Peter, 77, has had a lifelong fascination with the Wild West and the famous Winchester rifles that played a prominent role in that era’s history. His Wish of a Lifetime was to visit the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, CA.
Peter joined the Army on his 18th birthday in 1953 and served for 18 years in Germany. After leaving the military, Peter became a telephone installer for Michigan Bell as well as a caregiver for his mother. Peter’s captivation with the Winchester rifles led him to collect and show the guns, winning ‘Best in Show’ on several occasions. In the course of studying the guns, he came across the story of the infamous Sarah Winchester. As the heiress of the Winchester Family Fortune, she built a huge mansion in which she was the only resident, consisting of over 160 rooms at a cost of $5,500,000. The reason for her compulsive building from 1884-1922 is still a mystery. The Winchester Mystery House is now a popular tourist destination for those who speculate about the reason for the furtive building of such a large home with many passages and stairways that lead nowhere. Peter’s interest in seeing this bizarre edifice and the House’s display of Winchester rifles has remained unabated.
On November 11th, Peter and his niece Jill traveled to San Jose to meet up with another niece Mary to tour the House. The Winchester Mystery House generously provided special assistance to ensure Peter was able to explore this mysterious house for himself. Lindsey, marketing coordinator for the House, said “I wanted to say how wonderful of a time we had with Peter and his family! Janan, our Tour Manager, and I absolutely loved showing him around the Rifle Museum (well, more like he showed us – he knew more about the collection than we did!).”
