Today began on a more relaxed note. We had a short drive to our destination. The Winchester House is located in San Jose. Sarah Winchester was the daughter-in-law of the founder of the Winchester Rifle company of New Haven, CT. Sarah and her husband had a daughter who died at six weeks of age. She lost her husband as well at a young age. These tragedies had such an adverse effect on her that she packed up and moved to an eight room farm house in San Jose, CA. Upon consultation with a psychic, she was advised that the deaths were revenge of the spirits of the people who were killed with Winchester Rifles. The psychic said that in order appease the ‘spirits’ she was to build. And so the construction began. Mrs. Winchester was the architect behind the 160 rooms of her Victorian style home on 161 acres. She had an average of 40 servants on hand at all times. The only other person who lived in the home with her besides the servants was her favorite niece.

The fact that there were 160 rooms is strange; however, this is not the strange part. There are doors that open to nowhere, stairs that lead to nothing, windows in the floor, chimneys that climb to within 1 ½ feet of the roof and only one shower! We were thankful that this was a guided tour, as one could quickly get lost. Bizarre as this house is, it is extremely beautiful as well. There are several rooms with stained glass by Tiffany! The gardens are exquisite.

Mrs. Winchester was a mere 4’ 10” tall. Several aspects of the home were constructed specifically for her stature, such as railings, doors and stair risers. Mrs. Winchester was fascinated with the spiritual world. She held séances in a room specifically designed for just such an activity, bell ringing daily at midnight and 2 am to call the spirits and her favorite number was 13. She included this number in several areas of her home. Some rooms had 13 windows or 13 coat hooks for example. She had a chandelier sent from Germany, it only contained 12 gas powered candles so she added a thirteenth.
At every turn and in every room the students were mesmerized by facts that each revealed. Every room was different and Sarah had a different purposed in mind for every design. Although she was eccentric, she was a very intelligent woman. I believe she was a ‘woman ahead of her time’. By that, I mean that she was a conservationist. She designed ways to conserve water. For example, she had a conservatory that the wooden floor could be taken up to reveal a zinc oxide floor. This way, when she watered the plants, the water would run off onto the slightly slanted floor and out through drains and down a spout to water her garden outside!

This was not the kind of tour that you could get bored with! I saw many expressions of awe as we learned about each room. What impressed me most about this home is it revealed to me what a ‘tortured soul’ she was. She grieved for her husband and daughter the rest of her life. Mrs. Sarah Winchester was buried with her husband and daughter in Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven, CT.

Today was amazing! Jaws dropped, cameras rapidly flashed and hands frantically wrote as we soaked in this experience. A must see!