A Room with No View
Winchester House is a giant puzzle box waiting for a solution. If its original owner, Sarah Winchester had not taken the advice of a “respected” Boston medium by the name of Adam Coons, this strange monument to fear, superstition and spirits would never have been constructed. It is an amazing testament to the power of belief and guilt.
So much has already been written about this place, it would be superfluous for me to go over the complete history. Skeptic and psychic investigator Dr. Karen Stolznow has done a far better job chronicling this phenomena than I dare to venture. You can read her excellent work on it at www.bad-language.com/winchestermysteryhouse.
It is the medium in this story that fascinates me. After getting a reading from Coons, the frightened Sarah had builders working 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, for over 4 decades of construction. From the moment her “psychic advisor” told her that the spirits of those people and animals who had died at the hands of a Winchester rifle, ‘the gun that won the west’, were avenging their deaths by claiming the lives of her husband, child and father-in-law, she became obsessed. According to her seer Coons, the only way poor Sarah could appease the spirits was to build them a house. She was not really poor in a monetary sense; she had about a thousand a month to spend from her Winchester trust – a lot more in today’s money. Coons advised that his sitter move west where Sarah built and re-built this monstrosity continually, day and night. There are still huge barns full of unused pieces and architectural fragments (see bottom photo) and miles of unfinished hallways, many that lead nowhere or into blank walls. Coons told Sarah that as long as the house was being built, the spirits would not harm her. She started in 1884 and ended on the day of her death, 5th September 1922. In total, the mansion was remodelled over 600 times, at a cost of five and a half million dollars. Unreal. What a testament to credulity. I doubt today’s pond scum like John Edward or Sylvia Browne could ever boast such a successful “spiritual connection” as Mr. Coons & Co. I’m sure he figured out a way to get a steady paycheck out of the deal too.
I have tried (so far in vain) to find out more about the venerable Mr. Adam Coons. Googling has only left me with a modicum of info on him and a few other people with the same name. One is listed as “Merrill Lynch Financial Advisor Personalized Wealth Mgmt Solutions.” Hmmmm. I wonder if he is related to the 1880’s Coons? I wouldn’t be surprised. Then there is another rock and roller with the same name, but not much info on the Boston medium who started this whole farce.
Skeptics: please let me know what you can find on him.
I have also heard that the responsible parties back in 1884 were a husband and wife “team.” If that is true, they were probably a ex-carnival mind reading racket that found a wealthy pigeon. This is “Nightmare Alley” on a grand scale and the stuff of Hollywood box-office gold – or at the very least this story begs for a television episode. Perhaps even a skeptical program if such a thing ever sees the light of day? I’m visualizing Robert De Niro as Coons and Meryl Streep or Jodie Foster as Sarah. Imagine a sort of “There Will be Blood” with supernatural/psychological overtones. Stranger things have happened. Agents or other interested parties: you know where to find me.
My favorite room is the fabled “Seance Room” – of course. I had expected an opulent velvet draped cloistered sanctum santorum in the fashion of The Magic Castle’s Houdini Seance Room. I was sorely disappointed. The room was cramped and for my taste even more claustrophobic than the usual rooms I have seen used for such high-spirited antics. The tight space featured blocked window panes, supposedly because no one but Sarah was ever allowed inside the room. One wall had specially fitted window spaces with black wrought iron to keep prying eyes away. Another narrow window was used for Sarah to be able to spy on her maids below in the kitchen. She was apparently not only paranoid about the spirits, but also her help. Thirteen was her favorite number and every window or woodwork has 13 sections or parts. This house is triskaidekaphobia defined.
Superstition built this house. It was interesting to note that not only did Sarah Winchester spend her money on ghost protection, but she was also very ahead of her time with scientific “state-of-the-art” watering systems and other extravagant inventions and imporvements that would have been thought of as “high tech” back in her time. Apparently, she was no dummy in those areas. There’s no doubt that people like Sarah still exist. Eccentrics with money are an interesting demographic. Nowadays, there must be many equally as whacked out people and places, but my guess is that those who own anything near this kind of “attraction” probably keep it a closely guarded secret. Micheal Jackson’s “Wonderland” comes to mind, but even that folly can’t hold a candle to Winchester House. It is a place well worth a visit for anyone interested in the paranormal and how it can influence those who have little regard for reality. The tourist trade there is a brisk one. The gift shop has ever conceivable doo-dad and the whole well-groomed facade resembles a sort of Disneyland Main Street. At $26.oo per person with an average group of 12 people per tour, figuring roughly ten tours per day and two tours per hour, you’re looking at about $6,000 a day in clear profit. And they don’t even mention any ghosts. Why? They don’t have to. The story is weird enough without them.
Shown in the picture here is the magical “crescent shrub” that Sarah had planted below her bedroom window. It supposedly has serious magical powers. I stood next to it for quite some and nothing happened.
To their credit, the tour guides never make mention of any ghosts or and haunted tales besides the mention of medium Coons. They keep to the facts and there is few if any editorializing going on during the hour tour. This aspect of the presentation was one thing I definately appreciated. Back in the 90’s, I put together a seance package based on the Sarah Winchester story called “Ashes and Wood.” It was scripted as a mini-one-act in my first published book, “Restless Plots” and I had wanted to preview it as a show at the actual “haunted” house. The Winchester House didn’t go for it. Now in retrospect, I can see why they passed on that opportunity. The trustees are very protective of the house and Sarah’s legacy – as well they should be. Winchester House is Registered California Historical Landmark #868 and the city of San Jose has literally grown up around it. This is the one example I have seen where the dead and their life are respected and not completely exploited. The fever for “ghost tours” has yet to take hold at Winchester House and I’m hopeful it will remain that way.
In my seance production, wanted to underscore the obsessive-compulsive nature that drives so many people to construct not only haunted houses of brick, stained glass and wood, but also the deeper haunted rooms within their minds. No money can buy a free ticket off the guilt ghost train. As long as there are phony mediums and psychics out there who can suggest such folly, we will likely continue to see such colossal wastes of time and energy being put on display. It’s fun in a way and of course the money you earn you are free to spend however you wish, but I can’t help but wonder that if Mr. Coons hadn’t taken that moment to spout off that one probably off-hand reading that left such an impression on Sarah Winchester, maybe the millions of dollars Sarah Winchester spent running from her own ghosts might have been better spent on cancer research, homeless shelters or psychiatric help for people just like her who suffer lifetimes of pain so needlessly.
An excellent look at a weird American icon.
Mark, there was 22 adults in our tour @ $26 per adult that is $572, plus there were some children that paid at least $10 each. Lets make it $600 per tour. They left every 15 minutes, lets say they gave tours for 5 hours 10am – 3pm. That is $12,000 in tour fees in one day. Don’t forget the big gift shop. Wow!
The literature says that Houdini also visited the home. That in itself is interesting.
You must keep in mind that according to another book written by neighbor Ralph Rambo (who actually knew her) he tells another story about the “hauntings”. (From “Lady of Mystery”)
He says that the seance room that the tour guides say only she was allowed in, supposedly it was used as a bedroom for her “foreman, the chauffeur, the head Japanese gardener and his wife.”
Rambo also states, “Miss Henrietta Severs, her constant companion for years, always firmly denied she (Sarah) had any Spiritualist leanings”. And “there was only enough building materials for the next project”.
He also states that she did not build 24 hours a day. But just during the day hours like most people did.
Personally I think she was just an intelligent woman with no family and very few hobbies and turned to architecture. It is unclear if we can ever find the truth about Sarah and her amazing home. What is clear is that if the modern day tours did not tell the “creepy and weird” stories they would sell far less tours. Without the income the city might abandon the property and we would lose this historical home.
My dad went there in the 1960s and had quite a few slides of stairs to nowhere and a door which opened up onto the lawn – from the upper floors. Crazy folks with money can do some really strange things. The palace of Mad King Ludwig in Bavaria is still on my list of places to see.
“…they don’t even mention any ghosts. Why? They don’t have to. The story is weird enough without them.” – Brilliant!
It might be worth pointing out here that pyramids, cathedrals, stonehenge, even the taj mahal were built for similarly ludicrous reasons. If that’s what it takes for humans to excel in this area, why get in their way?
Why couldnt she constanty build HOUSES! Not one house.. think of all the families that could benefit… she could sell them (or give them) to people… I would buy a house that also housed sprits(since that is nonsense) … she could sleep in a whole different house during construction (sprits would NEVER find her)
Of course, I am applying logic to the illogical! :(
Another interesting story, Mark. Yes, such a futile endeavor if to appease non-existent mandates – a bizarre notion – and such a flagrant waste of funds that could have done good elsewhere…
The mansion is really cool! I loved touring it. There is all sorts of folklore attached to it, but her workers did work a normal shift– she had a bell tower installed that rang for work beginning, ending, and to signal the lunch break at the same hours every day. She incorporated her favorite motifs– 13, spiderwebs, into almost every room of the house, and installed banister supports upside-down (one of my favorite details). Some of the bizarreness was because of her infirmaties– the long, winding staircases with 2″ steps were to accommodate her arthritis. Most of the hooks & spigots were set low because she was so short. Undoubtedly some of the weirdness was due to her grief at the loss of her family, and her behaviors (boarding up a whole section of the house after an earthquake) show some evidence of minor illness like OCD. I can’t say that, if I had the money & time, I wouldn’t build a wicked cool house like that too (most of the architectural details make total sense to a goth.)
The House is only a 15 minute bike ride from my parents house, I used to go there quite often (and also park in their lot to go over the the movie theater nearby when I got older). Quite a few of my friends worked there during high school and would talk about the ‘weird vibes’ or tell second or third hand tales of weird happenings, but none would claim to have actually seen or heard anything unusual themselves. Winchester does tend to play up the ghost side of things a bit more for Halloween but it’s generally done in a very ‘spirit of the season’ way.
At least during the 80’s the staff were specifically told not to discuss anything supernatural with guests either as positively or negatively. The tour only covers about 20-40% of the property. I know some of the rest is given over to administrative functions, employee break areas, etc, but a lot of it is simply not open to the public. Again via my friends who worked there I have heard that some of it is just in bad shape and no one has wanted to put the money in to fix it up, other parts are simply not very interesting or good (the emphasis on constant building did sometimes lead to some low quality work being done). Aside from some preserved areas reserved for VIPs the tour apparently only comprises the very best and most interesting parts of the house.
As noted in Dr. Stolznow’s piece the rise and run of the stairs are literally a tripping point on the tours. They’re so much off from what we’re used to in stairs that people trip or lose footing a lot on them. It sounds like she got a much more extensive tour than what they were offering back in the 80’s, so perhaps they’ve done some renovation on the closed areas and opened them up (and seriously jacked up the price! $26!!!).
Great example of how “Psychics” have been damaging people for decades. This is just another case of someone who was lied to by a “psychic” and lost everything that they had to the price of para-stupid.
The Stanley Hotel is working this same tour concept, but they have included the ghost stories and several false reports to pump up the claims of the ghosts. They only charge $15.00 per person, but that means on a good day it is an extra $5,000 per day.
You know, when I think about $10 million dollar super-yachts and other ridiculous stuff people with tons of money spend their loot on (that does very few people any good), this doesn’t sound any worse to me. Eccentric, yes, but there are plenty of examples of things as foolish, if not more so, done without any mediums or psychics involved.
So true. I just came back from visiting Germany, and saw many castles there. Many of them were made solely with the purpose of entertaining guests and personal pleasure. No psychic nonsense needed there. Just need a little dose of noblesse oblige, lots of money, and the ego and architects will come knocking.
stephanie, i’d like to see more history and less “medium or psychics involved”. way less.
unfortunately, the media trend of the last few years is hell bent on making mediums and psychics into gurus.
most people love the idea of the supernatural…of magic. ruthless people capitalize on this never-ending human trait.
has anyone read the book “the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay” ?
it has a nice juxtaposition of reality and fantasy. i think anyone who likes “magic” or “magicians” will find it quite interesting.
We certainly make a fine batch of skeptics, don’t we? We are blindly accepting the most popular story, despite the fact that we have no proof. Mrs Winchester left no diary, that we know of, and records from that era are incomplete, so we have no reason to accept anything that comes from the mouths of the tour guides. Before we use this house as an example of how a poor old lady was manipulated by a psychic, maybe we should know for certain if it’s even true.
There are some fascinating articles online, of various levels of credulity. The wikipedia article parrots that the house had to be painted again as soon as it was finished, without citation, but the mystery house guide (http://mysteryhouseguide.com/) questions some of the “facts” in the tour, and an article in wave magazine (http://www.thewavemag.com/pagegen.php?pagename=article&articleid=25464) goes so far as to question everything about it. And this I found in less than half an hour.
This is definitely one of your more well written articles. If I am ever in the area, I will be sure to stop in and see this.
Fascinating article on a house that has always interested me, thank you. One niggling note from a word nerd, “Thirteen was her favorite number and every window or woodwork has 13 sections or parts. This house is triskaidekaphobia defined.” Wouldn’t “triskaidekaphilia defined” be more accurate? Sarah didn’t fear the number thirteen, she was crazy about it, incorporating it through out the design of the house.
I was appalled at the huckster adam coons. I have tried to find more info but alas..like all other reptiles they diappear under rocks!