Real Haunted House
Winchester Mystery House
San Jose, California
By Shannon Reinbold-Gee
Few haunted houses are more splendid and massive than the Winchester Mystery House. Once the pet project of wealthy widow Sarah Winchester, the Winchester Mystery House, which began as a humble 6-room home, is now a popular destination for ghost tours of the San Jose area.
In 1884 Sarah Winchester, heiress of the Winchester Rifle fortune, began construction on a Victorian-style mansion. Driven by her supposed guilt over the many deaths her husband’s rifle business caused, Sarah paid a veritable army of construction workers and craftsmen to build the sprawling 160-room house over the course of nearly forty years. Devastated by the untimely deaths of both her husband and baby daughter and thinking them to be connected to the shooting deaths of many victims of the Winchester rifle, Sarah was supposedly told that continually building the rambling home would appease (or in some cases perhaps trap) the spirits and lift a curse.
Acting as her own architect, Sarah consulted with spiritual guides to make sure the wandering souls who’d lost their lives by gunshot would find a final resting place. Sarah Winchester never created a master set of blueprints, instead she sketched the rooms she wanted on scraps of paper and occasionally tablecloths. The house’s hallways and corridors are like a labyrinth, causing many to speculate that perhaps Sarah’s goal was to trap and confuse the spirits who sought vengeance on her family. Rumor has it Sarah tried to avoid the restless ghosts by sleeping in a different room every night.
When the earthquake of 1906 struck, Sarah was trapped in the Daisy Room where she’d been sleeping near a fireplace that suddenly collapsed. When she was finally freed, she said the experience was the result of the ghosts wanting her to stop spending so much time perfecting the mansion’s front rooms—and that they were furious she thought she was nearly finished with her construction. So Sarah obediently boarded up 30 rooms and focused on even more expansion. She never again used her then recently acquired (and quite pricey for the time) front doors.
Filled with “modern” amenities, the Winchester mansion includes button-operated lights, nearly 50 fireplaces, parquet floors and gorgeous chandeliers. Almost every window has 13 panes of glass, most floors contained 13 sections and all but one staircase boasts 13 steps. But beyond the architectural oddities and trappings of wealth, it seems the mansion has also trapped a fair share of spirits.
Ghostly animals began to be sighted and many people have reported seeing things ghosting about. People hear mysterious voices, footsteps and doors slamming shut. Cold spots and strange lights appear and then fade away. An employee of the mansion claimed to see a figure of an elderly woman in one of the rooms and asked who they had gotten to portray Mrs. Winchester. Alarmed, a coworker explained they did not have any reenactors. Could it be that Sarah succeeded in trapping the ghosts who dogged her steps for so many years and they still roam the Winchester mansion? Or are the disturbances signs that Sarah herself has never left the building—trapped with the same ghosts she feared?
Today 110 of the 160 rooms are available for tourists to see—but stick with your guide so you don’t become a victim of the wandering designs and maze-like halls!
191 comments on this haunted house. Share your story »
191 Comments |
« · 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · [10] ·
Show All Comments
Maddison says: |
February 25, 2009, 4:48 pm |
I am so excited. I am going to the Mansion tomorrow and I’m going alone. My fiance is a skeptic grew up near San Jose and isn’t really interested in going and I feel like he’ll just bum me out. After reading most comments and stories, I am even more excited. for those of you who have been there or wrked there, when is the least busy time and day to go? I would rather go on a day that isn’t too busy
Melissa Alcala says: |
March 17, 2009, 6:16 pm |
Hey ppl I really wanna go to da house I live really close to there and for some reason when I pass the house(never go inside) I feel strange…
alexus says: |
May 20, 2009, 5:55 pm |
okay.this is off topic but my family is sorta like that too.we have 4 of everything…but i was wondering…mabey the house stated being build on Friday the 13th.its just an idea.
but my house may be haunted also.we built our house 6 years ago.we came across the land by one of my fauthers buddies.it was an excellent clearing.but every time im on the computer or in the kitchen i swear i hear a door close.i look every where but see nothing.and the guy who sold us the land had burried a horse here.sometimes i hear galloping and shovoling.on occasions i hear doors closing to my house and then the floor craks and it feels as if your being watched…so much to the point where you turn around and say something like “okay you got me” or something like that…its pretty freaky!
caca heads says: |
June 1, 2009, 1:26 pm |
hi our names are caca heads and we will visit your house soon see ya!!!!! 
Lilibell says: |
July 13, 2009, 9:02 pm |
I saw the Winchester house in a book called Unexplained. At a public library. The publiclibraries.com link sends you to thousands of public libraries. Or go to google.com, ask.com,
bing.com. If you go to publiclibraries.com,then click on Bourbonnais Public Library. That’s where I found this information. I also would recommend if you go to Zaplooka.com. That’s also where I found some information about this website and story. If you would like to be a ghost hunter someday then be a ghost hunter. Follow your biggest dreams and they might come true. I also learned in the book Unexplained also. So pick a website and start learning.
jordan says: |
August 29, 2009, 1:44 pm |
I think theat the winchester house is haunted becasue all the best is the worst and i may go there when im in the 20s Sarah is hidden in that place
EntroThaEmcee says: |
August 30, 2009, 4:02 am |
I went to the Winchester Mansion before I really knew the story and was amazed by what I saw. A very rich experience. Took some pictures of family members out by the cresent garden and in two of the three pictures, there were two bright purple orbs around the family members and in the pics the orbs changed position even though I took them in a row with nobody moving. Haunted? I have no idea, but it was intresting.
para-chan214 says: |
September 28, 2009, 12:27 am |
Candy11: what they mean by pinned is that the door was pinched shut by the shifting of the walls making the doorframe shift as well, keeping the door from opening.
i live with two former guides from the Winchester House (both of whom are still listed as available to do flashlight tours through the House) and while it is rumored that Mrs. Winchester slept in a different room every night, there was no actual evidence of that. the room in which she was trapped during the 1906 earthquake is call the Daisy Bedroom and is on the tour route, as is the bedroom in which she died.
i have had unusual experiences in the House myself, specifically in the basement.
chinedum njibe says: |
October 5, 2009, 8:47 am |
Ghosts and haunted houses are real,and we have the remedy to send them packing on the spot no matter what it may look like.
If Your house,treasure or land is haunted,terrorized or disturbed by ghosts,evil spirits,marine spirits,vampires,witches or earthbound spirits.If you need spiritual help to remove them on the spot now
We have new spiritual technique,the remedy and very potent prayers that sends ghosts packing forever and you will never see or experience them in your house,lands or treasures.
Call us on the following telephone numbers and send four pre-paid, first class,round trip air tickets,a letter of invitation for four persons with first class hotel and accommodation for four and we will come and send the ghosts packing on the spot.
Kind regards.
Chinedum Njibe.
Tel. + 234 80 3055 7345, + 234 70 395 28179
Email. soultosoul@live.com
Read our profile below
MAKE SEVEN PHOTOCOPIES OF THIS HANDOUT AND GIVE IT TO SEVEN PERSONS AND WITHIN SEVEN DAYS YOU WILL SEE INSTANT MIRACLES,FINANCIAL BREAKTHROUGHS AND HEALING FROM GOD, BUT DO NOT FORGET TO PAY YOUR TITHE, DONATIONS AND TESTIMONIES TO SOUL TO SOUL CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES.
SOUL TO SOUL
CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES
MOTTO: EVERY LIVING SOUL PRAISES THE LORD.
Soul To Soul Charismatic Ministries is a new and modern Charismatic Christian adventure where all the secrets of the power of the miracles performed by Jesus Christ, The Spiritual Giants, the Angels of God and all the Great Souls are revealed and exposed to the public. Money, prosperity, fortunes, treasures, riches, success and wealth must bow to you and become your servants. When you attend our church programs, prayers, counseling and activities, you will become a magnetic field where miracles happen every second. We also give and provide authentic trade forecasts for traders who trade in stocks all over the world. Soul To Soul will give you absolute spiritual protection against all principalities and powers.
Barren women, impotent men, poverty, divorce, broken homes, broken hearts, broken friendships, loneliness, suicide spirits, People possessed by alcohol and drugs, Ancestral and general curses, haunted treasures, houses and lands, men and women in prison or jail, girls and women looking for husbands of their choice, men and women possessed by marine spirits, evil spirits and witches, People suffering from Hypertension, cancer, ulcer, stroke, psychological and mental problems, madness, HIV/AIDS, leukemia, sickle cell anemia, fibroids, and all forms of incurable diseases and deformities etc are healed, redeemed, and released on the spot. Also your good health and long life is guaranteed.
The United nations, Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, The United States, Russia, China and all the Countries located near the Great Oceans and Seas must consult Soul To Soul now for immediate and urgent prayers that will avert the impending destruction and catastrophe caused by the disappearance of the Ozone Layer and the Artic and the Antarctic oceans of ice that will continue to increase the density and the size of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans and destroy two third of the world with flood before the year 2020
The Israelis and all the Jewish community around the world and their neighbors the Arab league must consult Soul To Soul now for prayers that will break all the Ancestral and general curses, deaths, strife, hatred, war, sorrow and distress that they inherited from their forefathers and to restore permanent peace, security and prosperity to the region
Our prayers are not free because you cannot get anything from the spirit free.
Send your Charity, donations, tithes, offerings, gifts, tributes and testimonies to
Soul-To-Soul Charismatic Ministries, No. 59 beach road, Etegbin, after shibiri last bus-stop,Ojo local government area,Lagos,Nigeria and Suite 215 Administration Main Office Block, Trade Fair Complex, Aspanda, Lagos State Nigeria. For more information
Contact The Great Soul Njibe Augustine Chinedum.
Telephones: 234 80 3055 7345, 234 70 395 28179
Email: soultosoul@live.com
MAKE SEVEN PHOTOCOPIES OF THIS HANDOUT AND GIVE IT TO SEVEN PERSONS AND WITHIN SEVEN DAYS YOU WILL SEE INSTANT MIRACLES,FINANCIAL BREAKTHROUGHS AND HEALING FROM GOD, BUT DO NOT FORGET TO PAY YOUR TITHE, DONATIONS AND TESTIMONIES TO SOUL TO SOUL CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES.
Ghosts and haunted houses are real,but we have the remedy to send them packing on the spot no matter what it may look like.
If Your house,treasure or land is haunted,terrorized or disturbed by ghosts,evil spirits,marine spirits,vampires,witches or earthbound spirits.We have new spiritual technique and very potent prayers that sends ghosts packing forever and you will never see or experience them in your house,lands or treasures.Call us on the following telephone numbers and send four first class,round trip air tickets with hotel and accommodation for four and we will come and send the ghosts packing on the spot.
Kind regards.
Chinedum Njibe.
Tel. + 234 80 3055 7345, + 234 70 395 28179
Email. soultosoul@live.com
Read our profile below
MAKE SEVEN PHOTOCOPIES OF THIS HANDOUT AND GIVE IT TO SEVEN PERSONS AND WITHIN SEVEN DAYS YOU WILL SEE INSTANT MIRACLES,FINANCIAL BREAKTHROUGHS AND HEALING FROM GOD, BUT DO NOT FORGET TO PAY YOUR TITHE, DONATIONS AND TESTIMONIES TO SOUL TO SOUL CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES.
SOUL TO SOUL
CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES
MOTTO: EVERY LIVING SOUL PRAISES THE LORD.
Soul To Soul Charismatic Ministries is a new and modern Charismatic Christian adventure where all the secrets of the power of the miracles performed by Jesus Christ, The Spiritual Giants, the Angels of God and all the Great Souls are revealed and exposed to the public. Money, prosperity, fortunes, treasures, riches, success and wealth must bow to you and become your servants. When you attend our church programs, prayers, counseling and activities, you will become a magnetic field where miracles happen every second. We also give and provide authentic trade forecasts for traders who trade in stocks all over the world. Soul To Soul will give you absolute spiritual protection against all principalities and powers.
Barren women, impotent men, poverty, divorce, broken homes, broken hearts, broken friendships, loneliness, suicide spirits, People possessed by alcohol and drugs, Ancestral and general curses, haunted treasures, houses and lands, men and women in prison or jail, girls and women looking for husbands of their choice, men and women possessed by marine spirits, evil spirits and witches, People suffering from Hypertension, cancer, ulcer, stroke, psychological and mental problems, madness, HIV/AIDS, leukemia, sickle cell anemia, fibroids, and all forms of incurable diseases and deformities etc are healed, redeemed, and released on the spot. Also your good health and long life is guaranteed.
The United nations, Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, The United States, Russia, China and all the Countries located near the Great Oceans and Seas must consult Soul To Soul now for immediate and urgent prayers that will avert the impending destruction and catastrophe caused by the disappearance of the Ozone Layer and the Artic and the Antarctic oceans of ice that will continue to increase the density and the size of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans and destroy two third of the world with flood before the year 2020
The Israelis and all the Jewish community around the world and their neighbors the Arab league must consult Soul To Soul now for prayers that will break all the Ancestral and general curses, deaths, strife, hatred, war, sorrow and distress that they inherited from their forefathers and to restore permanent peace, security and prosperity to the region
Our prayers are not free because you cannot get anything from the spirit free.
Send your Charity, donations, tithes, offerings, gifts, tributes and testimonies to
Soul-To-Soul Charismatic Ministries, No. 59 beach road, Etegbin, after shibiri last bus-stop,Ojo local government area,Lagos,Nigeria and Suite 215 Administration Main Office Block, Trade Fair Complex, Aspanda, Lagos State Nigeria. For more information
Contact The Great Soul,The Man Of God,Pastor Njibe Augustine Chinedum.
Telephones: 234 80 3055 7345, 234 70 395 28179
Email: soultosoul@live.com
MAKE SEVEN PHOTOCOPIES OF THIS HANDOUT AND GIVE IT TO SEVEN PERSONS AND WITHIN SEVEN DAYS YOU WILL SEE INSTANT MIRACLES,FINANCIAL BREAKTHROUGHS AND HEALING FROM GOD, BUT DO NOT FORGET TO PAY YOUR TITHE, DONATIONS AND TESTIMONIES TO SOUL TO SOUL CHARISMATIC MINISTRIES.
Alyx says: |
October 11, 2009, 7:29 pm |
I just visited the house recently, and I enjoyed every second of it. I am really fascinated with the paranormal and this is the house that I’ve always wanted to visit to see if indeed this house is haunted. But in my opinion, I dont think it is haunted. But reading these comments and especially from the person who saw a man in the garage and the garage was nowhere to be seen, I’m starting to think twice on it.
Next time i head over to Northern California, I’m definately gonna book for a Flashlight Tour!
« · 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · [10] ·
Show All Comments
Haunted Houses - United States
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Dumb Network
My Other Sites
Amber Burton says:
February 9, 2009, 9:43 pm
Hey I’ve been to the Winchester house many times I love it there It’s creepy and amazing all at the same time!