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High quality orchids aplenty will be for sale - seriously, orchid aficionados, prepare yourself - and experts will talk all things soil and sunlight and water and growth. ORCHID HISTORY: Okay, yes indeed, the orchid is kind of the perfect flower for the Winchester - mysterious, elegant, laden with baroque history and legends - so it naturally fits in more ways than one. It's the perfect setting, then, for the San Jose Orchid Exposition, which flowers at the Winchester from Thursday, May 30 through Sunday, June 1. Things blossom at one of the world's most eerie, said-to-be-haunted destinations, meaning the Winchester is indeed about petals and not just phantoms. "flowery" is another apt word for a house often associated with the night. But when you consider the gorgeous grounds, and the dignified and historic presentation of Sarah Winchester's rambler of a mansion, and the colorful buds that pop throughout the spring, well. So how do you describe San Jose's most famous abode, the Winchester Mystery House? Spooky? Creepy, even? Ghosty? Those are likely high on many a fan's list. This one pier might be "touristy" while this one beach is "private" and this other ski run is "party-riffic." We too often boil every locale down to its one-word qualifier (though, to be honest, many a destination lacks even that, in many minds). One popular personality who toured the mansion is Harry Houdini.A CERTAIN CHARACTER: With the busy, noisy, image-packed world we occupy, it can be rather too simple to put certain places, things, and buildings in particular slots and categories.

There was no mention of the mansion on Sarah’s will and it was sold in an auction in 1923. Six trucks worked 8 hours a day for 6 weeks to remove the furniture in the house. Her niece took everything she liked and sold the rest in a private auction. On her death, Sarah’s possessions were given to her personal secretary and her niece. It had many adornments from the Tiffany Company, and some of the objects in the house were just designed specifically for her. Back in the time, the house was the only one that had indoor plumbing and hot showers.Īlthough the house’s construction was not only bizarre, Sarah Winchester did not spare any amount to ensure that the house was beautiful. The house is popular for stairways and doors, which lead to nowhere. There are roughly 160 rooms, 2 ballrooms, 40 bathrooms, and 47 fireplaces. The original house was seven stories high, but it was reduced to only four stories because of the 1906 earthquake. Sarah inherited more than $20 million upon her husband’s death and earned $1,000 per day from the Winchester Repeating Arms Company.

She moved to California and purchased a farmhouse in 1884. Sarah decided to build the house after being told that she must continuously build a home for herself and the people who died by way of the Winchester rifle. The Queen Anne style Victorian mansion does not have any master building plan, which is quite grand. People believe that it is one of Sarah Winchester’s carpenters continuing his work in the house.

One photograph was taken by a caretaker’s friend, which had the image of a mysterious stranger who wore a workman’s heavy overall. Since the house opened to the public in 1923, people who have worked in and visited the mansion have described strange occurrences.ĭoorknobs would rattle on their own floorboards would creak even though rooms are empty footsteps could be heard, and breathing could be felt. The house is reported to have various mischievous spirits. She believed that she could only appease the spirits by continuously building.

It is reported that upon consultation with The Boston Medium, Sarah came to believe that her family was haunted by all of the victims of the Winchester rifle. It is estimated that Sarah Winchester spent more than $5 million on the house’s construction. Construction commenced in 1884, and it never stopped up until the death of Sarah.Ĭonstruction immediately ceased on September 5, 1922. Once the home of Sarah Winchester, the widow of William Wirt Winchester, the Winchester Mystery House certainly lives up to its name.