The Mystery Spot was discovered by George Prather in 1939. Prather was an electrician, mechanic, and inventor before he opened 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. 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. They 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. McCray died in 2001; Bruce Prather died in 2015. An anonymous Santa Cruz lawyer 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.