For those who may not know – the Winchester Mystery House is a mansion in San Jose, California that, to put it bluntly, is architecturally OFF THE HOOK INSANE. In brief, Sarah Winchester, the owner of the house and widow to the heir of the Winchester family fortune, a/k/a “The rifles that won the West,” believed the riches were essentially blood money. So, to escape the angry ghosts of (mostly) Native Americans who were killed by these aforementioned Winchesters, she spent 38 years working on a house that would chase away these evil spirits. That’s right, THIRTY EIGHT YEARS of sawing and hammering all day and night as additions were constructed. As it says on the website:
According to legend, Mrs. Winchester enacted a nightly séance to help with her building plans and for protection from “bad†spirits. While she sometimes drew up simple sketches of the building ideas, there were never any blueprints… or building inspectors! In the morning, she would meet with John Hansen, her dutiful foreman, and go over new changes and additions. As long as she kept up the endless building, she believed she would avert death. (Spoiler: She died.)
The house has always been open to the public to tour, with the rule that one MUST stay with the tour group, or risk being lost in the maze of the house for hours (or open a door that leads to a huge drop…), but soon, thanks to new permits, you’ll be able to stay OVERNIGHT.
Let me say that again. Soon, you’ll be able to stay overnight in the house dubbed “The Most Haunted House in the World.” A special permit granted by San Jose’s planning department will allow overnight guests, but not in the approximately 40 bedrooms in the house; they’ll use the caretaker’s residence, pump house, and other locations on the grounds.
Oh, and there will be liquor available too. Which is good, because please refer to the previous paragraph in which it is revealed that Winchester Mystery House is THE MOST HAUNTED HOUSE IN THE WORLD. But it’s also bad because if you’re wasted, you can’t run as fast from ALL THE GHOSTS THAT ARE GOING TO CHASE YOU in the MOST HAUNTED HOUSE IN THE WORLD.
Have you ever experienced a haunting? Do tell in the comments. I wasn’t going to bed anytime soon anyway…
Went to Winchester Mystery house and was so disappointed. No ghosts, no adventure. It was a boring tour that was so commercialized- the only thing scary were the prices in the gift shop!
It might be interesting for guests to find a copy of Mary Jo Ignoffo’s book, Captive of the Labyrinth: Sarah L. Winchester, Heiress to the Rifle Fortune, in their room when checking in. Wouldn’t it be refreshing to read the true history about the woman behind this house?
No thank you. I already live in a haunted house. All the ghosts here, both the shadow figures and people that just disappear, drive us nuts, I don’t want to go somewhere to attract more.
Noooo way. Been there. Felt too much. Saw too many ghosts in the rooms that were cut off by glass. The smoking lady in her bedroom was the icing on my ‘never returning here’ cake.
How soon?
I have been there and its not to bad. They do flashlight tours during Halloween time frame or on Friday 13th. It is a great place to go. But I don’t know about overnight though
Egon Spengler dies and now the Winchester House is allowing overnight guest. Coincidence? I think not!
Guess I know what I will be dragging my friends to for my birthday xo!
ILL GO, there aint no such thing as ghosts anyway. but itll be fun scaring the crap outta some people
Only as long as the Winchester Brothers come with!
One of the camps I went to as a kid had a lake that we swam in. One night I had gotten up to go to the bathroom, which was located about 300 yards from the cabin, and as I passed the lake I saw someone sitting in the lifeguard chair in the middle of the water. I went closer and as soon as my toes touched the water the person disappeared. Scared the crap out of 10 year old me.