1

Winchester House (San Jose, California)

Starting in 1884, Sarah Winchester, the heir to the rifle fortune, spent almost four decades expanding her Victorian mansion into a behemoth 160-room maze of doors to nowhere, staircases into ceilings, and windows facing walls .

Haunted (perhaps in more ways than one) by the deaths of those killed by Winchester rifles, it is said that she had the structure built nonstop day and night to thwart the spirits of those victims. Today, the house is a popular tourist attraction, with tours through secret passages included.

2

Whaley House (San Diego, California)

Built in 1857 on the site of San Diego’s old gallows, the Whaley House blended a family home, a store, and a courthouse under one roof. Soon after moving in, the Whaleys reported h eavy footsteps they believed belonged to James "Yankee Jim" Robinson, a tall outlaw hanged on the property years earlier .

Over time, the house became a museum and one of America´s most haunted homes, complete with official recognition as a historic site.

3

Amityville House (Amityville, New York)

This quiet Long Island house became infamous after a 1974 murder case in which the DeFeo family was killed by one of their own. A year later, new owners George and Kathy Lutz claimed they were driven out by violent paranormal activity , which, in turn, inspired the book The Amityville Horror and a popular movie that spawned a franchise.

Over time, lawyers and witnesses have called parts of the haunting story a hoax, and later, residents reported no supernatural trouble at all. But the fame of the house lives on.

4

Bissel Mansion (St. Louis, Missouri)

Built in the 1820s for Captain Lewis Bissel, this is believed to be the oldest brick house in St. Louis. Over the years, it has been a family home, a restaurant, and a murder-mystery dinner theater.

An episode of HGTV’s Scariest House in America highlighted its bricked-up cave entrance, which was once said to be a secret escape route, and its long history of odd happenings , such as ghostly children, a woman in white on the stairs, and items moving on their own.

5

William Westerfeld House (San Francisco, California)

Another Victorian building in our list, this house was built for a wealthy German baker in 1889. Over the years, it served as a Russian immigrant social club and brothel nicknamed "The Russian Embassy," a jazz-era boarding house, a 1960s hippie commune , and a rumored hub for occult-themed film shoots and rituals.

Today, this 28-room mansion is privately owned but remains a popular landmark, with a reputation as a haunted time capsule, surrounded by a mix of verified history and neighborhood lore about ghosts, secret rooms, and wild parties.

6

House of the Seven Gables (Salem, Massachusetts)

Captain John Turner built this waterfront house in 1668, and it was later owned by Susanna Ingersol, who welcomed her cousin Nathaniel Hawthorne. The legendary writer penned his famous novel, The House of the Seven Gables, inspired by the mansion .

In the early 1900s, the house was restored and reshaped as a museum, even adding a secret staircase to match the haunting mood of Hawthorne’s novel.

7

Biltmore Estate (Asheville, North Carolina)

Built between the years 1895 and 1898, George Vanderbilt’s Biltmore House is America’s largest private home, but its grand halls hide multiple secret doors and passageways. Concealed panels in the library and breakfast room allowed servants and guests to slip between rooms unseen .

Visitors on modern tours sometimes miss these disguised doors unless guides point them out. The effect is not unlike one of those mystery mansions where someone presses a bookshelf and a secret door opens.

8

Lizzie Borden House (Fall River, Massachusetts)

This modest home was the scene of a 1892 double murder in which Andrew and Abby Borden were killed with an axe. Their daughter Lizzie was tried and acquitted, but her notorious reputation lived on .

The house now functions as a museum and an overnight destination with carefully restored rooms and guides who walk tourists through evidence, theories, and reported ghost activity.

9

Octagon House (Washington, DC)

Despite its name, this mansion is not a perfect octagon, but its story is particularly unusual, to say the least. As it turns out, President James Madison and his wife briefly lived in it after the British burned down the White House in 1814.

Later, stories emerged of mysterious bells ringing long after the servant-call wires were cut, and ghostly figures appearing on the spiral staircase . The most famous legend claims that two girls died on those stairs, though there is no evidence that this actually happened.

10

Villa Montezuma (San Diego, California)

In 1887, spiritualist, pianist, and author Jesse Shepard moved into this mansion, filled with art glass, elaborate woodwork, and a music room specially designed for his dramatic concerts.

Over time, stories began to be told about Shepard’s performances, summoning more than just applause. The presence of ghosts in the towers and odd sounds in empty room s became common talk among the visitors. These days, the mansion can be visited, and the mysterious house can be explored by the curious and the fearless.

11

Montlake Spite House (Seattle, Washington)

So, "What is a spite house?" you might very reasonably ask. Wedged into Seattle’s Montlake neighborhood, this 1925 Spanish Revival cottage is about 15 feet wide at one end and just 55 inches at the other. The architectural equivalent of a wedge of cheese .

Local legend says that it was built by a scorned ex-wife who received a skinny strip of land in a divorce and used it to block her ex-husband’s view.

12

Alameda Spite House (Alameda, California)

Yes, another spite house. Around 1908, Charles Froling planned his dream home in Alameda, until the city used eminent domain to slice off most of his lot for a street, leaving a sliver of land .

Annoyed with both the city and an unhelpful neighbor, Charles responded by building a two-story house, only about 10 feet deep but 54 feet long along the remaining strip . The narrow revenge house still stands at Broadway and Crist, and its peculiar proportions can be viewed by anyone passing by.

1

The first post office? A Boston tavern

Image: Mick Haupt

In 1639, the first organized mail service in British North America started at Richard Fairbank’s tavern . The owner collected and distributed mail brought by ship.

Although informal and modest by today’s standards, this post office laid the foundation for communal mail collection and delivery.

2

Enter Benjamin Franklin

Image: Brett Wharton

From 1753, Franklin served as joint Postmaster General for the colonies and undertook a sweeping reform: he organized delivery routes, aligned them with major roads and rivers, and cut the mail travel time between Philadelphia and New York to about 33 hours .

He also introduced the first rate chart, standardizing delivery costs based on weight and distance, turning what had been a scattered courier network into a more reliable, structured mail system.

3

National Postal System founded

Image: David Trinks

With the American Revolution underway, the Second Continental Congress established the first national postal agency in 1775 , appointing Benjamin Franklin as the first Postmaster General.

This new postal service initially handled mostly military and diplomatic correspondence, but the agency laid the groundwork for what would become a national communications service.

4

The Age of Steam: mail by steamboat

Image: mandylin

In 1813, Congress authorized the Postmaster General to contract steamboat companies to carry mail. Soon, steamboats were ferrying mail up and down the East Coast and the Mississippi River .

By 1848, mail even traveled to California via steamship and across the Isthmus of Panama, a three-week voyage.

5

Overland stagecoaches and the Butterfield Overland Mail

Image: Ricky BiggsSr

Between 1858 and 1861, the Butterfield Overland Mail stagecoach service carried U.S. mail across the western frontier, from eastern posts like Memphis and St. Louis to San Francisco .

This service helped connect the eastern U.S. with rapidly growing western settlements long before the completion of the transcontinental railroad.

6

Railroads enter the picture

Image: Jay Kettle-Williams

As railroads expanded, the postal service started to use this new technology: in 1832, the first mail deliveries by train were made.

Rail transport vastly improved speed and reliability compared to horse and stagecoach travel , and became a key advance as mail traffic increased and the nation expanded westward.

7

First U.S. postage stamps

Image: The New York Public Library

In 1847, the first official U.S. postage stamps were issued: a 5-cent stamp featuring none Ben Franklin and a 10-cent stamp featuring George Washington .

Prepaid stamps simplified payment and collection of postage, removing complications from pay-on-delivery systems and helping the postal system function more efficiently.

8

The Pony Express

Image: The New York Public Library

In 1860, the Pony Express started its overland mail route between Missouri and California, nearly 1800 miles of relay horseback riding . The mail took 10 days between endpoints.

Although short-lived (it ended in 1861), the Pony Express demonstrated the demand for rapid cross-country communication.

9

City-wide home delivery

Image: Lesli Whitecotton

In 1863, free city mail delivery began , allowing residents in major cities to receive letters directly at their homes rather than picking them up at a post office.

This represented a major shift: mail became a part of everyday domestic life, not just something dropped off and picked up by hand.

10

Pneumatic tube mail in NYC

Image: The New York Public Library

In 1897, a pneumatic-tube mail system began operation in New York City. Mail could travel underground at high speeds, from the General Post Office to other offices in Manhattan within minutes .

At its peak, the system carried thousands of letters daily: at one point, nearly 30% of New York City mail went through this immense underground network.

11

Parcel post service launches

Image: Olivier Rouge

On New Year’s Day 1913, the U.S. Post Office inaugurated the first official parcel post service , allowing packages, not just letters, to be sent through the mail.

The impact was immediate: within the first five days, millions of packets passed through post offices, fueling mail-order business and expanding commerce everywhere.

12

First airmail route

Image: Qihao Wang

In 1918, the postal service launched the first regularly scheduled air mail route between Washington, D.C., and New York , marking the beginning of mail carried by airplane.

Airplane mail allowed far faster coast-to-coast and long-distance communication, a major leap from sailboats, stagecoaches, or railroads.

1

His first home

Image: Lucija Ros

Elias and Flora were the parents of the iconic Walt Disney. But beyond raising one of the world's most famous entrepreneurs, they also had several talents and skills, thanks to which they could build their house with their own hands.

Determined to create their home, Elias obtained a permit in 1892 to build a two-story, 18 x 28-foot wooden cottage for $800. Flora was in charge of designing and drawing the plans, and Elias was responsible for every aspect of construction.

Nine years later, on December 5, 1901, Walt Disney was born on the second floor of that house.

2

His birth name

Image: Heike Mintel

But his parents didn't just give him a home; they also gave him a name . While we all know him as "Walt Disney", his full birth name was quite different.

Walt Disney was born Walter Elias Disney, inheriting his father's name as a middle name. Although he never officially changed his ID, he was most famously known by his diminutive , "Walt," which he had been called since childhood.

It didn’t take long for little Walter to begin showing an interest and talent in one of the artistic forms that would lead him to success: drawing.

3

Another name

Image: Steven Beyer

Speaking of names, let's take a look at Mickey Mouse.

Although "Mickey" and "Mouse" are inseparable for everyone today, this famous character was originally called something completely different when he was first created. Believe it or not, the rodent was originally named "Mortimer."

And guess who suggested the new name? Lillian, Walt Disney's wife. When Lillian first heard the name of the cute cartoon character, she felt it sounded too solemn. Instead, she suggested "Mickey," and thankfully, they decided to take her advice!

4

The voice

Image: kaleb tapp

The voice behind the lovable little mouse was none other than Walt Disney. That's right! He brought Mickey Mouse to life with his own voice from his creation in 1928 all the way until 1947. That's almost 20 years giving one of the world's most famous cartoons not only a voice but also a personality. So now you know: when you watch a Mickey movie from those years, you're hearing the voice of his very own creator!

After 1947, other actors took over the role of voicing Mickey, and they've done a great job. But it's always special to remember Walt was the first to take on that job.

5

A special character

Image: Marko Blažević

Besides Mickey, another character held a special place in Walt Disney's heart: the legendary Peter Pan, "the boy who never grew up."

As a young boy on his way to school, Walt Disney noticed posters for a theater company coming to Marceline, Missouri, to perform Peter Pan . Excited by the chance to see the play, the future animation legend got tickets and went with one of his brothers. But that's not all: shortly after, Walt was chosen to play Peter Pan himself in a school play!

Disney told this story himself, highlighting how much Peter Pan meant to him throughout his life. In 1953, he brought Peter Pan to the big screen, allowing thousands of children around the world to discover the magical world of Neverland!

6

High school dropout

Image: Khyta

In 1917, when Walt Disney turned 16, he decided to leave high school and try to join the army. But his plan did not succeed: he was too young to enlist and wasn't accepted. However, his brave spirit was stronger, so he joined the Red Cross to work with them in Europe.

In 1918, he was sent to France as an ambulance driver for the Red Cross, a role he performed for a couple of months. And there's one detail that highlights Walt Disney's passion. It's said that the inside of his ambulance was decorated with dozens of cartoons he had drawn himself!

7

Previous job

Image: JJ Ying

Walt Disney's passion for drawing was clear from his childhood, staying with him through his teenage years and adulthood.

After returning from France at the age of 18, Disney got a job as a commercial illustrator in Kansas City. The story goes that he ran to his aunt, exclaiming, "Aunt! They're paying me for drawing!" In that position, he created advertisements for newspapers, magazines, and posters. Shortly after, he discovered the world of animation.

There's no doubt that this job played an important role in helping Walt Disney eventually establish his own animation and production company.

8

Secret apartment

Image: Aubrey Odom

We could safely say that Disneyland is, without a doubt, a magical place filled with surprises.

But beyond the incredible attractions, such as exciting rides, parades, enchanting shows, and adored characters, there are also some hidden details that often go unnoticed. For example, the fact that Walt had a secret apartment in Disneyland, where he worked and spent time with his loved ones, managing and enjoying the park.

The apartment is still there, and while it's not open to the public, you can pass by and see a lamp that's kept lit as a symbol of Walt Disney's eternal presence in the hearts of many.

9

Train enthusiast

Image: Mike Bergmann

Walt Disney was a multifaceted man, so drawing and animation were just a part of his many passions.

It turns out that the entrepreneur also had a love for trains that began in his childhood. Along with using trains for transportation and collecting model trains, he built a miniature railroad in his backyard where guests could enjoy short and fun rides! He named it the Carolwood Pacific Railroad.

As you might guess, this interest also influenced the design of Disneyland, where the railroad is one of the main features.

10

His favorite song

Image: Guillaume de Germain

One of the things that had a special place in the heart of Walt Disney was his favorite song. Want to know what it was?

Rumor has it that his favorite song comes from one of Disney's most enchanting films: Mary Poppins . Composed in 1964 specifically for the movie, the song "Feed the Birds" had a unique meaning for him.

Its complexity and emotional depth moved him deeply, as the song highlights the importance of being kind and respectful to others. If you haven't listened to it yet or need a refresher to remember the melody, go ahead; you won't regret it!