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Sarah Winchester dies, halting construction of the mysterious Winchester house
On September 5, 1922, eccentric philanthropist Sarah Lockwood Pardee Winchester dies of heart failure at age 83 at the massive house she had spent nearly four decades building. Upon news of her death, construction immediately stops on the enigmatic Victorian estate she named “Llanada Villa.”
Winchester—heiress of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company through her husband, William Wirt Winchester—had purchased an eight-room farmhouse in San Jose, California, in 1886 after moving from Connecticut. For the next 36 years, Winchester used her $20-million inheritance on expanding and renovating the house in an endless project.
Secrets of the Winchester Mystery House
Step inside the mysterious—and possibly haunted—Winchester Mystery House.
The property eventually became known as the 24,000-square-foot Winchester Mystery House, which has 160 rooms, 10,000 window panes and 2,000 doors. The sprawling labyrinth of a house has numerous bizarre features, like staircases that lead nowhere or terminate at a flat ceiling, doors that open directly onto sheer drops with no balcony and secret passages.
During her lifetime, people wondered what motivated Winchester’s obsession with building the structure. Rumors swirled that she sought advice from psychics and was haunted by the ghosts of people killed by Winchester firearms.
Winchester was buried in her family’s plot at Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut, her hometown where she was known as the “Belle of New Haven.” Her estate became the Winchester Mystery House, a popular attraction in San Jose that draws tens of thousands of visitors every year.
Why People Believe California’s Winchester Mystery House Is Haunted
A grieving widow and mother oversaw construction of the maze-like Victorian-era mansion.
A grieving widow and mother oversaw construction of the maze-like Victorian-era mansion.
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Citation Information
- Article Title
- Sarah Winchester dies, halting construction of the mysterious Winchester house
- Authors
- Website Name
- History
- Date Accessed
- October 29, 2026
- Publisher
- A&E Television Networks
- Last Updated
- September 01, 2026
- Original Published Date
- September 01, 2026
