The story
Sarah Winchester inherited $20 million and a 50% stake in the Winchester Repeating Arms Company when her husband died in 1881. A medium allegedly told her the fortune was cursed by the spirits of everyone killed by Winchester rifles - and the only way to appease them was to continuously build a house.
For 38 years, until her death in 1922, construction never stopped. Workers labored 24 hours a day. The result is an architectural fever dream: stairs that lead to ceilings, doors that open to walls, windows in floors, and 160 rooms sprawling without plan.
Sarah held nightly seances in a blue room. She slept in a different room each night to confuse the spirits. When she died, workers simply stopped mid-nail.
What's There Now
A museum offering mansion tours, flashlight tours, and Friday the 13th events. The 2018 film Winchester, starring Helen Mirren, was based on her story.
Everything that was here
- 1884–1922
Winchester Mystery HouseHaunted Mansion
Sarah Winchester believed she was haunted by everyone killed by Winchester rifles. She built a maze of 160 rooms to confuse their ghosts - and never stopped building.
See the map in 1885 →
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