Halliwell Manor
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 Plan of first floor of Halliwell Manor |
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Halliwell Manor is a fictional house, an important setting for the WB television series Charmed. Members of the Halliwell family have owned the Manor property for four generations. The fictional address of the house is 1329 Prescott Street San Francisco, California.
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[edit] Manor history
According to the series, the existing structure was built in 1906 after the Great Earthquake of San Francisco.[1] Paige mentioned to inquiring reporters in season eight that the original house was built in 1898.
In season 1, Professor Whittlesey of Berkeley University[1] visited the Manor and noted its location and beautiful Victorian architecture. Since the ground is exactly situated at the center of five essential life elements (wood, earth, water, fire, metal), it is considered to be a spiritual nexus. The power encased in the Nexus can accessed by good or evil[1]. The Charmed Ones' great grandparents, the Baxters, bought the land and built the manor[1] to prevent it from falling into evil's control. There had been several times that demons have attempted to control the power of the Nexus, including Cole[2] and Zankou.[3] These attempts were defeated when the sisters recited a spell their maternal grandmother, Penny, taught Phoebe when she was little[1] to return the Nexus to the earth. As forces of good are in control of the Manor and therefore the contol the Nexus, the Nexus is described as providing an extra boost of power to the sisters. At the end of season 7, Piper, Phoebe and Paige had no choice but to destroy the Nexus to prevent evil from receiving the same power boost. The Charmed Ones used a spell called "How to Banish a Suxen"—or, the word 'Nexus' spelled backwards—provided by the Elders in the Halliwell Book of Shadows to ensure it would not fall under evil's control.[3]
Phoebe[1] and Wyatt[4] are the only known Halliwell witches born in the manor.
In reality, the house is not located in San Francisco where the series is set. The real house can be found in a private property in Los Angeles and its interior is largely different from the ones used in the show. The real house has been used many times for exterior shots only. It is located at 1329 Carroll Ave in the Echo Park section of Los Angeles, California, near Dodger Stadium.
[edit] Changes in layout
The layout of the manor has changed several times, dependent on the needs of each episode. For example:
- In the episode "The Courtship of Wyatt's Father", a darklighter shoots Leo in the attic; however, there is no window in the attic as it is depicted on the show. The house they use for the exterior does not match up with the sets they constructed for the show. There's no attic atop the Carroll Avenue house with a large window as depicted, only a widow's walk.
- The actual number of bedrooms on the second floor is unclear.
- The location of Wyatt's nursery in Season Five is initally situated in the closet adjacent to an exterior window, but is moved to the closet beside Piper and Leo's bed.
- The number of bedrooms on the second floor seemed to be three until "Witchstock", when Phoebe and Paige temporarily moved out of the Manor. Piper converted their rooms into a bedroom for Wyatt and a fitness room. When Phoebe and Paige moved back to the Manor, one room continued to be used as Wyatt's bedroom, but which room either Phoebe or Paige returned to is unclear. Paige and Phoebe discuss their cramped living quarters in "It's a Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad World (Part 1)". In Prewitched[5], Piper and Phoebe mention they shared a bedroom prior to Grams' death, which would make sense if the Manor is indeed a three bedroom home.
- A garage was added in Season Eight, which was not shown in earlier seasons, although the piece of property it stands on was shown at other points in the series.
- The view of San Francisco out of various windows has changed over the seasons.
- In Season 1-2, a downstairs bathroom is mentioned but never shown, and then dropped altogether.
The largest bedroom initially belonged to Prue, but when Piper and Leo were married in Season Three,[6] Prue switched rooms with the newlyweds. Paige now occupies Prue’s room after the latter's death. Phoebe also has a bedroom (see above for caveats). The very spacious attic houses the Book of Shadows and many items of old furniture. The door was always kept locked before Grams' death in 1998,[5] as she told the Sisters the attic was sealed off. Additional potion ingredients are kept in the kitchen. The basement is mostly used to store furniture, although it used to house Prue's dark room for developing photographs. The Woogyman also used to dwell under the earth underneath the manor's basement. The other rooms in the manor are the elongated dining room, the family room, the conservatory or the sunroom, the living room, the foyer, and outside, and a rear flower garden. In Season Eight, the garage was shown for the first (and final) time, right before Leo was taken away by the Angel of Destiny.[7]
A trademark of the show is the front door closing magically, which Prue started at the pilot and Season One finale, and it's been magically closed every season finale ever since (Seasons 1 & 2 - Prue; Season 3 - Shax; Season 4 - the Angel of Destiny; Season 5 - Chris Halliwell; Season 7 - "Prue's ghost"; Season 8 - Piper's granddaughter) with the exception of season 6, when they closed the doors of the delivery room at San Francisco Memorial Hospital where baby Chris was born.
[edit] Notable events
Notable events occurring to the Halliwell Manor:
- The manor was vanished by Piper, while under a hex.[8]
- The manor's basement exploded after The Charmed Ones destroyed Zankou after he attempted to take control of the Nexus,[3] rocking the house on its foundations.
- The manor destroyed due to enormous powers used during the battle of The Charmed Ones vs. The Ultimate Power.[9]
- There have been several deaths (excluding demonic vanquishes) within the manor, some reversed, others permanent. The earliest known death is the murder of P. Russell, Phoebe's past life, then the girls grandfather, then Grams, Andy, Prue Halliwell and Chris Halliwell.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f "Is There A Woogy In The House?". Charmed.
- ^ "The Importance of Being Phoebe". Charmed.
- ^ a b c "Something Wicca This Way Goes". Charmed.
- ^ "The Day the Magic Died". Charmed.
- ^ a b "PreWitched". Charmed.
- ^ "Just Harried". Charmed.
- ^ "Vaya Con Leos". Charmed.
- ^ "House Call". Charmed.
- ^ "Kill Billie Vol. 2". Charmed.
| Charmed |
|---|
| Main: Season summaries | Episode guide | Multimedia | Terms | Trivia |
| Locations and Artifacts: Bay Area | Halliwell Manor | Magic School | The Nexus | Book of Shadows |
| Good beings: Charmed Ones | Close friends | Ancestors | Family and friends | Whitelighters | Elders |
| Evil beings: Darklighters | Warlocks |
| Neutral: Avatars | The Hollow | Firestarters |
