It is a stunning and wonderous sight sitting on over 700 acres of grounds and containing priceless works of art, ranging from paintings and furniture, tapestries and stained glass, to sculptures and carvings, as well as heraldry and armor. In the light of a warm summer day, it does not appear haunted in any way. However, this is not the case. Having purchased the eighteen room farmhouse for myself, I turned it into a palace. Years of extravagant and expensive refurbishment grew the mansion into one of the finest and largest homes in the West. The program included four stories, a nine-story observation tower, tennis courts, bowling alleys, lavish gardens, nine kitchens, as many as 600 rooms, and several dining rooms, a fruit orchard and a park. Still, there have been a number of strange and disturbing events. Oddly enough, one evening, there were a couple of dozen people in the Grand Ball Room. However, there was no sound. I was astonished because I had not invited any guests. As I went to inquire as to what the occasion was, the figures seemed to glide rather than walk, then they just melted into the walls. Gracefully, insidiously, I was quick to retire that evening. I arose sleepily from my bed. It was 1.13 A.M. I looked out over the moonlit farmyard and listened to the night noises. It was an especially hot summer; I had been working hard and not able to catch up on my sleep. While in a blissful dreamlike state, I walked out on the balcony for bit of fresh air. The fragrant air was full of the scent of lilac and jasmine. #RandolphHarris 1 of 5

As I returned to bed, I was startled to see myself already in bed fast asleep. The form was unmistakably my own body. But how could I be in two places at once? I felt a tingle of fear…a strange tugging sensation…then I jerked away with a jolt of lightning. A dream? It has all been a bizarre dream? But the balcony door was open. It would see that my soul separated itself from my sleeping body. Not only had I freed the spiritual essence from within my physical body, I was able to see my own ghost. That same night, the servants, while working on renovations, saw a woman dressed in white floating down the gallery towards the door-to-nowhere. Shocked, Buck said to Erik, “No use blamin’ it on the whiskey. We was cold sober when we decided to come here. If any of us had the sense God gave a goose, we’d of rose out of Santa Clara and went home when we was paid off at the end of the day.” That is when they sighted a large hooded figure with a deformed face lurking in the doorways. “Well, I’m damned if I’ll swamp a saloon again, even for the grub,” Erik replied. “I reckon we can all agree that we need work,” Buck said. “Oh, I reckon we have work here,” replied Erik. Other curious events happened in my home. Occasionally, the housemaids and the farmers sometimes fell in love. Yngvild loved her Ansgar more than life itself. She was terrified when he told her that he was leaving the estate to help care for his mother. He promised to marry her when he returned to work. However, she could not dissuade him, so she dressed in er prettiest white gown and wept her tearful good-bye. #RandolphHarris 2 of 5

Weeks turned into long months. Word rarely came from Ansgar. The little notes were proof that he had recently been alive. As such, they were read and reread and wept over. Yngvild lived for the day when he would return. Despite sharing her fears with me, Yngvild felt alone. Her entire life was suspended until Ansgar returned. As the months dragged by, Yngvild lost hope that she would see Ansgar ever again. She sat alone in the observation tower with her letters and waited. And when the letters stopped, she began to walk for hours on end. In the observation tower, Yngvild waiting night and day to see if Ansgar was approaching. One day, she dressed in the same white dress that she had worn to see Ansgar off. She sat in the tower quietly all day. The carpenters inquired if they could help her, but Yngvild needed no help. Each day, she sat in the observation tower dressed in the same white dress and spoke to kindly carpenters. I simply could not make the heartbroken dear work in such a state and could not let her go, so I kept paying her not to work. Gradually Yngvil slipped away from reality. She thought she saw Ansgar floating outside of the tower with a ghastly look of despair. At last word came that, although Ansgar had his 1873 Winchester .44 U.S. Army Colt, while he was on the train, the Earth shook with force of an explosion. There was an immediate blast of the locomotive’s whistle and a grinding, shuddering sensation as the brakes were applied. When the locomotive had ground to a halt, it just as suddenly reversed, but he was shot and killed by outlaws who had galloped after the departing train. #RandolphHarris 3 of 5

A gang of outlaws blew the track. Ansgar’s sister brought the telegram to Yngvil. If looks could kill, Yngvil slowly turned away from Ansgar’s sister and began talking to me about her Ansgar. She told me she was waiting for Ansgar to return so that they could marry. Slowly Yngvil began to waste away. She took little food and seemed to need nothing. The housemaids brought the frail young girl food, but she barely noticed the food as she ate it. One night, she committed suicide, throwing herself off the tower after losing the love of her betrothed. On moonlit nights, she can be seen wandering around the tower. Weeks later, a couple of the farmers were sleeping in their Victorian cottages with their Winchesters handy. The mansion was said to be haunted by a black devil-dog that prowled the mansion at night as well as the grounds of the mansion. Also know as a Hell Hound, among other names, these dogs are essentially a nocturnal specter and its appearance is often regarded as a portent of death. In general, they are much larger than a physical dog and are quite often reported as having large, glowing eyes and a silent gait. Seeing one three times will result in the witness dying an untimely and suspicious death. Not surprisingly they are often associated with moors, lonely back roads, and crossroads and in this case, the mansion. “We figure if these owl hoots are that damn determined, we’ll have to fight ‘em sooner or later,” said Buck. “I reckon there’ll be plenty of shootin’ if one of those bothersome Hell Hounds attacks me under the cover of darkness,” said Erik. That night, Erik chased and killed what he thought was a Hell Hound. He later tragically discovered that it was in fact his own son he had killed. As a result, his remorseful ghost is said to wander the grounds. #RandolphHarris 4 of 5

Some people passing my home at dead of night have reported the distinctive sound of spectral revels emanating from inside. Others have told of hearing strange oaths and foreign-sounding songs. Outlaws had conspired to steal weapons and ammunition from my homes. They spent weeks planning to take them. People would do anything for the loot. “There are ten men guardin’ the Winchester Mansion,” said Cort, “and from what I’ve been told, they’re a salty bunch. Four of ‘em have been deputized by Sheriff Addis. I reckon we’ll have to deal with them all, and the sheriff, too, if he gets froggy.” “I reckon we understand one another then,” said Hicks. “We don’t leave nobody behind that’s got sand to come after us.” “My sentiments exactly,” Cort replied. “We won’t move in until after midnight, so Sarah and her staff will be mostly asleep.” There was no room, and it being past midnight, they rode in from the east. There was only an occasional distant light. By the time they were within half a mile of my mansion, the night wind brought them disembodied voices, along with an unexplained drop in temperature. Then they heard a loud scream and gunshots. Thoroughly convinced that they were under attack, Cort and Hicks ran for cover. Two sets of footsteps came toward them. “Drop the guns, amigos. You’re covered.” But the challenge went unheeded. There was a roar, followed by an answering blast, as the Sherriff fired at the muzzle flash. An agonized groan told them what they wanted to hear, and Cort and Hicks eased the down the hammers on their colt. Finally there was the distant sound of galloping horses. “The bastards,” grunted the Sherriff, “they’re…runnin’ out…on me.” #RandolphHarris 5 of 5

The Winchester Mystery House

The Winchester Mansion has many ghosts. One of many is Mrs. Winchester herself. She has been described as having long brown hair and wearing a Victorian-style dress, and has been seen walking along corridors and even through the walls. She is known to be a friendly spirit and those who have encountered her remark that they feel an unusual calmness in her presence. In October of 2013, a ghostly figure was captured on CCTV while security staff reviewed surveillance footage. After investigating and securing some open doors, security staff returned to inspect surveillance footage. On the first occasion, the door-to-nowhere flew opened without any sign of anyone opening it.

However, on the second occasion the next day, the staff was shocked to see a figure, in what appeared to be Victorian attire, appear and then close the door-to-nowhere. This patten was repeated on the third day, but the ghostly figure was absent. Then Winchester Mansion is known as being a very, very spooky place at night. A security guard was called out shortly after 1.00 A.M. to accompany an engineer to check a fire alarm. A thermal camera detected an elevated temperature, in one of the fireplaces, in the Hall of Fires.

As the they approached the room, they both heard the sound of footsteps running away up a flight of stairs, although the thermal cameras did not detect anyone in the building, other than the two security guards. However, there was a little heat in the fireplace, but no signs of anything devious. It is not uncommon for staff to report a feeling of being watched or having doors inexplicably slam behind them when there is no one around. https://winchestermysteryhouse.com/

And please be sure to check out the online gift store: https://shopwinchestermysteryhouse.com/