I might have a new obsession; I’ve spent most of my day researching the Winchester “Mystery” House and Mrs. Sarah Winchester.
(Prepare for an essay)
Background story
Sarah L. Winchester (1839 – 1922) was married to the son of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. They had one daughter, but she died after just a few weeks. About 15 years later, her husband died from tuberculosis.
After the death of her husband, she was heartbroken (obviously) and contacted spiritualists, and was apparently told by a medium that the family was cursed, haunted by the spirits of those killed by the Winchester rifles. According to the story, Sarah was told to build a house and never let it be finished. Constant construction on the house would save her from the spirits.
The House
Construction on the Winchester House, or the Winchester Mystery House as it came to be called after a visit from Houdini, was started 1884 (that’s 100 years before I was born, harhar).
It turned into a huge, 7 floor mansion, built like a maze. The house is scattered with false doors, dead end corridors, stairs leading to nothing and so on. Apparently this was to confuse the spirits.
The stories say that the spirits instructed her, and inspired the design of the house, which is why some people call it “The House built by/for the spirits”.
In 1906 there was an earthquake, and the house was purposely never fully restored; Mrs. Winchester had the damaged areas sealed off rather than repairing them. Since then, the house has “only” been 4 floors high, and big parts of it are still inaccessible.
Why this is awesome
First of all, whether or not I believe it, it’s still an interesting story. Either she really was hunted by spirits, or she just thought she was. Or perhaps she was just a rich, eccentric woman who wanted to build a really weird house because she wanted to, or because she was a terrible (or brilliant) designer.
I would love to see this house. I really would. With all the weird design elements, which I just find ever so awesome. 
And I find it utterly gorgeous. And creepy.
Good shit:
There are guided tours inside the house. 
Not so good shit:
It’s in California. 
It would be a long and expensive trip. Also, I creeped myself out writing this ¬_¬
Friday, February 19th, 2010
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10 Comments
Posted in Unordinarities
Tags: Mysteries, Winchester House
OMFG, this sounds totally awesome!
I was about to say I;d never heard of it before, but I think that’s only because you told the story in such an interesting way … As opposed to a standard, sounds-like-it-was-written-by-a-stuffy-English-professor way.
Sometimes I think my own house is haunted, as it’s around a hundred years old itself … There’s always strange, unexplained sounds and things of that nature going on!
Awesome entry, man!
I can say I’m not really a fan of things like this or anything having to do with the supernatural, though I find it interesting I always distance myself from it because I am a coward. My friends however would love this piece of story as they are enthralled by haunted houses. Too bad its even more far away for them to visit (great for me). I wonder if anything ever happened on one of those tours, I’d like to go on one (i think) because the story behind it is interesting.
Am going to check it out now and because of the wimp that I am, I will most likely creepy myself out -__-
I never heard of this place, but being a medium, this really interests me. I wouldn’t mind going there and seeing it for myself.
Jag har läst om det här huset och jag tycker också det är otroligt fascinerande! Det är definitvt en plats jag gärna skulle vilja besöka. Huset är otroligt vackert och verkar sannerligen mystiskt! Åh tänkt att bo där! Hur coolt vore inte det?
Det vore helt sjukt coolt att bo där, men jag skulle vara tokrädd haha -__-
I’ve done a lot of research on this as well!! Mainly I have watched documentaries. It’s so interesting and different. You can get a tour of this place which is so awesome!
It is in California :( what a shame.. so far.. I was reading it and hoping it is in England or something; that way I would have a chance to go there some day grrr V_V
Thanks for sharing thought!!! :D
That house is omega awesome. My mom visited it, when she was a girl, on a field trip with school. She said it was pretty crazy.
I absolutely LOVE anything involving the Supernatural. It totally gets my wheels moving.
Ooh, I envy your mother ^^;
Geez! That house is fucking huge. The story is so awesome though I wonder if she really was haunted by spirits or just had mental problems. Thanks for sharing this story – I never knew about this house till now.