Walter Magnuson

Background

About Walter Magnuson

Walter Magnuson, Executive Director of Winchester Mystery House, is responsible for overseeing one of Northern California’s premiere attractions, a national and state historic landmark and one of America’s most extraordinary homes. Celebrated in legend for over 100 years, the Winchester Mystery House has hosted over 13 million guests, plus curious media from the four points of the globe.Honored among the “40 Under 40” for 2017 by the Silicon Valley Business Journal, Magnuson leads a staff of 110 that operate the world-famous tours of the sprawling 160-room mansion, located in San Jose, California. Since 2015, the venerable attraction has undergone a remarkable period of growth, with construction and changes rivaling the era of Sarah Winchester herself. Within the past two years the Winchester Mystery House has debuted its first all-new tour in over 20 years (opening areas never-before accessible to the public) and complete remodel of the gift shop now known as The Mercantile. A state-of-the-art shooting gallery has been added, closer community partnerships have been formed (especially with the Sharks Foundation), and collaboration is ongoing on the paranormal thriller “Winchester,” due in theaters in early 2018, starring Oscar®-winner Helen Mirren.A native of Long Island, New York, Magnuson enjoys an extensive background in attraction/destination administration and operations, including strategic planning, budget management, and business development. Since receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications from Adelphi University, in Garden City, New York, his unique relationship management, brand sensibilities and aggressive strategy execution led to first-of-their kind leadership positions at the Disneyland Resort in Southern California, the Disney Music Group and the Walt Disney Studios.