Perhaps the upper story collapsed with other parts of the home in the earthquake. Same thing with the infamous staircase to the ceiling. However, it was installed in a wall that eventually had a large wing of rooms built behind it, obscuring any direct light that could possibly transform the room. The most expensive window in the mansion, a Tiffany stained glass piece, was designed to refract rainbows across the room as the sun hit it. What is touted as an eccentric, confusing labyrinth appeared to me to be what would naturally result when constantly building without a blueprint. Why Is The Winchester Mystery House So Mysterious? Possible Explanations
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With a faucet on either end of the room and a zinc floor built at a slight angle, all the runoff was directed to other places in the gardens by a series of drainpipes built throughout the house. The North Conservatory is ingenious as well. Pretty brass plates were installed in the corners of each stair so they wouldn’t collect dust and to ease cleaning. Then when the laundry was dry, boards were pulled down over the sink to create a folding table.
It included a soap tray, washboard, and ringer. She designed a single porcelain tub for washing laundry. The Annunciator - Copyright The Winchester Mystery House The estate had it’s own gas plant feeding the gas lamps illuminating the mansion, which were turned on by pushing an electric button! A bell would ring and a card dropped indicating the general area Sarah was in so the servant could find her quickly. There was an “annunciator” which allowed Sarah to request a servant wherever she was in the mansion. Despite the fact it takes up way more room, she supposedly preferred the ride. The mansion has 3 elevators, one of which she had the hydraulic piston installed horizontally. Indoor plumbing provided toilets as well as a hot shower for Sarah. She implemented several conveniences pretty much unheard of around the turn of the century. So, if it’s not “The Mansion Designed by Spirits” as the owners would have us believe, why exactly was the Winchester Mansion built so erratically? Could it simply be the lack of a blueprint? Sarah Winchester, the GeniusĪs opposed to the crackpot lady The Winchester Mystery House LLC describes, I think Sarah was actually a genius of her time. If she felt so strongly, wouldn’t she have at least sold her shares in the Winchester Repeating Arms Company? Also, if this reasoning is true, if Sarah was horrified by the destruction left in the wake of the Winchester riffle, why did she continue to own stock in the company? Her income and a portion of her fortune was derived from mass produced weapons.