Random Things about the Mystery Spot In Santa Cruz (11 items)

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  (#1) George Prather Opened The Attraction In 1941 After His Log Cabin Supposedly Slid Down A Hill

  Like the cause of the illusions that happen inside the Mystery Spot, the origin of the strange shack itself is a bit murky. One story makes it seem as though George Prather's little shack was always meant to rest on the small, mind-boggling plot of land.

  Supposedly, Prather built the shack on a hill, but some force - either mystical or scientific - pushed the shack down the slope. According to this story, Prather's shack slid until it came to rest at its current location. Even though this story is the most mystical of all the origin tales, none of them are very straightforward.
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  (#2) Another Version Of The Story Claims Prather Was Pressured Into Buying The Strange Patch Of Land

  Another story about the origins of the Mystery Spot claims Prather came into the space through a bit of bad real-estate luck. While looking for a plot of land on which to build his summer home, he found the perfect place; however, the landowners didn't want to sell unless he bought a strip of their property that had a strange variation.

  Prather relented and purchased the property, and even though the odd strip included in the deal looked normal, he knew that something was off the moment he explored the space. He explained: 

  We came down the little canyon or draw above here. In doing so we felt very light headed or top heavy, felt like something trying to force us right off the hill. We sat down for a while to try and overcome that feeling. While sitting there we happened to look at the compass again. There, the compass had varied enough that we needed nothing to compare it with to tell that it was not correct.

  We began to check from that, and we found the more we checked the more we found, until we found we had this spot of ground here. About 150 feet in diameter, that so far, we have not found any instrument absolutely correct over. A portable radio will play any place over it, but with very little variation, being the nearest correct that we have found.
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  (#3) During The Tour, Guests Witness Balls Rolling Uphill And Other Impossibilities

  What can you expect when you set foot inside the Mystery Spot? The shocking sights inside this small Santa Cruz attraction are simple but astounding.

  In one demonstration, a tour guide rolls a ball up the floor, and in another, a chair rests on a wall. The end of the tour even uses volunteers to demonstrate the spot's seemingly size-altering properties. 

  While it's all extremely disorienting, it's fascinating and fun.
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  (#4) The Area Where People Feel Dizzy And Stand Slanted Is Only 150 Feet In Diameter

  Some Mystery Spot origin stories claim that when Prather purchased the land, he found an area on the property that made him so dizzy, he couldn't stand within it for long periods of time. The area is only about 150 feet in diameter.

  Despite its relatively small size, the area makes people who stand on it appear slanted and feel dizzy. Mystery Spot employees say they've never been able to operate any kind of measurement instrument on the spot with any accuracy, but they have been able to play a radio in the area, as long as they don't adjust the tuner.
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  (#5) The Trees Surrounding The Spot Appear To Grow Crooked

  There are many visual marvels in the Mystery Spot, but one of the most unsettling occurs when you look outside of the area into the surrounding woods. Rather than growing straight up, the redwood trees grow at confusing angles, sprouting from the ground at various degrees.

  Although some consider this a marvel of cursed construction, Prather most likely knew what he was doing when creating the Mystery Spot. There are no blueprints available for the attraction, but William Prinzmetal, adjunct associate professor of psychology, explains that the shack is built on a 20-degree angle from the ground, which makes the trees appear to grow in strange configurations.
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  (#6) In 1944, A Seeing Eye Dog Allegedly ‘Went Berserk’ When It Reached The Attraction

  Life Magazine reported in 1944 that a Seeing Eye dog was so upset by its visit to the property that it “went berserk and snapped at its master.” The unforeseen response led Prather to ban all animals from the spot.

  Whether the Mystery Spot has some strange effect on animals or they just can't handle the odd angles of the shack is still unclear.
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  (#7) Some Believe An Alien Artifact Is Responsible For The Mystery Spot

  No one really knows what makes the Mystery Spot so mysterious. Even the tour guides are unsure of what exactly sits at the heart of the campy attraction. One theory claims that extraterrestrials visited Santa Cruz long ago and buried pieces of technology in the ground that unsettle our equilibrium. 

  Guides at the Mystery Spot even explain that "cones of metal that aliens secretly brought here and buried deep within our earth as guidance systems for their spacecraft" throw off our navigational instruments.

  There are numerous UFO sightings each year in Northern California, so this theory - while outlandish - is in keeping with the area's lore.
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  (#8) Fault Lines Could Also Be The Cause Of The Strange Activity

  Perhaps the Mystery Spot's odd behavior isn't alien at all, but actually something completely terrestrial. The most likely natural cause for the odd gravity of the shack is a fault line that runs beneath the area, something that the Mystery Spot guides discuss during tours.

  Earthquakes and fault lines can affect local gravitational fields. If the Mystery Spot was built on an area that suffered a major earthquake, it may experience odd gravitational phenomena.

  If a fault line isn't the cause of the strange occurrences, they might be the effects of a magma vortex, or even the high amount of dielectric biocosmic radiation in the area.
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  (#9) One Psychologist Claims The Entire Attraction Can Be Debunked As An Optical Illusion

  Aside from the possibilities of alien influence, fault lines, or swirling pools of magma beneath the Mystery Spot, there is the possibility that the entire attraction is a hoax. Psychologists in Berkeley, CA, based a theory on experimental data that explains the spot as nothing more than a room that's built to incredibly specific angles.

  The tilt of the home messes with its visitors' perceptions, which researchers claim changes the immediate context of their experience. Prinzmetal, adjunct associate professor of psychology, explains:

  All the visual illusions in the Mystery House derive from the fact that the house is tilted. You know the house is tilted, but you don't know how much. Everything is tilted. You can't look outside and get a horizon, so you think that what you see is right. It's very compelling.
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  (#10) The Attraction’s Own Website Describes The Area As A ‘Gravitational Anomaly’

  Rather than presenting itself as a haunted house or the work of something from beyond, the Mystery Spot touts itself as a "gravitational anomaly" right in the middle of the California redwoods. The description of the shack reminds viewers of the disorienting dizziness they'll likely experience.

  The site also notes that the small shack will turn your world on its head and that you'll "be stunned as your perceptions of the laws of physics and gravity are questioned."
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  (#11) The Mystery Spot In Santa Cruz Is Just One In A Series Of ‘Gravity Houses’

  The Mystery Spot is hardly a one-of-a-kind location. After WWII, a bevy of "gravity houses," or "tilt boxes," popped up across the US, offering people something to marvel at for a small amount of money. At a time when every other industry was floundering, the "gravity house" industry thrived.

  The Mystery Spot was constructed between 1940 and 1941, and since its construction, it has not only become the most successful of these optical illusion houses, but a historical landmark in the state of California.

  There are similarly strange places in Virginia, Florida, and Oregon. There are even odd gravitational hot spots outside the US.

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