how many stairs are in the winchester mystery house

How many floors does the Winchester mansion have?

The house had reached seven stories by 1906, but the top three floors collapsed after the earthquake. Some other famous numbers associated with the house include its 47 fireplaces, 17 chimneys, two basements, six kitchens, 10,000 window panes and 467 doorways [source: Winchester Mystery House].

What are the 13 things in a Winchester House?

Mrs. Winchester also had an obsession with the number "13." Many things installed in the home feature 13 of something: 13 window panes, 13 wall panels, 13 sections of flooring, 13 stairs in each staircase. There are 13 bathrooms, sinks have 13 drain holes and the séance room has 13 coat hooks.

What are the stairs to Nowhere in The Haunting of Winchester?

The stairs to nowhere are pretty much what they sound like: Stairs go up until they reach the ceiling, and then they just stop. The useless stairs might have a simple explanation; the stairs were likely a part of the original house that Mrs. Winchester bought, and when she started adding on to the home, she covered up the stairs.

What is the history of the Winchester Mystery House?

The Winchester House, or Winchester Mystery House as it is better known, is a 160-room Victorian Mansion built by Sarah L. Winchester, wife of rifle manufacturer William Wirt Winchester. Sarah and William were married on September 30, 1862, and had one child, Annie Pardee, who died about a month after birth in 1866.

How tall are the stairs in Winchester House?

How many rooms are there in the Winchester Mystery House?

What of these doors and stairs to nowhere?

What did the medium tell the Winchester family?

What did the medium tell her about the ghosts?

How many bathrooms are there in the Séance Room?

When is the Winchester Mystery House flashlight tour?

See 4 more

About this website

How many windows are in the Winchester house?

From 1886 to 1922 construction seemingly never ceased as the original eight-room farmhouse grew into the world's most unusual and sprawling mansion, featuring: 24,000 square feet. 10,000 windows. 2,000 doors.

How long does it take to go through Winchester Mystery House?

The basic tour is an hour and 5 minutes. The longer tour is two hours and 15 minutes.

How many rooms did the Winchester Mystery House have?

Through the 160-room labyrinth-style mansion built by Sarah Pardee Winchester, there are many beautiful and extraordinary examples of the Queen-Anne Victorian Style architecture. Ever since doors opened for tours in 1923, guests have traveled from all over the world to marvel in the beautiful and the bizarre.

What is the weird about the Winchester Mystery House?

The Oddities of the Winchester Mystery House One opens to a sheer 15-foot drop into an outdoor garden. If you step through another, you will land eight feet below in a kitchen sink. Some of the staircases in this home are truly peculiar. Instead of taking you to another floor, they lead right into the ceiling.

Is the Winchester Mystery House Tour scary?

While we do cover some spirit folklore and stories associated with the Winchester Mystery House, the Walk with Spirits Tour is not a haunt or theme park-like experience. The tour guides will not prank, frighten, or reenact scary scenes.

Is the Winchester Mystery House air conditioned?

Due to the age of our historic home, there is no central air or heat.

Are there undiscovered rooms in the Winchester house?

And while the regular mansion tour takes you through decorated bedrooms, ballrooms and kitchens, part of the charm of the new tour is that many of the rooms are in an unfinished state or show evidence of damage from the 1906 earthquake that toppled the top three stories of the house, which is said to have been under ...

How much does it cost to spend the night at the Winchester Mystery House?

Guests will be able to see the infamous rooms of Sarah's stately mansion, known around the world as the Winchester Mystery House®, and see the bizarre attributes that give the mysterious mansion its name. Price: $41.99 adults, $34.99 seniors, $19.99 children 5-12.

How old was Mrs Winchester when she died?

83 years (1839–1922)Sarah Winchester / Age at death

Who owns the Winchester Mystery House today?

It was sold at auction for $135,000 and opened to the public five months later. It is now owned by Winchester Investments LLC and is marketed as the "Winchester Mystery House."

Who inherited the Winchester fortune?

Only three months after Oliver's death, his son William Winchester dies of tuberculosis at the age of 43. Sarah Winchester inherits William's vast fortune, reportedly $20 million dollars plus nearly 50% of the Winchester® Repeating Arms stock.

Does anyone live in the Winchester house?

The Winchester Mystery House is a mansion in San Jose, California, that was once the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of firearms magnate William Wirt Winchester....Winchester Mystery House.Significant datesDesignated CHISL192515 more rows

How long is Winchester Mystery Tour?

Winchester Mystery House offers guided tours, including the Grand Estate Tour (2.5 hours), Mansion Tour (65 minutes), Behind the Scenes Tour (55 minutes), and Flashlight Tour (65 minutes).

Is the Winchester house worth visiting?

From garden tours to those offered on All Hallow's Eve, the Winchester Mystery House is worth visiting - if only for its haunted history. While visiting California's Bay Area be sure to visit one of the most haunted (and outright bizarre) houses in America - The Winchester Mystery House.

Do you have to wear a mask at Winchester Mystery House?

Masks are required indoors by all guests regardless of vaccination status. All Winchester Mystery House Guests and children over 3 must continue to wear a mask during their visit while indoors regardless of vaccination status.

Can you take pictures inside Winchester Mystery House?

Personal photography is permitted inside the mansion and on the estate grounds for personal enjoyment. Tripods are not allowed and flash photography is limited to outdoor spaces only. For your safety, outside food and beverages are not permitted.

10 Facts About the Winchester Mystery House | History Hit

Listen Now. 8. It was bought by a couple called John and Mayme Brown. Less than 6 months after Sarah died, the house was bought, leased to a couple called John and Mayme Brown and opened up to tourists.

Winchester: True Story Of The Real Haunted House Explained - ScreenRant

The Winchester Repeating Arms Company was founded in 1866 by Oliver Winchester, father of William and father-in-law to Sarah. They were the most popular production company of firearms in the 19 th century and provided their equipment to nearly every major battle or war at the time. Sarah Winchester was told by the Boston medium that she had to build the Santa Clara Valley home to appease those ...

How many stories is the Winchester house?

Today it is only four stories. The house is predominantly made of redwood, as Mrs. Winchester preferred the wood; however, she disliked the look of it.

Where is the Winchester Mystery House?

e. The Winchester Mystery House is a mansion in San Jose, California, that was once the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of firearms magnate William Wirt Winchester. Located at 525 South Winchester Blvd. in San Jose, the Queen Anne Style Victorian mansion is renowned for its size, its architectural curiosities, ...

What is the setting of the Haunted Mansion?

The Winchester House was Walt Disney's Inspiration for The Haunted Mansion at the Disney Parks. The house is the primary setting for Michaela Roessner 's 1993 science fiction novel Vanishing Point, in which it becomes the home of a squatter community following the disappearance of most of the human race.

What episode of Mythbusters did the build team visit the Winchester Mystery House?

For the 2012 episode of MythBusters " Smell of Fear ", the build team visited the Winchester Mystery House to look around and later watch "one of the scariest movies of all time" (the title of which wasn't revealed) on a television that they set up in the grand ballroom, then gather their sweat samples for testing. (This clip was not seen in full on the American version of the episode.) Later on, in the "Aftershow" about the episode, Kari Byron revealed that after she first visited the Mystery House as a Brownie it had given her nightmares and that the house was "still creepy".

How much did Sarah Winchester inherit?

After her husband's death from tuberculosis in 1881, Sarah Winchester inherited more than US$20.5 million (equivalent to $550 million in 2020).

What did the Boston medium tell her to leave her home?

After her infant daughter died of an illness known as marasmus, a children's disease in which the body wastes away, and her husband died of pulmonary tuberculosis, a Boston medium told her (while supposedly channeling her late husband) that she should leave her home in New Haven and travel West, where she must continuously build a home for herself and the spirits of people who had fallen victim to Winchester rifles.

Where did Winchester go?

Winchester left New Haven and headed for California. Although it is possible she was simply seeking a change of location and a hobby during her lengthy depression, other sources say that Winchester came to believe her family and fortune were haunted by ghosts and that only by moving West and continuously building a house to hide from the spirits that fell to the firearms of her late husband.

How many rooms are there in the Winchester Mystery House?

The Winchester Mystery House has 160 rooms including 40 bedrooms, 40 staircases, 13 bathrooms, 6 kitchens, 10,000 window panes, 2,000 doors, 52 skylights, 47 fireplaces, three elevators, two basements and just one shower. So, touring the bizarre mansion and grounds takes time. Don’t worry, we’re here to assist in planning your visit.

What to do on the Mansion Tour?

30 Minutes: The Mansion Tour exits into the Mercantile Gift Shop, shop for souvenirs and purchase your photo with our partner, Mystery Pics. Enjoy a variety of onsite activities including the vintage arcade games and Sarah’s Attic Shooting Gallery.

What happened to the Winchester Mystery House?

By the time the dust settled, around 3,000 people were dead and 225,000 ( according to the USGS, more than half the city's population) were homeless. The Winchester Mystery House didn't escape, and photos from just before the earthquake show it standing an impressive seven stories. According to Jake Williams, marketing coordinator for the house today, the biggest casualty of the earthquake was the massive tower that rose from the center of the house. Partial collapse left it dangerously unstable, and it was torn down. It's thought most of the materials were reused elsewhere, but the tower itself was never rebuilt.

How many rooms did Winchester have?

When the house peaked, it had around 200 rooms, 47 fireplaces, 2,000 doors of various types, and 10,000 windows.

How many windows are there in Prairie Ghosts?

According to Prairie Ghosts, most windows have 13 panes and most rooms have 13 windows. Staircases have 13 steps, walls have 13 panels, floors have 13 sections. CSICOP adds there are 13 coat hooks in the seance room, 13 drains in the sinks, and 13 stars in the leadlight window Winchester herself designed.

What is Winchester's motive?

There's another theory about Winchester's motivations that has everything to do with revenge and nothing to do with the supernatural. According to io9's Annalee Newitz and her research for the California American Studies Association Annual Meeting, what's rarely mentioned in Winchester Mystery House history is that Winchester was only partial heir to the company. The company president was her brother-in-law, William Converse, and he essentially pushed her out of any and all company decisions. She headed west, while the leaders of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company flailed about to try to continue the success of their mass-produced rifles.

How many carpenters did Sarah Winchester employ?

Regardless, Sarah Winchester built the whole thing, employing 16 carpenters who worked in shifts to keep construction going 24 hours a day.

Why did Winchester go to the barrel?

According to one tale, Winchester went there to commune with spirits and learn what they wanted her workmen to build the next day. Others say she was reaching out to those who met a grisly end at the barrel of a Winchester rifle, while still others say she spent time talking to her husband.

Why did Sarah Winchester build her house?

Viewed through that lens, perhaps Sarah Winchester started building her house to throw away the family fortune. Instead of pouring her profits back into the company, she funneled them into her house, as an admittedly brilliant way to give her relatives the financial middle finger from across the country.

What is the Winchester Mystery House?

The Winchester Mystery House is one of San Jose’s most popular and curious tourist attractions. The house is historically listed and has been lovingly returned to what it once would have looked like, featuring period furnishing suited to the style of the house. Various tours of the home are offered. The general mansion tour shows guests through 110 of the 160 rooms in the house while explaining the history of the home and the legends that accompany it. Another newer tour allows guests to ‘explore more.’ This tour opens up new, never before explored rooms that have been sealed off for years. Other seasonal tours include the Halloween and Friday the 13th tours, both conducted under just candlelight.

How many rooms did Sarah Winchester have?

This property was to become the Winchester Mystery House. Sarah immediately started work on expanding the house out of fear of upsetting the spirits that haunted her, believing that if she were to stop construction she would die. The house was to grow to approximately 160 rooms and featured many peculiar aspects that continue to intrigue visitors. Work on the mansion was performed relentlessly day and night until the time of Sarah’s death in 1922.

What is the number 13 in Winchester Mansion?

It is thought that Sarah had a preoccupation and interest with the number 13 and used it to create recurring series of the number throughout the mansion. There are rooms containing 13 windows, staircases with 13 stairs, chandeliers that can hold 13 candles, walls with 13 panels – all examples of how the number 13 has been used throughout the design of the home. No one is really sure why this particular number reoccurs throughout the home, yet some believe it is linked to numerology. To this day, Sarah’s obsession with the number 13 is honored each Friday the 13th when a large, loud bell is rung at exactly 13:00 hours, a total of 13 times.

What was hidden in Sarah Winchester's safe?

When the safes were opened they revealed what was most valuable to Sarah Winchester. They contained locks of hair from her deceased family members and newspaper articles about the deaths of her daughter and husband.

How long is a tour of the Mansion?

Tours last just over an hour and take visitors on an interesting journey to discover much of the house. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed within the house, but the beautiful gardens and exterior of the mansion allow for some great shots.

Is there a séance room in Winchester Mansion?

Although having a built-in séance room seems strange for a house, it is definitely not the oddest feature of the Winchester Mansion. This multi-storied labyrinth of rooms features stairs and doorways to nowhere that are rumored to be purposely built to confuse the angry spirits of the dead who were looking for vengeance upon Sarah Winchester.

Is Winchester Mansion haunted?

The stunning yet strange Winchester Mansion is often cited as being America’s most haunted house. It’s peculiar history and eccentric owner have added legend to the mansion, which continues to fascinate many and is set to be portrayed on the big screen early this year. In anticipation of the film Winchester starring Helen Mirren, I have listed the top 10 creepiest facts about the Winchester Mansion that aid in understanding the mystery surrounding the home.

Why did Winchester design the stairs?

While some believe this staircase was meant to confuse ghosts, Boehme said Winchester actually designed the smaller steps so that she could easily get upstairs with her arthritis.

How many bedrooms does Winchester have?

The mansion today. Winchester spent $5.5 million on her 24,000-square-foot home, which has 160 bedrooms, 40 staircases, 13 bathrooms, and 47 fireplaces. There are a whopping 10,000 windows and 2,000 doors.

Why did Winchester remove the top floors?

The great San Francisco earthquake of 1906 damaged the Winchester mansion all the way out in San Jose. After seeing the damage, Boehme said Winchester decided to remove the top few floors because it was too dangerous.

How many workers did Winchester employ?

It is true, however, that the remodeling of the house went on for decades. Winchester would employ around 13 workers at a time. She was known for paying her workers well above the usual rate.

Why did Winchester get haunted?

There are many conspiracy theories surrounding the mansion, but the most popular lore is that Winchester went to a spiritualist and learned that she was being haunted by spirits who died at the hands of the Winchester gun company. Because she was living off the gun company's fortune, the spiritualist told her to move to California and build a home that would appease and trap the ghosts who follow her.

Where is Winchester Mansion?

The Winchester mansion in San Jose, California, is one such place as it's shrouded in mystery. The bizarre, massive mansion is built like a labyrinth, and it features winding staircases that lead to nowhere and doorways that lead to walls. While the 24,000-square-foot house is a character in and of itself, there's another interesting character in ...

Why did Winchester remodel her house?

Winchester quickly started to remodel the home to make it bigger so that her three sisters could move in with her.

When was the Winchester Mystery House built?

Construction began in 1884. The abundance of timber within close proximity to San Jose allowed Mrs. Winchester's imagination free reign to try out what was evidently her consuming interest in architectural innovation. This unique building includes many outstanding elements of Victorian architecture and fine craftsmanship. There are rooms with gold plated fixtures, exquisite doors and windows of stained Tiffany glass set in silver designs as well as practical household innovations years ahead of their time. The continual building and remodeling created a 160-room house covering an area of six acres. Shortly after Mrs. Winchester's death in 1922 the house was sold and then opened to the public as the Winchester Mystery House. The Gardens Tour also has many points of interest, including the Greenhouse, Tank House and Fruit Drying Shed.

How many rooms are there in the Winchester House?

Quick Facts. The Winchester House, or Winchester Mystery House as it is better known, is a 160-room Victorian Mansion built by Sarah L. Winchester, wife of rifle manufacturer William Wirt Winchester. Sarah and William were married on September 30, 1862, and had one child, Annie Pardee, who died about a month after birth in 1866.

How much did Sarah Winchester's house cost?

The fantastic East lake shingle Queen Anne house was built at an estimated cost of five million dollars. Construction began in 1884.

When did William Winchester die?

William Winchester died on March 7, 1881, after which Mrs. Winchester, upset at the deaths of her husband and daughter, reportedly consulted a spiritualist. This medium informed Mrs. Winchester that the victims killed by the Winchester rifles her family manufactured were seeking revenge by taking the lives of her family.

How many floors does the Winchester Mystery House have?

Thanks to the floating foundation (a foundation that equals the weight of the surrounding soil) the entire house was saved from collapse. The top three floors were ultimately removed, leaving the house with only four stories, as seen today.

Why was the Winchester Mystery House never mentioned in her will?

After appraisers deemed the house worthless due to its strange design, damage from the earthquakes and long-winded construction, Marion took everything in it and auctioned it off.

What is Sarah Winchester's house called?

Today, the house is known as the Winchester Mystery House, but at the time of its construction, it was simply Sarah Winchester’s House.

How many rooms did Sarah Winchester have?

By the turn of the century, Sarah Winchester had her ghost house: an oddly laid out mansion, with seven stories, 161 rooms, 47 fireplaces, 10,000 panes of glass, two basements, three elevators, and a mysterious fun-house-like interior. Public Domain One of the staircases to nowhere. Anyone who set foot in the home could tell ...

Why did Winchester have seances?

The contractors who worked on the house reported Winchester having daily seances with local mediums, in an effort to reach “good spirits.”. These “good spirits” were reportedly consulted to find out how to best appease the spirits whom she was allegedly building the house for.

What was the wood used in the Winchester House?

Additionally, Winchester insisted that the home be built exclusively out of redwood – however, she didn’t like the look of the wood, so she insisted it be covered with a stain and a faux grain. By the time the house was completed, over 20,000 gallons of paint had been used to cover the wood.

How many bathrooms were there in the Winchester home?

Far after the construction was completed, Winchester continued to make efforts to appease the victims of the Winchester rifles. Out of the 13 bathrooms in the home, only one was functional, in an effort to confuse any ghosts wishing to haunt a spigot.

How tall are the stairs in Winchester House?

Most stairs in the house are only about 2 inches (5 centimeters) tall. The staircases zigzag back and forth, going around and around in circles.

How many rooms are there in the Winchester Mystery House?

It's estimated that about 160 rooms are in the house [source: Winchester Mystery House ]. You can see the room where Mrs. Winchester died on the tour, as well as the Daisy Room, where Mrs. Winchester was trapped for several hours after the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake.

What of these doors and stairs to nowhere?

But what of these doors and stairs to nowhere? Doors may open onto walls, or in the case of a second story door, to the outside, resulting in a big fall for anyone who might try to exit that way. A closet door in the second floor séance room opens onto a first-floor sink several feet below. The stairs to nowhere are pretty much what they sound like: Stairs go up until they reach the ceiling, and then they just stop.

What did the medium tell the Winchester family?

The medium told her that the Winchester family had been struck by a terrible curse and was haunted by the ghosts of all those killed by the Winchester rifle. Their spirits were seeking vengeance, and the only way to appease them was to build a house for them. The ghosts had another request: that the house never be completed.

What did the medium tell her about the ghosts?

The medium told her that the ghosts of those killed by Winchester rifles were haunting her, and the only way to appease them was to build a house for as long as she lived. Winchester allegedly consulted the ghosts haunting her about the design of her house.

How many bathrooms are there in the Séance Room?

There are 13 bathrooms, sinks have 13 drain holes and the séance room has 13 coat hooks. Beyond the stairs and windows to nowhere, there are other architectural oddities all over the house. Stair posts were installed upside down, and chimneys that served no purpose are all over the house.

When is the Winchester Mystery House flashlight tour?

The Winchester Mystery House offers daily tours, and for those that want to be particularly spooked, flashlight tours are offered on Halloween and all Fridays that fall on the 13th of the month. Advertisement.

Overview

Rumor, myths, and rebuttals

Claims of Winchester inheriting as much as $20 million and earning $1,000 per day in royalties from her inheritance can be found in tourist literature purchased at the Winchester Mystery House. Ignoffo states that her husband's estate in 1881 was valued at $362,330 but this amount included approximately $300,000 of stock that Winchester would only inherit when her mother-in-law died, which did not happen until 1898. With the addition of her husband's Winchester Repeating Arms …

Sarah Winchester

San Jose house renovation

Tourist attraction

In popular culture

See also

External links