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At one time the Winchester Home was merely a small eight bedroom farm with a water tower and a barn on about 160 acres. It was purchased by Sarah Lockwood Winchester (Pardee) in 1884 from Conneticut! Sarah was the heir to her husbands wealth when he passed away from tuberculosisas he was president of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company and son of Oliver. Sarah Winchester received $20 million dollars and about $1000 per day in royalties from being half of the owner of the arms company. During the 1800's anybody with this sort of wealth could afford to live in royalty owning only but the finest.

Before I get into the mansion itself id like to talk a bit more about Sarah as she was truly an amazing woman of her time. A sad series of events followed her around since the marriage to her husband in 1862 during the civil war. During this time period her husbands weapons would be responsible for killing thousands. As it was her husbands company that produced the rifle that won the west. This would include soldiers of the south in the civil war but also many native Americans in the wild west where at one time was full of dangers. In 1866 Sarah and William had a daughter Annie sadly she passed away at the age of 6 months old which led to a series of many other tragic events at least according to Sarah's beliefs.

William Winchester passed away in 1881 this really put Sarah over the edge considering she never really had gotten over the death of her daughter. Perhaps she felt somewhat responsible or maybe even blamed herself. Out of guilt she visited Boston to seek the aid of an occultist and medium who told her that the family was cursed from those spirits whose lives were lost from her husbands rifle. They also told her the only way to appease the curse would be for her to move out west and continue to build a house that would confuse the spirits seeking revenge looking for her. More then often the servants who resided at the Winchester Mansion had a hard time locating Sarah so service bells were installed at various locations of the mansion which grew for 38 years. Not only for 38 years did construction continue but it progressed everyday, 24 hours a day and 365 days per year. The occultist gave Sarah the impression that once construction halted she would die from the curse therefore it continued.

What turned into a small little farmhouse in San Jose eventually transformed into a luxurious Victorian Mansion containing three elevators, nineteen possible chimneys, two ball rooms, two thousand doors, ten thousand windows, forty bedrooms, one hundred sixty rooms, two basements, seven stories, orchards, gardens, thirteen bathrooms, six kitchens, fifty two sky lights forty seven fireplaces and forty staircases. Everything would be consumed and the work was ongoing. You could never tell Sarah anything about how to design her home although she was a recluse always sleeping in different rooms and having over very few visitors if you did she would dismiss you. Her building plans were all drawn up in a place that she called the seance room where she consulted with the deceased supposedly.

Eventually Sarah would pass away at the age of 85 years old in 1922 when one of the servants found her deceased in her very own bedroom. I believe I was told she died from an apparent heart attack which leads me to believe that either old age got the best of her or one late night she seen something that horrified her which led to the heart attack. Perhaps she for the first time seen a ghosts and thought that they were coming to reap her soul nobody really knows.

When she passed away it took at least 8 truck loads a day for about six weeks to remove all the furnishings out of the home some say a year. She had no immediate family accept her niece which kept what she wanted auctioning off the rest. Some things were left to Sarah's personal secretary while appraisers never seen any real value in the estate due to a very tragic event in 1906 known as the great quake which shook San Francisco bringing it to its knees.

Sarah's niece ended up selling the estate at an auction for around $135,000 where as today it is still in restoration but worth millions. In 1906 the mansion was damaged in the earthquake trapping Sarah in her room. Their were portions of the house which were damaged and the seven story tower collapsed. Sarah was a superstitious woman so when that event occurred she felt she angered the spirits so she boarded off 30 rooms in the front of the home where she spent most of her funding on beautifying it. Today if you were to walk around the mansion as I did you can still find parts of the home that were damages. Since the house was built on a floating foundation most theorize this is why the home did not collapse completely as in an other case it probably would have.

Sarah was not the greatest of architects as the house is like a giant confusing labyrinth where a game of hide n seek may just be your last lol. Their are stairs that go to nowhere, doors that open to walls and even mistakes in her work that are visible. An example of this is that she had a prism window installed in a room where the sun never reaches thus the rays of rainbow never shine through. Some say she sunk into madness others say she did this purposely to confuse any evil spirits who were searching for her to seek revenge for the rifle her husband manufactured that killed them.

The mansion had cost over 5.5 million dollars to build today that would be equivalent to about 71 million dollars if not more. The grand ball room alone had costs her about $9000 which would be equivalent in the Santa Clara Valley to the cost of three homes. All the materials were designed on the property just as one of the kitchen sinks was carved out of soap stone one massive piece that is. In the storage room where even today various stained glass windows are stored that room is worth over 25k during its time today its probably worth a dozen times as much. Sarah was obsessed with the number 13 and spider webs which can be found in nearly every room including outside of the home. For example a window may have 13 panes with a spider web design strung across it.

The house primarily was built out of redwood which Sarah was not very proud of thus she had it covered with wood finishing or faux grain which was highly expensive. She had many of the chandeliers gold or silver plated. Many of the lamps were gas powered including some in the mansions dark halls and stairwells. Their was also modern plumbing installed including a working hot shower made to accommodate Sarah Winchester. The heating for the home was powered by steam air just as the elevators were operated hydraulically. This mansions features were ahead of its time and not because Sarah invented these means its because she had the funding to have them integrated into the construction plan.

Going back to the number 13 lets talk about that a bit more. While walking through the mansion you will see thirteen hooks on the wall, thirteen drain holes in the kitchen sinks, thirteen candle holders in the chandeliers instead of the normal twelve and on Friday the 13th the bell was run thirteen times. That is only half of the story as the front gates look like a giant wrought iron spider web and throughout the home lay many secrets. For example in the grand ball room a piece taken from Shakespeare is written across the stained glass still till this day nobody has been able to decipher the reasoning it was put here.

Today the 160 acre estate has been reduced to a mere 6 acre site although the mansion itself is over 25,000 sq feet! Its one of the largest mansions in the country perhaps the world if you really want to get technical. It has had its fair share of visitors over the years including the great Harry Houdini who toured the mansion and including me lol. It does not matter who visits here its a story that can be passed down from generation to generation as the tales associated with this historic site range from one woman's madness all the way to the ghost that haunt it.

Sarah paid her servants and carpenters very well actually twice the amount that they would make anywhere else. She was a kind generous lady who longed for her daughter and husband yet feared death itself. When the servants opened up her safe they found only the will which had 13 clauses and was signed 13 times. They also find the locks and obituaries from Sarah's deceased husband and daughter. When she passed away she left behind a legacy of more questions then answers despite the fact the mansion today still stands nobody can understand the meaning behind the door to nowhere or the giant drop off that leads into the kitchen. Every corner of this mansion holds a surprise that includes some doors that were designed for a woman of Sarah's height.

As far as pertaining to the ghosts and haunting's the property is said to be a very active paranormal hotspot. This may be attributed due to the heavy amount of visitors over the years or the fact that if someone believes in spirits long enough it may perhaps create a haunting which is another story in itself we refer to as poltergeist activity. I did notice that the areas Sarah Winchester spent most of her time at were the areas with the highest activity this includes EMF/Gauss fluctuations and EVP's which leads me to believe that maybe she still haunts the house she loved so much.

Although their are many other stories that been passed down through the years such as chairs rocking by themselves, heavy cold spots and even the organ in the ballroom playing by itself. I have not heard to many stories about Sarah's ghost being seen here although employees on occasion have seen the ghost of an older woman seen in the mansion. Just as employees have seen the ghost of a carpenter with a wheelbarrow in the basement when they began renovating it for tours. You have to understand that Sarah Winchester not only provided a home for herself but also for her tradesmen and there families as well. Everybody either lived in the mansion or on the grounds in separate structures.

Then you have the case of people hearing voices in the home or things moving by themselves. When I was touring the mansion a door opened by itself and nobody was there. Its an old house and its very cold however their is no explanation for door knobs turning by themselves or strange voices being blurted out. If you pay very close attention we did not record many EVP's on our investigation but we recorded enough to know that these random voice stories do hole some truth. Just as some people have smelled perfumes and chicken soup cooking when the stoves are not on.

However the most common stories are lights turning on by themselves, doors unlocking that were locked, footsteps and heavy breathing being heard. Their is also stories about people hearing the sound of construction taking place as if the building never stopped. Most felt that when Lady Winchester passed away some of the carpenters were relieved that they didn't have to build onto the home anymore. Keep in mind that her employees worked continually around the clock and had to take a vow of silence in regards to the mansions secrets otherwise they were in fear for their jobs. But when her death came upon everyone I do believe their was some relief and an end to the curse itself if you want to call it that.

Some of that secrecy carries over today such as your not allowed to take photos inside the mansion thus we have used photos collected from the Winchester Website for educational purposes ONLY! Although PGS is trying to work on getting a contract to spend the night inside of the mansion so that we can finish up our research to broaden the mansions paranormal secrets. Today some traditions are still continued to honor the Winchesters such as the bell is still rung 13 times on Friday the 13th. If you truly wish to learn more in depth about the mansion and Sarah Winchester please check out further information below on this page and throughout this update. This will always be a special place in the hearts of many but for the true ghosthunter this mansion is worth more then gold!

Some people felt that maybe Sarah was just a lonely old lady with a lot of money to spend others felt she insane from the moment she lost the family she cherished most. Then again can you blame her she lost the child and man she loved including her in laws. However Sarah chose to live on in her own way perhaps to honor those she loved or maybe she did fear the curse. She continued to build her home much like we continue to build our society. In some way Sarah is a lot like I am we both are devoted towards our own causes perhaps!

Nobody knows for sure the real story behind the mansion because it was built during a time that America was expanding so those settling in it had a different belief system. A time when Sarah road in a carriage not an automobile. A time where those who were found to talk to the spirits were often labeled as devil worshippers or even as strange compared to the paranormal world we live in today. Perhaps its the stories, tales and secrets that keeps those wanting to come back for more! Oh and if you feel the need to get yourself a Winchester check out the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in my opinion its still one of the best rifle companies even over a century later!

Copyright By
Lord Rick
Founder
Author, Producer and Talk Show Host

Winchester Mystery House

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Winchester Mystery House is a well-known mansion in Northern California. It once was the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of gun magnate William Wirt Winchester. It was continuously under construction for 38 years and is reported to be haunted. It now serves as a tourist attraction. Under Winchester's day-to-day guidance, its "from-the-ground-up" construction proceeded around the clock, without interruption, from 1884 until her death on September 5, 1922, at which time work immediately ceased.^[2] The cost for such constant building has been estimated at about US $5.5 million^[3] (if paid in 1922; this would be equivalent to over $71 million in 2010).^[4]

The Queen Anne Style Victorian mansion is renowned for its size and utter lack of any master building plan. According to popular belief, Winchester thought the house was haunted by the ghosts of the people who fell victim to Winchester rifles, and that only continuous construction would appease them. It is located at 525 South Winchester Blvd. in San Jose, California.^[5]

Inspiration

Although this is disputed, popular belief holds that the Boston Medium told Winchester that she had to leave her home in New Haven and travel West, where she must "build a home for yourself and for the spirits who have fallen from this terrible weapon, too. You must never stop building the house. If you continue building, you will live forever. But if you stop, then you will die."

Winchester left her New Haven home and headed for California. In 1884 she purchased an unfinished farm in Santa Clara Valley, and began building her mansion. Carpenters were hired and worked on the house day and night until it became a seven story mansion.

The June 1937 issue of Modern Mechanix relates the story from then-current accounts as follows: "Winchester and the baby girl died suddenly and Mrs Winchester, stunned by the tragedy, fell into a coma so serious that physicians despaired of her life.

"Finally she recovered and, at a friend’s suggestion, visited a medium. During a séance, according to those familiar with her story, she received a communication from her dead husband in which he said: 'Sarah dear, if our house had not been finished, I would still be with you. I urge you now to build a home, but never let it be finished, for then you will live.' "^[6]

Another version of the story says that after the deaths of her daughter and later her husband, she consulted a medium who told her that she must build a house and never cease building it, otherwise the spirits that killed her family members would come after her, too. After that she began construction on the maze-like house full of twists, turns, and dead ends, so that the spirits would get lost and never be able to find her.

One version states "She believed her only chance of a normal life was to build a house, and keep building it. If the house was never finished, no ghost could settle into it. The house contains many features that were utilized to trap or confuse spirits. There are doors that are small or lead nowhere and windows that look into other parts of the house. The mansion may be huge but there are only two mirrors in the whole place. This is because Sarah believed that ghosts were afraid of their own reflection."^[7]

Winchester inherited more than $20.5 million upon her husband's death. She also received nearly 50 percent ownership of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, giving her an income of roughly $1,000 per day, none of which was taxable until 1913. This amount is roughly equivalent to about $300,000 a day in 2012. All of this gave her a tremendous amount of wealth to fund the ongoing construction.^{[citation
needed]}

The house today

Before the 1906 earthquake, the house had been seven stories high, but 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. She therefore demanded that a faux grain and stain be applied. This is why almost all the wood in the home is covered. Approximately 20,500 gallons (76,000 liters) of paint were required to paint the house. The home itself is built using a floating foundation that is believed to have saved it from total collapse in the 1906 earthquake and the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. This type of construction allows the home to shift freely, as it is not completely attached to its brick base. There are roughly 160 rooms, including 40 bedrooms, 2 ballrooms (one completed and one unfinished) as well as 47 fireplaces, 10,000 window panes, 17 chimneys (with evidence of two others), two basements and three elevators. Winchester's property was about 162 acres (650,000 m²) at one time, but the estate is now just 4.5 acres (24,000 m²) — the minimum necessary to contain the house and nearby outbuildings. It has gold and silver chandeliers and hand inlaid parquet floors and trim. There are doors and stairways that lead nowhere and a vast array of colors and materials. Due to Mrs Winchester's debilitating arthritis, special "easy riser" stairways were installed as a replacement for her original steep construction. This allowed her to move about her home freely as she was only able to raise her feet a few inches high.

The home's conveniences were rare at the time of its construction. These included steam and forced-air heating, modern indoor toilets and plumbing, push-button gas lights, Mrs Winchester's personal (and only) hot shower from indoor plumbing. There are also three elevators, one of which was powered by a rare horizontal hydraulic elevator piston. Most elevator pistons are vertical, as this takes up less space, but to improve its function, she discarded the norm and included this model for its function over fashion. Though the home was built with the strangest of intentions, Mrs. Winchester never skimped on the many bizarre and nasty adornments that she believed contributed to its architectural beauty. Many of the stained glass windows were created by the Tiffany company. Some were designed specifically for her, and others by her, including the renowned "spider web" window. This piece features her favorite shape, the spider's web, and features repetition of the number 13, which was one of her preoccupations. This window is not installed, but rather featured in the so called "$25,000 storage room". The room is so named because its contents were originally appraised at a value of $25,000. Their value today is inestimable, but thought to be at least ten times that. A second famed window was designed by Tiffany himself for Mrs Winchester. This window was carefully designed so that when the light hits the crystals just so, the room will be filled with thousands of rainbow prisms. However, due to the poor placement of the piece, this will never be seen. It is located in a room with no direct light, as well as being built facing a wall.

When Mrs Winchester passed away, all of her possessions (apart from the house) were bequeathed to her niece and personal secretary. Her niece then took everything she wanted and sold the rest in a private auction. It took a full year, eight hours a day, to remove all of the furniture from the home. Mrs Winchester made no mention of the mansion in her will, and appraisers considered the house worthless due to the damage caused by the earthquake, the unfinished design and the impractical nature of its construction. It was sold at auction to a local investor for $135,000, and in February, 1923, five months after Mrs. Winchester's death, was opened to the public. Harry Houdini toured the mansion in 1924, and the newspaper account of his visit, displayed in the rifle museum on the estate, called it the Mystery House.^{[citation
needed]}

Today the home is owned by Winchester Investments LLC^[8] and it retains unique touches that reflect Mrs Winchester's beliefs and her reported preoccupation with warding off malevolent spirits. These spirits are said to have directly inspired her as to the way the house should be built. The number thirteen and spider web motifs, which had some sort of spiritual meaning to her, reappear around the house. For example, an expensive imported chandelier that originally had 12 candle-holders was altered to accommodate 13 candles, wall clothes hooks are in multiples of 13, and a spider web-patterned stained glass window contains 13 colored stones. The sink's drain covers also have 13 holes. In tribute, the house's current groundskeepers have created a topiary tree shaped like the numeral 13. Also, every Friday the 13th the large bell on the property is rung 13 times at 1 o'clock p.m. (13:00) in tribute to Winchester.

References

Sarah Winchester and the
"Winchester Mystery House"

She was born Sarah Lockwood Pardee about 1837. In the early 1860s, she met a man by the name of William Wirt Winchester, who was the son of Oliver Winchester, the famed gun manufacturer, and heir to his considerable fortune valued in the millions of dollars.

The rifle that would start the creation of this fortune was the Winchester Rifle -that famous Henry Rifle which was a total revolution in gun design and became known as the "rifle that won the West. With the beginning of the Civil War on the horizon, his company, the Winchester Repeating Arms Company began to produce thousands of rifles and obtained a fortune from government contracts. While the Civil War was going in earnest, Sarah married William in September 1862. The Winchester family hosted their wedding, held in New Haven, Connecticut, which was quite an elaborate affair. Upon marrying William, Sarah became the belle of New Haven, and was on top of the city's social scene.

What would follow in the life of Sarah, was the beginning of what many believe to be a family curse that led to the most bizarre house architecturally in the world!

Their union went well, and was typical of the society marriages of this time. In July 1866, Sarah and William had a daughter that they named Annie. However, when Annie was only six months old, tragedy struck when she died of a children's disease. This began what Sarah believed was a curse on her family, and so traumatized was she over her daughter's death, she nearly slipped into madness, and shunned society. William and Sarah had no other children.

Having recovered somewhat, Sarah and William tried to maintain a normal life, but again Sarah's life would meet with another tragedy. In March 1881, William, having been stricken with tuberculosis, died.

Upon William's death, she inherited $20 million, and about one half ownership in the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, which brought her an additional $1000 a day in royalties. And incredible amount of money then and now, it was little comfort to her, after having lost the two people she loved the most in the world.

Now in an inconsolable state, a friend suggested to Sarah that she should seek the advice of a medium, as this was a popular recourse at this time. Sarah took her friends advice, but the experience did not help her, but only reinforced the curse she believed was on the Winchester family. The medium told Sarah that the family was cursed by the spirits of all those who had been killed by Winchester rifles. The medium further told her that the spirits had taken her daughter and husband in revenge, and the only thing she could do is acquire a house and build on it continually. As the story goes, it appears that the medium advised Sarah that should the construction end, Sarah would die as well.

So Sarah set out to fulfill the medium's advice, and purchased a house in San Jose in 1884, and immediately started using her $20 million fortune making various additions twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, for the next 38 years, only ending the day she died at the age of 85.

Sarah was not a good designer, however, she still designed all the various construction.

The house turned into a mass of staircases that went nowhere, and much more. It has been said that Sarah did th construction in this twisted manner so as to confuse the sprits, or to make the house so confusing the spirits would never be able to find her. I think she succeeded! Probably the more truthful theories as to why she designed as she did is that she was not an architect and had no clue what she was doing, or that she was put plainly out of her mind.

    Here is a listing of the construction that was done over the 38 years. Originally the grounds consisted of 161.919 acres and the house was seven floors (shown below). In April 1906, after the earthquake that hit San Francisco and the surrounding area, the house was reduced in levels, and is presently four today. As a result of the earthquake, Sarah was imprisoned in her room. Upon being freed, she believed that the earthquake was a message from the spirits that she was spending too much money and time on the front areas of the house. Consequently, she had thirty rooms boarded up, never using them again, devoting her money and designs to others areas of the   house. Additionally, Sarah was obsessed with the number thirteen, which is apparent in many of these projects.

The statistics of the house are as follows:

The House contained 160 rooms. These included 40 bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, many of which have glass doors, and 6 kitchens. There are also 47 fireplaces many of which have flues that go nowhere, as Sarah believed the spirits after her could enter and leave a house through the chimneys.

There are two ballrooms, and forty staircases, and more than 450 doorways. Of the forty staircases, many lead nowhere, and one ends at the ceiling (below).   All the stairs have thirteen steps except one which consists of 42 steps, but each step is only two inches high, and consists of this back and forth pattern.

      There are also 2,000 doors in the house, and 10,000 windows. Most of the windows have thirteen panes, where as some rooms have thirteen panels, and other rooms have thirteen windows. There is one room that has a window in the floor; others have closets that open to blank walls; there are many rooms within rooms; and one door that opens to an eight-foot drop overlooking a garden outside. Another door opens to an eight-foot drop that overlooks a kitchen sink. There is also thirteen drain holes in a kitchen sink and a twelve-light gas chandelier that was modified to thirteen lights. The house is constructed as if the workers would have stopped for the day, and the next, rather than finish the previous days work, started on something completely new. This is not true as work continued twenty-four hours a day. It's just that Sarah's designs look this way.

There are numerous accounts of paranormal activity occurring in the house. These include ghosts, organ music playing, book pages turning and many others.

In addition to the paranormal activities, there are also unanswered questions about Sarah and the things she did, such as why was she so fascinated with the number thirteen? Sarah slept in a different room each night! It is a theory that this was an attempt to fool the spirits as to her location, which may be true as she believed. Another was she had this huge house, but never let any visitors in? And why would she dismiss any worker who accidentally saw her face?

Unfortunately, Sarah took these and many other fascinating facts with her to her grave. Sarah died in her sleep on September 5, 1922, at the age of 85, and was buried alongside her husband and daughter. It is said that upon the workers learning this, all construction abruptly stopped, even to the extent of leaving nails hammered in part way.

Upon her death, servants opened her safe, but rather than finding money or valuables, (or even Medifast coupon codes or a Medifast coupon or other such valuables) all it contained were the locks of her husband's and daughter's hair, with copies of their obituaries, and her will. Sarah's will was written in thirteen parts, and signed thirteen times. It provided for a few of her servants, as well as left all her furniture to her niece. No arrangement was made concerning the house and grounds. There was so much furniture that her niece sold much of it, and it was taken away in truckloads. It took eight truckloads a day for six and one half weeks to remove it all. The house was then sold and turned into a tourist attraction today. It is now listed as a National Historic Site.

Probably one of the "normal" things that Sarah did do with her money was she donated $2 million to the Winchester Fund, which was used for the treatment of tuberculosis which she founded in honor of her husband following his death.

The Winchester Mystery House is open for tours daily, except Christmas day. There are special flashlight tours given on Halloween and every Friday the Thirteenth. The standard tour takes about an hour. I have had the pleasure and experience of visiting the house, and it is well worth a visit. You've never seem anything like this! It's a fun and unusual experience.

The Winchester Mystery House is located at 525 S. Winchester Boulevard, between Stevens Creek Blvd. and I280, San Jose, California 95128. Further information may be received by calling (408) 247-2000 or Fax to:(408) 247-2090.

      Copyright© John T. Marck. All Rights Reserved.'

Winchester House History

The Winchester House and Sarah Winchester

By Betsy Malloy, About.com Guide

History

Sarah Lockwood Pardee married William Winchester of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1862. Their only child, a six-month-old daughter died in 1866. William died of tuberculosis a few years later.

The distraught Sarah visited a Boston psychic (a common practice at the time) who told her the deaths were revenge from the ghosts of those killed by Winchester rifles, and that Sarah could escape the spirits' wrath by moving west and building a house that would never be finished.

Sarah Winchester took her $20 million cash inheritance and $1,000-a-day income and moved west to California in 1884. She bought an unfinished, eight-room farmhouse near San Jose which is now known as the Winchester Mystery House. She soon started building 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - and she never stopped. For the next 38 years, the house grew like kudzu along a Virginia highway, swallowing up everything around it, including the barn and water tower.

Opinions vary about why Sarah kept building the Winchester House. While some say she thought it would prevent her death, others reckon that she was just a crazy, rich woman with too much money and a poor sense of building design. Every night, Sarah is rumored to have retreated to her seance room to consult the spirits, who gave her building instructions. Neither Sarah nor her spirits were good architects, and the Winchester House grew without plan or blueprint.

By April, 1906, the Winchester House rose seven stories high. A massive earthquake struck, setting off fires that destroyed much of San Francisco. In San Jose, Sarah Winchester was imprisoned in her bedroom. When freed, she announced that the earthquake was a message from the spirits that she was spending too much time in the front rooms. She boarded up 30 of them, blocking access to her new $3,000 front doors, and never used them again.

Sarah spent over $5 million building and rebuilding the bizarre Winchester House, but it didn't ensure her immortality. She died in her sleep on September 5, 1922. Construction stopped abruptly. Some say the carpenters were so happy to be done that they stopped without even hammering in the nail they were working on. By then, Winchester had created a sprawling structure covering 6 acres with 160 rooms, 13 bathrooms, 6 kitchens, 40 staircases, 47 fireplaces, 2,000 doors and 10,000 windows.

A small clue to Sarah's thoughts was found in the contents of her safe after she died. Servants opened it, no doubt thinking it might contain items of great value, but all they found were locks of her husband's and infant daughter's hair, along with copies of their obituaries.

Even if Sarah really believed that the building would help her live forever, she had a contingency plan: a will written in 13 parts and signed 13 times. She provided for some of her servants, left her furniture to her niece and said nothing about the building she had spent so much of her energy on. The niece sold most of the furniture, which was carried away by the truckload: eight truckloads a day for six and a half weeks. The Winchester House was sold and turned into the tourist attraction it is today.

On a saner note, Sarah donated almost $2 million to the Winchester Fund for treatment of tuberculosis at New Haven Hospital, which she founded after her husband's death.

Sarah was also sometimes a practical and inventive woman, and there are many unusual innovations in the Winchester House, including a shower specially designed so the diminutive Sarah could wash without getting her hair wet, an elaborate servant call system, a conservatory room designed to save water, and a patented laundry room sink with built-in scrub-board and soap holders.

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