Just as extraordinary is its sheer size: what started as a two-story farmhouse was transformed by Sarah into a seven-story, castle-like residence, with 160 rooms, 47 fireplaces and 10,000 panes of glass. There are also many decorative spider-web patterns – people believed the latter would bring good luck at the time. (Guides nickname this room “the mother-in-law suite.”)Įerie motifs abound: the number 13 appears everywhere (ceilings with 13 panels 13 coat hooks in the “seance room”. Look out for staircases that lead to ceilings windows set into floors a door that opens onto a 12-foot drop. The house, a sprawling puzzle of carnival funhouse-esque quirks, perplexes mere mortals as much as malevolent spirits. Stealing a peek inside the house isn’t confined to the theater, though – you can easily visit yourself. The Oscar winner portrays Sarah Winchester, who it’s said designed the eccentric home to bamboozle ghosts. But it has drawn international travel attention thanks to the 2018 release of “Winchester,” a horror movie starring Helen Mirren. Winchester Mystery House has loomed large in the imaginations of San Jose locals ever since it was built in 1884. It’s not a convoy of self-driving cars or a brigade of AI robots, but an extravagant, four-story, gabled and turreted Victorian mansion said to be “the most haunted in America.” Santana Park.There’s an odd sight just outside downtown San Jose, California’s “capital of Silicon Valley.” Nearby landmarks include the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Westfield Valley Fair shopping mall and Frank M. Take a bus to one of the nearby stops or drive to the site and leave your car in the parking lot. The Winchester Mystery House is located in the western outskirts of San José. The tours generally open from the morning until the final circuit in early evening. Note that each tour has its own price, with discounts for children and seniors. If you prefer not walking, take the Video Access Tour for a 45-minute presentation about the rifle heiress, her bizarre lifestyle and the spooky mansion. Stroll through the stately grounds of the Victorian Gardens, restored with elegant paths, hedges and thousands of trees. She is said to have kept construction workers busy 24 hours a day for 38 years because she believed the continuous building activities would appease spirits after the untimely death of her baby daughter and husband, William Wirt Winchester.Ĭapture photos of the extraordinary manor and admire its Queen Anne Style Late Victorian architecture. Speak with docents to learn background information about Sarah Winchester, who lived here until her death in 1922. Consider how the mansion got its haunted reputation as you encounter staircases to nowhere, doors that open to blank walls and other eerie features. This option also includes the Mansion Tour, where you will explore 110 of the 160 rooms. Try the Grand Estate Tour, which includes a look behind the scenes at the basement, stables and other staff areas that supported operations in the house. Upon arrival, choose from several guided tour options. Inspect the many rooms for a glimpse into the opulent and turbulent life of the Winchester rifle heiress. Belonging to the widow of a gun tycoon, its rooms are decorated with intriguing trinkets that tell her story. The Winchester Mystery House is an enormous 19th-century mansion with fascinating architectural details, a rich history and tales of hauntings. Wonder about the alleged hauntings and other mysteries as you chart the life of a gun magnate’s widow in this unfinished manor.
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