The Winchester building project began sometime in 1884 and continued until September 5, 1922, the day of Sarah’s death.

To stave off the swift death that had come to her other family members, Sarah had to continually add rooms to the home. For Sarah to prevent falling victim to the curse, he instructed her to build a home to appease the many wandering spirits killed by Winchester rifles. He performed a reading on Sarah and revealed to her that they were plagued by a family curse that was brought on by the same rifle that had made them rich and famous.

Sarah sought the help of a medium and psychic in Boston by the name of Adam Coons. Their passing caused an enormous amount of distress for the already grieving Sarah and she began to seek answers for the mysterious and untimely deaths of her family members. In 1881, approximately a year after the death of her father-in-law, Oliver Winchester, William also passed away at age 43. This was the first devastating blow to Sarah’s emotional well-being. Their beloved Anne died 40 days later of a rare childhood disease known as Marasmus.

( Provincial Archives of Alberta ) Winchester products were venerated as guns of choice in cowboy culture.Īfter four years of marriage, Sarah and William welcomed their first and only child, Anne Pardee Winchester. Portrait of a cowboy or a scout, Bowden, Alberta. Winchester products were venerated as guns of choice in cowboy culture and were the source of the Winchester’s fortune however, they also caused the couple’s undoing. Winchester rifles also gained popularity because of the film Winchester ’73 starring James Stewart, Shelley Winters, and Rock Hudson. It was also readily available due to mass production, which made it very useful in war. On a more practical note, the Winchester Model 1873 is the rifle that supposedly tamed the West due to its use of steel for the receiver, instead of bronze used in early models, and its chamber which made it one of the most powerful calibers of its time. This company’s guns are believed to have “won the West.” However, the Winchester didn’t really “win the West”, but the Winchester marketing campaign developed by Edwin Pugsley did a great job of convincing everyone that it did. Hand-tinted ambrotype of Sarah Winchester taken in 1865 by the Taber Photographic Company of San Francisco, 1865.

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Their marriage solidified them as a powerful family connected to one of the most iconic products of American popular culture – the Winchester rifle. In the fall of 1862, William Winchester married Sarah Pardee. However, these are just a few of the things that people have allegedly experienced while visiting one of the most haunted places in America – the Winchester Mystery House. This may sound like the opening chapter of a best-selling ghost novel or scenes from a Hollywood horror film. A man clad in clothing from the early 1900s walking around the basement.

The sound of children’s laughter reverberating throughout the hallways. Shadowy figures moving along the corridor, disappearing as they ascend the staircase to nowhere.

Winchester haunted house