On March 3 2021, a Facebook user shared a post demonstrating “witches stairs” — purportedly found on occasion in very old New England homes and designed to prevent witches from accessing the next floor:
Those are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can’t climb up them. You will occasionally find them in very, very old New England homes.
(photo by Daphne Canard)
Posted by Kerry OConnor on Wednesday, March 3, 2021
In a status update, the user wrote the following (without any citations):
Those are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can’t climb up them. You will occasionally find them in very, very old New England homes.
On March 5 2021, a Reddit user shared the image and “witches stairs” explanation to Reddit’s r/interestingasfuck, without indicating that the image and claim came from an unsourced Facebook post:
Top comments primarily addressed the disorienting feeling many users had about the stairs, which featured alternating treads to the right and left. Several dozen comments down, at least one user provided an alternate name and explanation for the alternating stair treads:
They’re called alternating tread stairs and are used when there isn’t enough space for a traditional staircase. There are restrictions on the space they’re allowed to lead to; single use rooms mostly, or an attic.
Another user said:
I thought these kind of stairs were about having a full depth step for safety in a limited space where a standard set of stairs wouldn’t fit. I much prefer the witch theory.
Curiously, Google Trends data indicated relatively flat interest in “witches stairs” for the year leading up to the two posts above — if lore existed about stairs to foil the ascent of witches, no one seemed to be talking about it for most of 2020 and 2021:
A Google search for “witches stairs” returned only two pages of results, and the very first result was the March 5 2021 Reddit post. Several of the results were stock image sites, but the related stock images did not depict the alternating treads seen in the photograph.
Second in the results after the Reddit post was a page from a historical site for Brattleboro, Vermont, titled “John Holbrook’s Witch Stairs.” That page described a specific historic home in Brattleboro with a photograph of similar stairs with alternating treads.
However, the page began:
These stairs leading to the attic are set at a steep pitch, thus saving floor space. The staggered side to side placement of the stairs are designed to make the ascent and descent less dangerous.
Subsequent paragraphs added:
Charles A. Boyden and his wife Ethel Louise Waterman, and Alice Boyden called this flight “witches stairs”—
The witch in the attic could not descend into the main living area with the steep steps, especially with the steps staggered to the left and right. Witches cannot see their feet, a characteristic which only adds to their difficulty in an already adverse situation.
A reverse image search indicated the image in the Facebook post had been shared before on Facebook and Reddit, but without the “witches stairs” claim. An August 1 2020 post by the Facebook page “Pricey Pads” had a mere 635 shares (to more than 16,000 on the “witches stairs” iteration), and it reiterated the explanation that the design was space-saving:
Would you want these in your house?
Alternating tread stairs were designed as a space saving alternative to a traditional staircase.
A January 2020 post to Reddit’s r/ATBGE (“awful taste, but great execution”) was titled “What on God’s green Earth is this abomination?” and featured the exact same image:
None of the comments said anything about the staircase showing “witches stairs,” once again referencing alternating treads for space economy:
Alternating tread (ex Lapeyre) stairs are typically used in situations where the rise is extremely steep. As mentioned – ships, factories, access to lofts.
Sub-comments asked how the stairs saved space or provided an advantage over standard stairs, and another user explained why the stair design was useful:
It gives more surface area per step. If they were full length you’d have very little area to put your foot on.
A month later, the image turned up in meme format on r/memes:
In the r/memes thread, a commenter described personal experience with alternating treads in their apartment:
These kinds of alternating stairs are incredibly convenient because they save an insane amount of space compared to a regular staircase. Whoever made these probably knew what he was doing.
I have a similar staircase in my appartment and without them I would not have access to my living room and bedroom. I love my stairs.
Downsides: They take some getting-used-to and are not suitable for people with fear of heights (going down can be kinda scary) but in most cases these are made to be practical – which they are. There are even some (like mine) where the steps also double as a shelf!
Edit: Also dangerous when drunk!
A 2003 post on ThisOldHouse.com, titled “Alternate Stepping,” likewise made no mention of “witches stairs.” It appeared to feature the exact same image (which was possibly from 2003 or earlier), and explained:
For spatial frugality, nothing short of a ladder can compete with the alternate-tread stair. The tread depth and the rise from step to step is the same as on a normal stair, but because half of each tread is omitted, the run is reduced by half. It’s as if the staircase had been compressed from front to back.
Architect Anne Lewis incorporated this stair in a house she designed in the Palisades neighborhood of Washington, D.C. “We had to scramble for every square inch of space,” she says, so the client’s study was built as a loft tucked under the peak of the roof and overlooking the master bedroom. The stair links the two spaces without sacrificing a precious closet.
In the March 2021 Facebook and Reddit posts, original posters suggested that “witches stairs” were rarely seen (and only in very, very old New England homes). ThisOldHouse.com informed readers that the alternate tread style of stairs was indeed rare, but for a different reason:
Still, Lewis doesn’t recommend the design for any stair that will be heavily traveled. Neither do the building codes. They generally limit alternate-tread stairs to use for access to lofts and mezzanines, if they address them at all. Obtaining approval for a set will usually be a matter of negotiation with your local inspector.
A viral Facebook post — and subsequent Reddit thread — popularized a long-circulating photograph of what the sharers called “witches stairs,” and tacked on a claim that old superstitions had at one point led to their use in New England. Previous shares of the same image (possibly dating back as far as 2003) explained that the stairs were in fact “alternating stairs,” seen occasionally in spaces where a full-sized tread would be difficult to install. Claims that they were “witches stairs” (or “witch’s stairs”) did not seem to appear en masse until early 2021, when the image was shared with the much more interesting, but not historically supported, explanation.
- Those are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can't climb up them. You will occasionally find them in very, very old New England homes.
- These are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can't climb up them. You will occasionally find them in old New England homes.
- These are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can't climb up them. You will occasionally find them in old New England homes.
- These are called Witches Stairs. Allegedly, witches can't climb up them. You will occasionally find them in old New England homes.
- Google Trends | Witches Stairs
- Google | Witches Stairs
- Witches Stairs
- John Holbrook's Witch Stairs
- Alternating tread stairs were designed as a space saving alternative to a traditional staircase.
- What on God's green Earth is this abomination ?
- What on God's green Earth is this abomination ?
- nterior design + sadism =
- Alternate Stepping