Ep. 69: The Winchester Mystery House

In 1886, Sarah Winchester - widow of William Winchester, the son of the founder of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company - took her $20 million inheritance ($550 million in today's money), moved from Connecticut to California, and began a project that would only end with her death in 1922. Winchester began to build a house...a house that would defy explanation. This house at its peak comprised 7 stories, 24000 square feet, and 161 rooms including 40 bedrooms and dozens of stairways and fireplaces. The strangest part of the house's construction, aside from its never-ending nature, is the architectural oddities that litter the mansion. These include stairs and doors to nowhere, windows overlooking other rooms, and strange angular design choices that seem to make no sense. So, why did Winchester do this? Legend goes that the Winchester family was cursed by the dead killed by the Winchester repeating arms guns, including the famous "Gun That Won the West". Sarah Winchester just may have been building this endless home to hide from the spirits, believing they were the cause of the deaths of her husband and infant daughter, and perhaps trying to appease them into not claiming her life as well. We explore the strange story of Sarah Winchester and her mystery house, along with the reputed hauntings that draw paranormal shows to investigate the home to this day. ________________________________________ Connect with us on social media: Facebook: www.facebook.com/aintitscary Twitter: @aintitscary Instagram: @aintitscary Patreon: www.patreon.com/aintitscary ___________________________________________ Thank you to our sponsors: BetterHelp - Special offer for Ain’t it Scary? listeners: Get 10% off your first month at www.betterhelp.com/aintitscary Audible - Get a FREE audiobook and 30-Day Free Trial at www.audibletrial.com/aintitscary BarkBox - Enjoy a FREE month of BarkBox on us when you sign up for a 6 or 12-month BarkBox subscription! Visit www.barkbox.com/aintitscary for more details Hunt a Killer - Receive 20% off your first Hunt a Killer subscription box at www.huntakiller.com with the code SCARYSQUAD at checkout! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices