Lemp Mansion: one of the ten most haunted houses in the United States
Tours Travel

Lemp Mansion: one of the ten most haunted houses in the United States

Lemp Mansion. His story has it all. From rich to suicidal, beer magnates to eccentrics, this stone mansion was built in 1868 and reigned over the social elite of St. Louis, Missouri for nearly a decade. Frequent visitors included the great Vincent Price, visiting dignitaries, and the upper class of St. Louis. Built on a cavern of twisting underground cave systems, its secret passages, dark corridors and history of suicides harbor paranormal occurrences that occur daily at the renowned Bed and Breakfast.

During my initial investigation of Lemp Mansion I was struck by the heavy atmosphere inside. A pristine white facade doesn’t prepare you for the dark oak paneling, imposing staircase and stained glass windows inside. It feels like leaving the 21st century at the door as you enter a world that was created by the incredibly wealthy inhabitants of the Golden Age of beer. You have the feeling that you are entering someone else’s environment; a sense of voyeurism hovering over the entrance, as if the mansion’s owners had simply walked out and returned shortly to find a stranger walking across the antiquated floorboards. This sense remains as you glimpse the first-floor salons, dining rooms, and vintage baths that still house original marble bathtubs, beveled-glass windows, and 19th-century tile work.

So what happened in this house where money was no object and a brewing dynasty was created? It all started with the sudden death of William Jacob Lemp’s youngest son, Frederick. William never recovered from the shock and later shot himself in the upstairs bedroom.

The family curse continued when Elsa Lemp Wright, William’s only daughter and the wealthiest woman in St. Louis at the time, shot herself in the heart one morning while her husband was showering in the master bathroom at a luxurious mansion not far from Lemp’s house . Her suicide occurred just 12 days after remarrying her ex-husband, causing the suspension to hang over her exact movements that morning. The fact that her husband waited several hours to report her death only whetted an insatiable public’s appetite for information about the strange death of another wealthy man in town.

After William Lemp committed suicide, the torch of the dynasty passed to William’s second son, Billy Lemp, who was reluctant to shoulder the heavy burden of running a giant brewing business with the popularity of his biggest competitor, Anheuser Busch, breathing down his neck. in the neck. As Prohibition, declining sales, and depression got the better of him, Billy also shot himself in what is now the dining room to the left of the mansion’s front door.

Three suicides by firearm in a family. One would think that the pall that hangs over this house would be satisfied. However, there would be a fourth and final death at home in 1949 when Charles Lemp, the third son, shot himself in his bedroom. He had become a notorious hermit and germaphobe in the days leading up to his suicide. Due to his fear of contamination, he laundered money, shoes were left outside the door (and washed), and visitors were discouraged. One of the few people allowed to enter the dark sanctuary was horror movie star Vincent Price, who had been friends with Charles.

On the morning of Charles’s death, two shots are heard in the quiet house. Only two servants were in the residence. Mr. Lemp shot his faithful dog and then himself. He didn’t want to leave the dog alone without him. And here the horrific tragedies of Lemp Mansion end…or do they?

During my two-night stay at the mansion, I was amazed at the sheer number of paranormal occurrences. For a lady who has slept in the beds of some of the world’s most haunted places, this is quite the confession.

My first night there I was given the attic room where a lot of activity has been reported. I was not disappointed. A little before one in the morning something started kicking the side of my bed. My impression at the time was that he felt like a petulant child kicking the wall. At 5:30 the same morning, I was woken up by pressure on both sides of my feet through the blanket. The room was still dark and it took all my courage to reach for my cell phone and shine its light on my feet, not knowing what the little glow would illuminate. There, on either side of my feet, were two small footprints on the blanket that looked like a child’s small shoes. The traces remained long after the feeling of weight had disappeared. I was later told that a small child had died in that attic room; a deformed child belonging to the Lemp family.

The next night I was given Lavender Lady’s room on the second floor. It is a spacious suite with a bathroom with a hydromassage bathtub and a living room. A ghost tour was going on in the hallways when I walked into my room. My sister and nephew who live in St. Louis had come to spend the night with me. Just as I collapsed onto the bed, the ancient chandelier above me went into a frenzy of flickering lights. It went on for several minutes, while my sister moaned next to me. I finally thought of my phone and grabbed it, clicking on the camera and turning it into video. I filmed the erratic blinking and then started asking him questions. I asked her to stop blinking if it was because someone in the room had died causing it. He immediately stopped. I then asked him to blink once if the person causing the interference died in that room. He blinked once. By now, my sister is begging me to “stop talking to her!” This continued for another 5 minutes and finally the “verbal” volleyball ended. The brightness of the light remained constant and did not answer my questions.

The next morning at 5:15, while lying in bed getting ready to get up and pack for a plane flight, I heard two loud shots from outside the bedroom door. I felt as if ice water had been poured into my veins. My heart was beating. Shortly after the shots were fired, what sounded like a large dog barked. There are no pets at Lemp Mansion and the staff doesn’t report until 10 am My nephew woke up and said he just heard a big dog. He didn’t hear the shots.

Charles Lemp shot his dog and then himself early on that fateful morning in 1949. I firmly believe I heard what is called a residual ghost: a replayed loop from the past.

To date, Lemp Mansion is the most haunted place I have ever been to. I encourage you to visit this famous B&B in St. Louis. One piece of advice…take a flashlight!

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