The untold details of the haunted Winchester Mystery House are closer to the end of the video where I reveal information that is often overlooked when people tell stories about Sarah Winchester!
#winchestermysteryhouse #history #discovery
CHAPTERS:
0:00 The "Legend"
1:54 The Widow Winchester
5:56 A Rambling Home
9:43 Quaking Things Up
13:51 Sarah's Legacy
SOURCES/REFERENCES:
"The True Story of the Winchester Mystery House"
www.housebeautiful.com/design...
"The Fascinating Real Story Behind the Winchester Mystery House"
www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/real-s...
"The Truth About The Winchester Mystery House"
• The Truth About the Wi...
"Sarah Winchester at the World Fair"
jennylangauthor.com/sarah-win...
"A Winchester House in Burlingame"
www.smdailyjournal.com/news/l...
"Sarah Winchester"
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_W...
MUSIC:
"Balefire" by @ScottBuckley
• 'Balefire' [Dark Folk ...
"Instructions For Living A Life" by @SavfkMusic
• Instructions for Livin...
"White Petals" by @KeysofMoonMusic
• White Petals - Romanti...
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DISCLAIMER: I am not a University-educated historian, Alex the Historian was a nickname I got while working at Disneyland as a tour guide. After 7 years of using it as a stage name for my channel, it would be detrimental to the channel to suddenly change the name.
Do you think the Winchester House is haunted?
I absolutely love the video. Amazing work and interesting story. Please do more videos about the Winchester House. No, I do not believe the house is haunted. I'm a huge fan of architecture through the ages. Great job Alex. Keep up the good work.
I'm glad you suggest that because I was wondering if there was ways I could make more videos about the house.
No, but then I don't believe anywhere is actually haunted. Not Queen Mary, not this place. But great video, my friend! It was neat to learn about it.
it sure is
Only by the spirit of our imagination. But there's something more than meets the eye going on in that house. I don't think we've figured it out - it might just be Sarah Winchester laughing at us and saying, "Try to figure it out. You never will."
You gave Sarah the dignity she deserves. I hope more people will see the mansion as the home of an intelligent and generous woman, and less as a haunted carnival attraction. Great video, Alex!
Thank you! I certainly did my best to show people how remarkable and yet ordinary she was. I definitely wanted people to throw away the notion that she was "mad with grief".
Despite its chilling history, the house is actually very beautiful. Mrs. Winchester was a skilled designer, no doubt, and the style has held up over the years. It still looks timeless and classy but doesn't feel stale.
The truth despite it being interesting wasn’t what the gossipers wanted
@babybo obviously okworm003
I’ve done the tour there and they hardly mention any actual history but really play up the paranormal story. I also read she kept up the construction to make sure all her carpenters had jobs as she was very fond of them.
That's true!
I have been there several times. She was in the house during the earthquake all made up
When we toured they did focus on history and downplayed the paranormal. The also mentioned the care and fondness for the construction workers. Maybe it depends on the tour guide
I worked as a tour guide there in the early 2000’s. The house can be creepy when you are alone in it cleaning. We had to know the house and how to exit incase of emergencies. I loved walking up the easy riser stairs. The tour wouldn’t get as many visitors if the ghost stories were not told sadly. The legend has kept the house intact. It would have been sold a long time ago if it was just weird architecture.
Those carpenters sure had job security. What a fascinating house.
Lol they really did!
Maybe but some definitely wanted the project to end. There is a room that has been left alone since the day she passed away. The crew in here heard about her passing and simply dropped everything and left. There are nails all over that are driven halfway in and hammers resting next to them, never to be used again.
@@largol33t12 Quitting time is quitting time even if the boss treats one well. Leaving tools behind is a bit odd unless they belonged to the old lady.
My last apartment was in the area of her mansion I was told it was her property until the city sold after she died since she didn’t build that far. But most of the locals know if it wasn’t her having people keep building her house she helped people stay employed during a hard times.
You gotta learn how to write sentences more clearly.
I drove past this the Winchester house two weeks ago. What shocked me is the drab modern buildings that just surround it. It’s kind of sad.
I agree!
@@AlextheHistorian Granted how many other historical sites are like that? I mean look at where we think the hangings in Salem occurred. It’s now a Walgreens. For a while the home of Franklin Pierce was a multi unit apartment complex before they moved the home and opened it for tours. Grant’s Cottage in upstate New York is next to a now abandoned prison. Not that this justifies anything it’s just more putting things in context. Maybe I thought that because the Winchester home is so large nothing would be near it. Granted I never would have thought a prison would have been built next to Grant’s cottage so who am I to really judge.
I know what you mean. There was a senior citizens mobile park with a lot of trees next to the Winchester house that had been there for decades, I think Google or Facebook bought it and built a 10 story drab apartment building on the property.
@@newlam7958yup. Hate it
Sarah Winchester was a woman ahead of her time. If she wanted to do something, she did it. I have known of the Winchester House for years but until this great video by Alex I never gave thought to who, why and how it was built. Thanks to Alex for his time, hard work and helping to keep history alive. I think this video put a smile on Sarah's face.
Thank you!
One thing that is completely undisputed, that house is absolutely beautiful
damn, i shed a tear. she seemed like a remarkable woman. the one thing i got out of this is that having multiple people u love die around u one by one changes you drastically. she became reclusive but still was a woman of philanthropy which i admire greatly.
Despite what many think she wasn’t some crazy old spinster. She was a grieving widow and mother who’d lost numerous loved ones. She was intelligent and compassionate.
Thought he said she had no kids? That's why her sisters and their kids moved in.
@trishcraig723 She had an infant daughter who died back when they lived in Connecticut.
So in other words, she was a compassionate, eclectic woman that loved her family and workers.
if it had not been haunted before Sarahs death it soon became haunted because i am sure Sarah is still wandering her home keeping an eye on things. Thank you for telling Sarahs story in a kind way and not casting aspersions about her mentality.
I have memories of visiting this house as a child. I remember the stairs that lead nowhere and other odd elements. No one explained it like you have. I feel like I'm seeing the house I've been in for the first time. Thank you for telling a respectful story of Mrs. Winchester.
My pleasure!
I'm glad to know the truth regarding this woman and her amazing home. Some of us get an unfair share of losing loved ones.
Having heard folk rumors about the house for decades, this was the best short exploration I have ever seen.
I’m from the Bay Area and have visited this house numerous times. I live in San Jose until I moved to Colorado in 2005. This home is gorgeous. There are a lot of ghost stories that aren’t true. She was a fascinating woman who had a big heart. The history of the house fascinated me every time I went on a tour. I know a lot of the ‘stories’ that were told with every tour I took. I paid attention to the architecture and beauty instead. I lived close enough that I could walk there to the theaters that were near the house. I’m grateful that I lived in California when it was beautiful including San Francisco because I have wonderful memories. Memories that no longer exist❤
Boy, that's for sure!! I've lived in the Bay Area all my life, it is no longer the same. I'm getting the heck out of California and not going to look back, there was a place and a time, and sadly, it no longer exists.
My ex-husband and I actually took a tour of the house, and we really enjoyed it. The innovations that Sarah Winchester put into her home, and using parts from the rifle was pure genius on her part.
I'm very lucky to live close by to the house and I've been multiple times. I've always been fascinated with the house, from the story to the design there's something about it that keeps attracting me back to it. It's like stepping into a history book, the architecture, design, layout, and history always makes for an exciting visit
I think your narration and CONTENT were very respectful and interesting! This is the first doc I,ve seen that did not just delve into the titillating spooky stories, but highlated this wonderful woman! THANK YOU!❤
My pleasure!
Wow what an in depth version of Sarah and the house..All I have ever heard was the 'spooky stuff'
May Sarah rest in eternal peace with her husband and little one taken too soon. Bless her forever amen.
When I toured the Winchester house of mystery. I was intrigued. The tour guides do hype up.Ghost and mystery of sarah winchester. I felt completely at ease being there. I could feel Her pain of the great losses she endured in her life. At the same time I also felt a sense of peace that she is at peace. Thank you so much for this video. You put it down. Into reality not into the paranormal. There's never no mention of her little dog's that she loved so much. ❤
No I don't think it was ever haunted...more folklore. Such a beautiful story of Sarah. Thank you it's such a logical sensible life she lived. It's incredibly awesome to hear about all of her philanthropy!! What a beautiful loving Lady. 🩷
Absolutely fantastic. Bravo. And, so wonderful that she was a philanthropist, worked to house the homeless, and fought for animal rights. Glorious.
Thank you for representing her in a sane and well-respected manner. Usually all you hear is that she was mad.
Thank you for giving Sarah’s story the compassion it deserves. 💕
My company rented the house for a directors dinner. We had free roam of the place for a few hours with a guide to answer any questions. Fascinating place.
The stained glass windows and doors were made by Tiffany. Great video. Here's a suggestion for another video: New Almaden, a historic site south of San Jose, where cinnabar was mined for its mercury to glean gold in the heydays of the Gold Rush.
Just noting the stained glass has more recently been credited to John Mallon, not Tiffany. Mallon's stained glass company was based in San Francisco.
See the 2019 SFGate story on the topic titled "An envelope, hidden in a wall for 100 years, helps solve a Winchester Mystery House riddle" for more on the glass if interested.
I have been through the Winchester house 3 times over almost 40 years! History is very interesting! The Tiffany glass windows are magnificent. The tour announces no one ever danced on the ballroom floor! Wrong, I did! I stayed to the rear as the tour moved on....removed the velvet roping....and waltzed across the parquet floor! I had been teaching ballroom dancing at night, couldn't resist! I was amazed with the Winchester's inventions!
Glad to hear you had the sass to do a step or two on the dance floor.
You made me smile! Had to! The house really was very interesting. Some beautiful Tiffany windows, woodwork and early inventions. Some odd things also. Everyone should take the tour if in California.
We took the tour many many years ago. But it seems it was mentioned she continued to build so she would never die. It was a truly fascinating place.
Toured Winchester Mystery House in 96, absolutely loved it. Our Hostess, Audra made the tour so fun and interesting, I loved her sense of humor. Anyway, if you haven't already done so, and have the opportunity, I highly recommend going on the tour!
I would be lying if I said that I'm not more interested in the paranormal stuff, but this was an amazingly fun and insightful pov I hadn't seen before; thank you.
I visited the house many years ago and thought it was quite lovely, though obviously eccentric. She sounded like a truly marvelous, generous lady, so I thank you for this very compassionate video about her!
My dad went to tour the house while out there on a business trip in the 70s and was told the crazy story about madness and appeasing the souls of those killed by the guns. I was enthralled by the oddity of it and a few years ago, my husband flew me out there to see it. The beauty of it made me weepy and I was pleased to hear the ACTUAL story of how and why she built it.
Sounds like she was just a lovely woman trying to live her life. ❤she’s left her mark more than she knows.
I grew up in San Jose and visiting this house and heard all the ghost stories. I absolutely love how you told her story. It gave her so much more depth as a real person with real problems, hobbies and dreams. Thank you for doing this video and doing such a great job with it, it really warmed my heart.
Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
As soon as it was stated that Sarah had arthritis the shallow, deep treaded stairs made so much sense! It reminded me of when I visited Madisons Montpelier. Since the house was lived in until the 1980's there are some modern additions including staircases that are slightly shallower/longer than modern staircases which makes the site attractive to seniors wanting to visit historical homes as it's easier to go up and down the stairs. You know this is a more recent addition to the house because if you go to say Mount Vernon, staircases were much steeper than what we are use to and can be problematic for visitors with mobility issues (There is also extensive information on how the house evolved during its time owned by the DuPonts). If I was a rich widow with an interest in architecture and arthritis I'd have my staircases built like that too.
She must have had a VERY good memory despite her health issues. I cannot imagine the terror of getting lost in there during a blackout. And yes, there were blackouts and she would retreat to her master bedroom and never leave. She was terrified of the constant footsteps because she couldn't tell if they were her staff or something else... Just creepy to think about.
Thanks for the video! Your videos are always so well made. Also, it’s “Santa CLARA Valley”.
Omg that's embarrassing. I was literally writing the name of the valley directly from my sources and my sources said "Clarita". Ugh that makes me so upset.
@@AlextheHistorian I get it. I was born and raised in SoCal and live up in the Bay Area now and I STILL accidentally say Santa Clarita when referring to Santa Clara. And I’ve lived up here for 22 years now! 🤣
I recall visiting the house when it was in fairly bad condition, with the exterior in great need of a paint job & the interiors looking abandoned. So today's Winchester reflects decades of hard work & a lot of investment. The house should be an inspiration of the management team of the Queen Mary to do the same thing with their structure, which is relatively young, albeit much larger, compared with a property from the 1800s.
You were right Alex. After hearing your presentation, I want to visit The Winchester Mystery House all the more. I like how you changed the background music from eerie to light as you revealed the deeper truth behind Sarah Winchester.
You're the first person to notice that!
Thanks i really enjoyed that. I learned alot about sarah. I just knew the seance and ghost stories but it's nice to know the truth about her.
This was so interesting. I'd heard all of the paranormal stories. It's nice to know the truth about her. She seemed to be a remarkable woman who stayed strong even though she endured so much loss and lived in so much pain.
Great video. I have toured the home several times. I remember, the guide comments about the Store Room of Building materials. Its value then, in 1922, at time of her death, compared to present day prices. I think, the most interesting story is on the Garden and Carriage House tour. O Guest get a first hand look and the design of bringing "Gas lighting" into the home. Along with the "Carriage Wash" bay. With a pressurized Wond, much like thrones you see in the do it yourself car washes today. The Woodwork in the Ballroom is AMAZING, along with the Crystal Glass Lead windows! Cob Webb design, with the number 13 used for each panel! If she wasn't superstitious, the Brown family who bought the home, sure knew how to "work it" into their tours! Its worth the time and money to visit.
I didn’t know she owned other houses and land in the most beautiful parts of the Bay Area. Atherton, Los Altos, and Burlingame have stunning homes!
Thank you so very much. I've been to visit this grand old house a couple of times and loved it. It was quite enjoyable finally hearing the REAL story.
Absolutely amazing project. Also Sarah was receiving over $1,000 dollars per day from the sales of the Winchester rifles in 1881….! Fun Gun Fact.
WOW! What a GREAT video!! I've watched a LOT of videos about this house and NONE of them compares to this! So many of them focus on the "ghosts" or the craziness of it all, but not this channel. Thank you for that!!
My pleasure! Glad you liked it!
TYVM for telling the REAL TRUTH about Sarah
I have been there, and this place is not haunted at all. If you could go, do it, it is an unforgettable experience.
My mum and I enjoyed this. We are fans of the show Creature Features and recognized the name. It is very kind of you to put the real story out there. Reclusive women rarely get remembered for their actual lives.
Well done!! You definitely cleared the air on a lot of misconceptions, most of which were created and perpetuated by the subsequent owners. The people that Sarah's niece sold the property to are the ones that installed the items in groups of 13. They even altered a chandelier and claimed it was designed just for her, with 13 lights, only you can see the weld marks where they had added the 13th one!! 😂 It's absolutely beautiful and definitely worth a visit, if you're in the area, but I don't believe it's haunted. 😊
In 1998 I was visiting a friend who lived in San Mateo and she took me sightseeing and it was so much fun. But touring the Winchester Mystery House was one of the highlights of my trip. I had always been fascinated by the house with its crazy architecture and I am so happy that I was given the opportunity to see it. Thank you for this most excellent video that brought back my memories of this fascinating house! ❤
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
Thank you for your research on this estate. This makes so much more sense that the weird stories that are told during the tour. I like your version much better and Sarah deserves to have the truth told on her behalf. ❤❤
I loved ❤ this Video, finally someone told a beautiful story about an amazing woman of her time. Thank you 🙏🏼
Such a beautiful home! Wonderful video!
I've been to the Winchester house and want to Thank you for this video. I enjoyed learning more about Sarah then when visiting the site.
This was a beautiful and lovely story. I do love the ghost story that's been told for so long. But the history you have researched is amazing some of the history was sad, but it's amazing who knew she was sick, the way she accommodated herself to be able to live comfortably, taking care of her loved ones. This story was beautiful ty for your hard work Alex 💜
Thanks Anna! Glad you enjoyed it!
I did a tour of this house, years ago. Thank you for filling in the blanks❤
When I first became aware of Winchester Mystery House a few years ago, I made a trip out from Orlando, FL to see it. I took all of the guided tours and enjoyed it very much. As mentioned in this video, they do promote the psychic/haunted fallacy, so it was nice to learn the truth about Sarah Winchester. Thank you!
Ty. I enjoyed watching this and hearing the history.
Great video (as always)! You truly captured the “spirit” of Winchester Mystery House! Thank you for your beautiful work! ❤
Wow that's so nice of you to say!
My wife and I toured the house in 2016. The guide told us Sarah was in a bedroom at the front of the house when the 1906 earthquake happened. The door got stuck closed and she couldn't get out. She used an intercom system to signal the domestics that she was trapped and the workmen had to get her out.
Yeah thats what they say...but they also say she built the house to confuse ghosts so they couldn't find her...even though ghosts can pass through walls and sense a human presence. They also say she kept building the house until she died, even though she never added to the house after 1906. They say a lot of things
I love Sarah Winchester, and I had only heard some of this before. Thank you as always for rounding out my knowledge! My aunt/uncle/cousins lived just around the corner from the Winchester house and I went there a lot growing up when I would come for a visit. I was always fascinated by the place.
Oh that must have been SO fun to go to the house all the time!
Thank you for setting the record straight. Some of the stories told of Sarah and some of the "strange" architectural features of the house were were the work of the Brown family to make Sarah and the house seem even more mysterious. After all, the Winchester House became their money maker.
I really enjoyed this !!!! Thanks for this interesting content.
Great job Alex. I really enjoyed the video. Thank you for all the hard work you put into this.
Thanks! Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
I so much love this accurate take on her history. She was a wonderful and giving woman who doesn't deserve the legacy that's been thrust upon her.
Thank you, Alex, for your straight report on Mrs. Winchester and her house. I would not be surprised if there are ghosts who occasionally roam the halls, since their existence was the very reason for the house being built in the first place. It is a beautiful manifestation of the creative zeitgeist. I'm glad to read the comments from others; they give the place more dimension in my mind.
Another GREAT video, as always! And we ALWAYS appreciate your History Videos. THANKS!
Thank you!
Absolutely beautiful home! Yes I do Some houses and places have things that don't leave Wonderful video and info!
Thank you I just Subbed
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video! I posted a video last night about New Orleans, be sure to check it out! kzhead.info/sun/oppvipV9Z39jhX0/bejne.htmlsi=zmSeWiY_VX1S_jSD
@@AlextheHistorian Thank you so much! I will!
This truly was a treat!! Thank you!!! ❤❤❤
This is the best doc I’ve ever seen on Mrs. Winchester, and I grew up in SJ. Well done 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Thank you!
Thank you - very interesting and informative.
Excellent video! Very well done. Thank you for giving us a different perspective on this amazing woman and her home.
My pleasure!
Awesome content, great delivery. Thank u!
My pleasure!
Thank you for this amazing video. You covered facts that were so interesting about Sarah’s history of her family that is usually not told. Please continue to make these contents. So interesting 👍🏼
I definitely will, I plan to talk about a lot more historic places!
SATISFACTORY!! Great video and history of the area
It's been many years since I have been on the tour and this video showed far more than I saw on that one, but I was impressed with all of the information the docent told us and always recommend anyone going to that area not to skip it, as it is an architectural wonder! Thanks for delving into Sarah's story, as you are right, the truth is far more interesting than the rumors and hype. Great job Alex!
Thank you!
Another amazing video. Thank you for showing the beauty of this house and her.
Fascinating story- kind of sad too...to be so rich you spend your whole life building and building and rebuilding a home but have no one to really live in it with you....
Alex, you know I've been a fan for many years. Your Disneyland videos are pure gold! However, I must say I am pleased to see you branching out beyond the mouse & beyond the Queen Mary! As a young boy I was captivated by the legend after my family visited the "Mystery House" while on vacation. Your documentary explained many "mysteries" of the house & the woman herself....Thank you!
Thanks Bruce!
I really really enjoyed this video. Absolutely one of the best you have ever made!!
Thanks so much!
It was generous of her to help others! RIP
Thank you for this Alex... Great Video
Thanks!
Thanks for the video and story!😊
Very cool. I enjoyed visiting the house several years ago. Thanks Alex!
Ive been on the tour of the Winchester Mystery house. It was fascinating and interesting..water runs uphill as does balls. Strange floors and tilted ceilings..you have to see it to fully understand all the oddities..
Thankyou for such an interesting story, Alex. Sarah's life was certainly fascinating.
Thanks, yeah I was reading up on her and I was so fascinated with the story. She was a very interesting and kind lady.
When I toured this house, which was on my bucket list, I knew right away that she was teaching herself architecture. Thank you for telling her real story.
Yes, her house, even though it's a bit confusing, is such a beautiful and interesting design!
@AlextheHistorian so many things were so ahead of its time. The steamroom with the lead lining so she could water her plants and the whole space drained. They made a big deal about the room that had been lathed but not plaster but still had it's finish carpentry. I saw that as very contemporary, and you could just tell she didn't want to cover the beautiful wood normally lost inside the wall. Gosh, a hundred things. If she was crazy I only hope to join her there! It's an incredible textbook on building! She seemed to question everything that carpentry was in the Victorian/Edwardian period. Thanks again for treating her kindly. She really was ahead of her time.
I’ve always been curious about this story.
You did a great job on this and every video. I’ve toured the Winchester house and you added many interesting facts and background to the story. 👍
Thank you!
I agree with your conclusion. Even tho want to believe the ghost stories, my reasoning for having the house on my bucket list is because of the architecture. I love all things Victorian.
Great information I did not know about Sarah. All the stories I had heard simply pictured her as a crazy woman.
I am a San Jose native. I use to live right around the corner from this house in the late 80s early 90s. Growing up we always heard different stories but only one really stuck. However, this house is hunted. Must of us have not so good memories of this home.
Something to note: Sarah Winchester's fortune may not seem big but compared to today's value, she had a fortune of around $600-700 million! That's why she was able to keep the house under construction until the very end.
Great video thank you😊
Thankyou very much for this very fascinating tour of the Winchester Mystery House. I lived in Sunnyvale & my family used to come here quite frequently. To me it was the most fascinating house I had ever visted. The time was the 1960s. Haunted ? I thinked it was added to make it seem haunted & done thru speakers placed in cupboards. Supposedly she had seances so she could talk to her beloved family members. Truly fascinating tour.
My husband and I have been there twice. It’s fascinating. Beautiful carpentry. You can easily get lost, so be careful.
Very interesting video! Thank you :)