Talk:Sarah Winchester

In serious need of cleanup
I think most of the "Winchester Mystery House" details should be moved to the article about the house. Also, as others have noted, this piece needs a rewrite with a lot more sources and citations. It relies almost exclusively on the website for the tourist attraction Winchester House, which has a vested interest in keeping alive the notion that Mrs. Winchester believed she was cursed and haunted. I'm glad to see someone mentions the biographer Mary Jo Ignoffo, whose 2010 biography apparently debunks much of the folklore about Sarah Winchester, but this should be reflected in the article.11 Arlington (talk) 19:41, 30 March 2016 (UTC)

Also overly reliant on a freemason/rosicrucian (conspiratorial?) website as a source — Preceding unsigned comment added by Crispzips (talk • contribs) 21:17, 18 December 2021 (UTC)
 * I just completed an overhaul of the Winchester Mystery House page which also had few citations. I am now going to tackle this page. I will be using an updated version of Ignoffo's book and will focus mostly on her life and not the house as suggested by 11 Arlington for the revision. I take my time editing and reading and searching for reliable sources so it may be a month or two before I am done. Suggestions are always welcome. Hippopotenuse72 (talk)

Huge kudos to you! 11 Arlington (talk) 20:31, 29 September 2022 (UTC)

Folgers?
Do you have information on Sarah Winchester being related to the Folger coffee family? AngelStCroix (talk) 20:32, 11 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Hi,, article talk pages are generally for discussing the article itself, as opposed to general questions like this That being said, you could try looking into some of the references at the bottom of the page, they may have further information not in the article, or you could try asking at the reference desk, but be aware nobody there is necessairly an actual expert on anything in particular. Beeblebrox (talk) 01:02, 12 March 2022 (UTC)

Cleanup and details
The book by Ignoffo seems to give a lot of details here, but the citations are messy, using 3 (formerly 4) different citations to refer to seemingly the same book (possibly 2 separate printings/editions if it was changed at all in 2012?). Would it not be clearer to merge these to one citation. It's one book after all.

Furthermore, I think in the desire to refrain from making this page about the legends around the Mystery House, editting has swung a bit too far the other way. Details of Sarah are pretty scant, and discussion of the house is almost intentionally avoided.

I think it's fair to talk about the house, with regards to the role it played in Sarah's life (and visa versa), when she was alive, and leave the legends (and a more thorough walkthrough of the specific architectural features) to the page dedicated to the house.

Ironically, it seems as if the page on the house actually contains more details on Sarah herself than this page at present. For instance there was no mention of her arthritis, which both plays a role in the house but pertains to her. Nor a mention of her interest in architecture and interior design, again linked both to the house (in the historical, not supernatural sense) and herself.

It could be worth including some sort of mention on how she was publicly perceived although I'm not sure the best way to phrase it. It'd help contextualise the subsequent haunting legend but provide some facts about her. She was incredibly wealthy in a time when many people in the area were financially struggling, and was reclusive, and somewhat eccentric, both following old-fashioned mourning habits but also embracing cutting edge technology. 2A02:C7C:C4CD:A500:FD2A:B066:F9DB:6A77 (talk) 12:54, 1 July 2023 (UTC)


 * Yes, I agree. This page is in need of an overhaul. I am still working on it. It has taken a lot longer than I anticipated. I am redoing all the citations and focussing more on her life in general. But will still summarize the house with a link to the house page. Thanks for your suggestions. I am hoping to publish this week or next. Hippopotenuse72 (talk) 22:33, 3 July 2023 (UTC)

Sarah in business
I think Sarah is being sold short in this write up as she was also a business woman sitting on the board of the Winchester company for years, as well as running her own dried fruit business, SPW Fruits. 128.32.28.2 (talk) 20:06, 10 October 2023 (UTC)

Complete rewrite
I have finally finished my rewrite. I look forward to people correcting my mistakes, making my writing better and adding new information from good sources.Hippopotenuse72 (talk) 04:00, 17 October 2023 (UTC)