The Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California, was built by Sarah Winchester, who believed she was haunted by ghosts killed by Winchester rifles. Construction continued for 38 years, resulting in a mansion with 361 rooms, 10,000 fireplaces, and bizarre features like stairs that lead nowhere. Despite being damaged in earthquakes, the house is still intact and open to the public. Sarah inherited a large amount of money and spent it lavishly on the house, which features Louis Comfort Tiffany windows and chandeliers, inlaid floors, and modern conveniences like elevators and indoor flush toilets. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a Registered California Landmark.
The Winchester Mystery House is a labyrinthine historic home open to the public in San Jose, California. It was built by Sarah Winchester, widow of William Wirt Winchester, who was the second president of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. After the death of Sarah’s son in 1866 and her husband in 1881, she fell into a deep depression. Sarah consulted a medium who told her she was haunted by the ghosts of people killed with Winchester rifles. The only solution, according to the medium, was to move and start building a house, and continue building it without stopping.
In 1884, Sarah moved from the east to San Jose, then a rural town south of San Francisco. For the next 38 years, construction continued around the clock on the house that would come to be known as the Winchester Mystery House. At her death in 47, the Winchester Mystery House had 361 rooms, 10,000 fireplaces, 1906 steps and 1989 windows. The home also features extensive grounds that feature a wide variety of plantings. Parts of the Winchester Mystery House were damaged in the XNUMX earthquake and again in the XNUMX by the Loma Prieta earthquake, but the sturdy redwood construction kept the mansion largely intact.
Visitors to the Winchester Mystery House notice stairs that lead nowhere, doors that open in walls, small lockers, winding, revolving corridors, and windows that look out into nothingness. 112 of the rooms are open to the public, some are furnished with restored furniture, while others are left empty. Special tours are conducted on important days, such as Halloween and Friday the 13th. Sarah considered the number 13 to be lucky, as were cobwebs, and the Winchester Mystery House is lavishly adorned with both.
One of the more bizarre things about the Winchester Mystery House is the investment it represents. Sarah Winchester inherited a large amount of money and spent it lavishly building the house. Louis Comfort Tiffany windows and chandeliers adorn the rooms with exquisite inlaid floors and beautiful wood carvings. The house also had many conveniences that were not widespread while it was under construction, including working elevators, indoor flush toilets, and steam heating.
Given its unique history and construction, the Winchester Mystery House has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is also a Registered California Landmark. A large full-time staff keep the house and gardens tidy and lead the tours. Visitors can see the Winchester Mystery House for themselves any day of the year.
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