The Mystery Spot is a tourist attraction near Santa Cruz, California, opened in 1939 by George Prather. Visitors experience demonstrations that appear to defy gravity, on the short but steep uphill walk and inside a wooden building on the site. The Mystery Spot is a popular tourist attraction, and gained recognition as a roadside "gravity box" or "tilted house". The site is what is known as a gravity hill and was the first of its kind to be built in California. History The Mystery Spot was opened by George Prather in 1939. Prather was an electrician, mechanic, and inventor before he opened the Mystery Spot. He was born near Fresno and moved to Santa Cruz in 1920. He owned a welding shop and repair garage in the area before he opened the Mystery Spot. One of several roadside attractions that opened after World War II for new automobile owners, the Mystery Spot was featured on Art Baker's television show You Asked for It. Prather was inspired to open the site by the popularity of the Oregon Vortex, which opened to the public in 1930. According to a newspaper report, Prather bought three acres on the hill in 1940 after he felt slightly dizzy while walking and was interested in his dizziness. The newspaper also reported that during further exploration of his property he found his compass jittering. He built a "crazy house" and opened the site to the public in June 1941. Tour guides lead visitors through the attraction and perform various demonstrations to showcase the site's unusual effects. Prather died in January 1946; his son Bruce inherited the land and continued running the Mystery Spot with his father's business partner Vaden McCray. The McCray family was photographed for the Life magazine spread on the Mystery Spot for their November 15, 1948, issue. McCray died in 2001; Bruce Prather died in 2015. Christopher Smith now owns the property. The Mystery Spot was nominated in July 2014 to be designated as a California Historical Landmark and was officially declared as California Historical Landmark #1055 in August 2014. Geography The site is located in Santa Cruz, California among the Santa Cruz mountains, Oak trees, Eucalyptus trees, near Granite Creek, and within the California Redwood forest. The Mystery Spot is home to a man-made dahlia garden along the hiking trail. Explanation The Mystery Spot is a gravity hill, tilt-induced visual illusion. The illusion