Stairs that lead to nowhere, doors that open to the outside of the 2nd floor, 13 bathrooms, 13 panel rooms, intermixed with incredibly innovative plumbing, luxury furnishings, expensive stained glass, and so much more.

The Winchester Mystery House is celebrating its 100th Anniversary.  On June 30, 1923, the Winchester Mystery House opened for tourists.

June 30th kicks off a months-long centennial celebration, with new exhibits, programs, events, a one-of-a-kind birthday party, an all-new immersive Halloween experience, and so much more.  

But let’s go back to who Sarah Winchester was, and why the house is still as relevant today as it was 100 years ago.

WHO WAS SARAH WINCHESTER?

Sarah Winchester was an extremely bright woman from New Haven, Connecticut.  She married William Winchester, also from New Haven.  

William Winchester’s father invented the Winchester Repeating Rifle, so William was heir to the Winchester fortune.  Unfortunately, he contracted tuberculosis and succumbed after a long illness, leaving Sarah a very wealthy widow.

After being widowed, Sarah went to a medium, which was very in vogue in the late 19th century.  The medium told Sarah that she was being haunted by the spirits of all the people who had been killed by the Winchester rifles.

This prompted Sarah to leave Connecticut and move to San Jose, to make it harder for the spirits to find her.  She bought a 2 story farmhouse in 1886 and began a renovation that lasted for over 30 years, until her death in 1922.

She added wings to the house, added floors on top, and made a conscious effort to include the number 13 where she could, all in an effort to confuse the spirits. 

In the house, she created stairs that went nowhere, doors on the 2nd floor that opened to the open air, again, to confuse the spirits.

CRAZY OR INNOVATIVE?  

Sarah has been branded as crazy for her decidedly bizarre renovation choices.  But she was also very innovative.

Indoor plumbing, for example, was extravagant at the time.  But she added faucets throughout the house.

The laundry room had both hot & cold running water.

Washboards and soap holders were incorporated as part of the sink to make it easier for staff to wash.  That doesn’t sound like much today, but back then, this was extremely innovative.

Sarah struggled with severe rheumatoid arthritis.  Getting in and out of a bathtub was extremely painful.  So she built a new invention, called the shower.  Today, a shower without a bathtub is commonplace.  But in the Victorian era, showers simply didn’t exist.  Her shower was not only innovative, it was a mercy for her.  The shower, by the way, was in the 13th bathroom.  So it was both mentally and physically comfortable, as comfortable as one can get with severe rheumatoid arthritis.

INDOOR GARDENING

Another innovation at the time was the garden hose, another commonplace item that most everyone owns today.

But in the late 19th/early 20th century, it was a new invention.

Sarah loved to garden, but her rheumatoid arthritis made it impossible for her to do her gardening outside.  

What’s the solution?  Bring the gardening inside.  Of course.

She had a conservatory built with an indoor facet and a hook to hang the hose.  But watering your plants with a garden hose indoors? How?

The floor was built in wooden squares that could be removed.  Beneath the wooden squares was a metal floor that was safe for watering the plants.  The water drained to pipes and carried outside the house. 

This allowed Sarah to continue gardening inside her house.

A VICTORIAN ERA CAR WASH

Outside, she built a garage to house her 3 cars.  To make it easier for her staff to wash the cars, she built a carwash for them.

Yes, Sarah Winchester, a Victorian widow, had a car wash built in the early 20th century with running water, and a hose attached to a hook on the ceiling that could rotate 360 degrees.  How innovative is that?  She was clearly a forward thinking woman, in spite of her mystic eccentricities.

SKINNY STEPS

The rheumatoid arthritis affected her ability to climb stairs.  So Sarah had the stair steps shortened, so she could more easily traverse up and down the floors she added to the house.

LINCRUSTA

Sarah was a huge fan of Lincrusta and used it throughout the house.  Lincrusta was invented in 1877 by the same man who invented linoleum. While linoleum was very common place, Lincrusta was a symbol of wealth and status. Lincrusta is an embossed wall and ceiling covering that was used in luxury homes & buildings. 

Sarah had more than 20 different Lincrusta patterns on walls and ceilings throughout the house.  

STAINED GLASS

Sarah also loved stained glass.

She had multiple stained glass windows commissioned.

One is deeply rooted in her mysticism beliefs.  It contains 2 large spider webs with 13 blue and gold balls throughout the glass.  As weird as it sounds, it is a beautiful piece.  

1906 SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE

In April, 1906, there was a devastating earthquake in San Francisco.  Even though the Winchester Mystery House is over 50 miles away, the earthquake was strong enough to damage portions of the house.  

Sarah was so disturbed by the earthquake that she simply closed off the portion of the house that was damaged, without even repairing it.

So as you tour the house, you will see the damage that was created in the devastating 1906 earthquake.

After the earthquake, she had the top portion of the house dismantled.  However, she saved railings, finials, and windows, and these are also available for viewing during the tour.

VIEW MORE

If you would like to see a tour of the Winchester Mystery House, please view this video.

WHEN AND WHERE

The Winchester Mystery House is located at 525 South Winchester Boulevard in San Jose.  

You can view the tours and events at their web site.