion, a plumber hired to renovate Otto's house claimed to have heard children's laughter, even though the youngest Otto was not at home at the time. Looking around the room, he noticed that Robert's doll had moved from one side to the other, apparently on its own.
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As an adult, Robert Otto moved into a large house in Key West, known as the Artist's House, and took the mysterious toy with him. The doll Robert took up a permanent position in the armchair, from where passers-by could see him through the small window of the room. Many passers-by admitted that they repeatedly observed how the doll moved around the room and followed them. Visitors to the house claimed that they often heard footsteps from the room in which the doll was located, and this frightened them.
At the moment, the Robert doll is in the Fort East Martello Museum and is the most frequently visited exhibit.
BALAN-SENCHUK ALEXANDRA