Charles Manson is quite arguably one of the most infamous serial killers in American history. He and his cult following drew massive attention after the highly publicized murders of actress Sharon Tate and her guests due to the gruesome level of violence that occurred. In August 1969, he and his followers committed seven murderers in two days – The Sharon Tate murders claimed five lives on August 9th and the Los Feliz murders claimed two more the next day, August 10th. This man was at the center of so many tragedies, and below is a break down for Charles Manson house locations.
His story has recently come back into the public eye due to his portrayal in the much-acclaimed film Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood, directed by none other than my favorite producer to have ever lived – Mr. Quentin Tarantino.
If you’re interested in learning more about Manson, his following and the various homes they were affiliated with, then check out this in-depth article which gives you all of the nitty-gritty details about their activities and the various locations they used before and during their horrific Helter Skelter murder spree.
Array14 Key Locations of the 1969 Manson Family Murders Homes in California
Dennis Wilson’s House
Dennis Wilson was a musician, singer and songwriter who helped found the insanely popular group known as the Beach Boys. Wilson was briefly associated with Manson by sheer happenstance in 1968 when he noticed two female hitchhikers walking down the side of the road one day in Malibu. These women just so happened to be Patricia Krenwinkel and Ella Jo Bailey – two members of Manson’s cult. Wilson offered to pick them up and drive them to their destination on two separate occasions. On the second occurrence, he drove them to his home before he went off to a recording session. When he returned, he was greeted by Charles Manson and about twelve other individuals who were occupying the home.
Wilson found himself so impressed by this “guru” the girls spoke of and his songwriting skills that he allowed Manson and his following to live at his home for an extended period of time. Wilson also began writing music with Manson and introducing him to a few of his friends in the music industry, including Terry Melcher.
The relationship eventually deteriorated when Wilson became aware of Manson’s volatile and violent nature. The two had a knock-down-drag-out fight in one instance in the home after Manson showed Wilson a bullet and reportedly told him “Every time you look at it, I want you to think how nice it is your kids are still safe”.
After the incident, Wilson abruptly left the home with the family still living there and broke all ties and contact with them. According to Wilson, the family lived on his dime in his house the entire time, costing him a whopping $100,000 in “cash, cars, clothes and penicillin shots for the Family’s persistent gonorrhea”.
ArrayThe “Yellow Submarine” | Canoga Park, CA
This was a location that was used by the Manson Family as a temporary home. Manson rented the property in early 1969 when he needed a place to live and dubbed it the “Yellow Submarine” in part due to its canary yellow color and the popular Beatles song. Manson thought the move back into town would be good for the family as the nights in the desert were getting cold and he felt that things at Spahn were becoming “too disorganized” for them to do any serious rehearsing.
Manson was thus forced to find a place that would house fifteen to twenty individuals and stumbled across the 4-bedroom, 2-bath home which sat on an acre of land. He found it to be quite the ideal location due to its proximity to both Hollywood and the Spahn Ranch as well its large front room which was used as a studio for their music sessions.
28 Clubhouse Avenue | Venice, CA
This site was used as a home for the Manson Family prior to the Spahn Ranch. The beautiful 3-bedroom, 2-bath classic beach house was the home of an associate of the Manson Family’s by the name of Mark Ross. Ross let the family stay at his home on several occasions. What makes this location particularly interesting is the fact that shortly after the Tate and LaBianca murders, police responded to this address to follow up on a possible lead. When they arrived, they found their witness, a man by the name of John Philip Haught (also known as “Zero”), dead on a mattress from what looked like a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the right temple.
At the time, many of the Manson family members were there, with one actually admitting they were in the room at the time of the incident. However, the entire family corroborated each other’s accounts of what happened saying it was an accident from a game of Russian Roulette and as a result, the death was ruled a suicide.
ArrayHinman House | Pacific Palisades, CA
Gary Hinman was a music teacher who had a previous affiliation with the Manson Family at the time of his murder. According to the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office, Hinman’s murder was the first in a series that set off the “Helter Skelter” murder spree. The killer convicted of his murder was Bobby Beausoleil, who also just so happened to be Hinman’s roommate when he became affiliated with the Manson Family. Beausoleil was accompanied at the time by Susan Atkins and Mary Brunner, who received immunity for her testimony in the case.
According to reports, it was rumored that Hinman had recently received a $20,000 inheritance and that Manson believed he owed him restitution in the form of money and property. Beausoleil was instructed to go to Hinman’s home and force him to cough up the dough. When Hinman refused, Manson instructed Beausoleil to hold him hostage until he came. When he arrived, Manson attacked Hinman with a machete. Hinman was held captive and tortured for three days until he died.
Array ArraySharon Tate House | Benedict Canyon
Perhaps the most infamous of the murders occurred at 10050 Cielo Drive. The luxury French country-style home was originally designed by Robert Byrd in 1942, was located on three acres of land surrounded by thick pines and cherry trees. However, you’ll be hard-pressed to find this location on Google Maps as the home was demolished and the address officially changed to 10066 Cielo Drive, most likely in order to throw off nosey folks trying to catch a glimpse.
This was the location of the home of movie director Roman Polanski and his wife, actress Sharon Tate. Tate was 8 months pregnant at the time and hosting a party with several friends including her lover Voytek Frykowski, her hairstylist, Jay Sebring, coffee heiress Abigail Folger and 18-year-old Steven Parent. They were all murdered on August 9, 1969.
This home has significance also due to the fact that it had been previously rented up until the year of the murders by record producer Terry Melcher. Manson, who at the time was an aspiring musician had a personal point of contention with Melcher due to the fact that he refused to sign a recording contract with Manson.
Manson reportedly told his crew, “that house where Melcher used to live…totally destroy everyone in [it], as gruesome as you can” – and so they did.
ArrayLaBianca House | Los Feliz, CA
This gorgeous home located in Los Feliz was the site of the gruesome LaBianca murders on August 10, 1969. Leno LaBianca at the time was the owner of a supermarket chain and his wife, Rosemary, was running a successful clothing business. The two were apparently chosen at random by the Manson Family and brutally murdered just one day after the brutal Sharon Tate incident.
The home recently made headlines when it was sold to Zak Bagans, the star of a Travel Channel series called Ghost Adventures. The 1,600-square-foot, 2-bedroom, 2 bath home interestingly enough had the address changed at some point in time as well – no doubt in order to fend off curious tourists – and was originally listed for $1.98 million. The listing quite ironically appeared just prior to the 50th anniversary of the Manson Family murders and only weeks before the opening of Tarantino’s new film Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood, which includes characters portraying the roles of both Charles Manson and Sharon Tate.
Array ArrayCharles Manson House | Chatsworth, CA
Charles Manson and his cult group spent the majority of their time shacked up at the abandoned Spahn Movie Ranch located in Chatsworth, California. The 55-acre ranch was purchased by a couple by the name of Lee and Ruth McReynolds who transformed it into a western town in order to catch the overflow from the highly successful Iverson Movie Ranch. It was then later purchased in 1953 by a man named George Spahn and renamed the Spahn Ranch.
Spahn was 80 years old and going blind at the time when he decided to let the Manson Family move in and use the property. The agreement was that the family could live there as long as they helped keep it up and running. They did chores on a daily basis and helped Spahn manage his horse-rental business all while secretly plotting their gruesome Helter Skelter murder campaign.
ArrayManson Murders Key Locations Where Evidence Was Found
There were also several key locations which served as the sites where police officers were able to find crucial pieces of evidence for many of the cases.
Longview Valley Road | Sherman Oaks, CA
There was a gun found at a site in Sherman Oaks, California just off of Longview Valley Road. The gun in question was later found to be the same one used in the Tate murders. It was discovered at the time by a 10-year-old boy who noticed it next to the sprinkler hidden under a bush.
Benedict Canyon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA
Blood-covered clothes were found at a separate location off of Benedict Canyon Drive in Beverly Hills. These clothes were later found to have been disposed of following the Tate murders. They were discovered by an LA Times film crew and reporter as they attempted to re-trace the paths of the murderers on the evening of the event.
The Spahn Ranch | Chatsworth, CA
As mentioned earlier, the Spahn ranch was an abandoned movie set that doubled as a horse ranch. Charles Manson and the 27 members of his family members were shacked up at this location, and eventually, a portion of the family and Manson himself were arrested during a raid on August 16, 1969, just one week after the gruesome Tate murders. Ironically enough, the crew wasn’t picked up for murder at the time but arrested instead on charges related to auto theft.
ArrayBarker Ranch | Death Valley, CA
The Barker Ranch, which was located in Death Valley, was a location that was being used by the Manson Family cult after they retreated from the Spahn Ranch. Manson and the majority of his cult following were officially arrested here during a drawn-out three-day raid in October 1969 that was conducted largely due to charges initially relating to auto theft as well. The Ranch is a hotbed for those who are curious about Manson’s final hideout.
ArrayMyers Ranch | Death Valley, CA
At the time of The Baker Ranch raid, the additional members were said to have been holed up at the Myers Ranch located just around the corner from the Barker Ranch in Death Valley. The 40-acre ranch was used for recreational purposes and originally built in 1932. Manson learned about the location from a woman who joined his cult by the name of Catherine Gillies. Gillies was the granddaughter of the owners, Bill and Barbara Myers.
ArrayInyo County Courthouse | Independence, CA
The Inyo County Courthouse located off of North Edwards Street was a key location due to the fact that this was the site where Manson was officially indicted for the Tate and LaBianca murders that took place.
ArrayHall of Justice | Los Angeles, CA
Once indicted, Manson was transferred to the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles. This is the location where his 1970 trial took place and where Manson was incarcerated after the proceedings. In addition to Manson, four family members by the name of Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel and Tex Watson were also convicted. Watson’s trial was held separately from the rest.
ArrayCorcoran State Prison | Corcoran, CA
Corcoran State Prison serves as a key location due to the fact that this is the location of the prison where Manson served out his sentence until his death on November 19, 2017. It’s hard to believe it happened only two years ago. Manson was housed in a special section of the jail apart from the other inmates due to the nature of his crimes and status.
How much money spent a year to house Charles Manson in prison?
According to an article posted by CBS News, it cost taxpayers well over $2 million to house Charles Manson in prison. Manson and his following were indicted on December 8, 1969. This means Manson spent 48 years in prison on the charges. As a result, it cost taxpayers somewhere around $41,666 annually to keep Manson housed in prison. That’s quite a chunk of change to keep a convicted serial killer alive and well.
Sources
https://la.curbed.com/maps/charles-manson-sharon-tate-prison
https://www.tmz.com/2019/07/25/charles-manson-murder-house-sold-ghost-adventures-zak-bagans/
https://la.curbed.com/2014/10/22/10032594/charles-manson-family-helter-skelter-ranch
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/charles-manson-cost-millions-to-keep-in-prison/
https://www.charlesmanson.com/vicinity-crimes/myers-ranch/
https://www.charlesmanson.com/vicinity-crimes/28-clubhouse-avenue/
https://www.charlesmanson.com/vicinity-crimes/yellow-submarine/
https://www.charlesmanson.com/related/dennis-wilson/
Bugliosi, Vincent with Gentry, Curt. Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders 25th Anniversary Edition, W. W. Norton & Company, 1994. ISBN 0-393-08700-X. OCLC 15164618