  sarah l. winchester ( september 1839 &ndash; september 5, 1922) was the wife of william wirt winchester and heiress to his estate and a 50 percent holding in the winchester repeating arms company following his death from tuberculosis in 1881. convinced spirits would kill her if she completed construction of her california home, sarah used her fortune to continue uninterrupted, round-the-clock construction on it for 38 consecutive years, according to popular legend (though this account has been disputed by her biographer).ignoffo, mary jo. "captive of the labyrinth: sarah l. winchester, heiress to the rifle fortune." columbia, mo. : univ. of missouri press, 2010. see p. 112. since her death, the sprawling winchester mystery house has become a popular tourist attraction, known for its many staircases and corridors leading nowhere. ==early life== sarah winchester was born sarah lockwood pardee, daughter of leonard pardee and his wife sarah w. burns, in 1837 in new haven, connecticut. on september 30, 1862 in new haven, connecticut, sarah married william wirt winchester, the only son of oliver winchester, the owner of the winchester repeating arms company. the couple had one daughter, annie pardee winchester, who was born on june 15, 1866, but died after a few weeks on july 25, 1866maryjo ignoffo, captive of the labyrinth from the childhood disease marasmus. sarah fell into a deep depression following the death of her daughter, and the couple had no more children. her fath
1839_births 1906_San_Francisco_earthquake_survivors 1922_deaths American_occultists Burials_in_Connecticut People_from_Connecticut People_from_San_Jose,_California