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Lemp Mansion, located in St. Louis, Missouri, was called by Life magazine "one of the ten most haunted places in America" in 1982. They seemed to have every reason to make this assertion. As always, though, let me begin with the history lesson.
Lemp Mansion was built in the early 1860's. William J. Lemp, the son of the founder of Lemp Brewery, John Adam Lemp, was the first member of the Lemp family to live there. The Lemps were one of the richest families in St. Louis by 1870 due to the great success of the brewery. They were also very, very eccentric. The decor of the mansion was considered odd in many ways. Their atrium was decorated in a jungle theme, and in this room they kept exotic plants and animals. In their basement was an underground cavern that contained an auditorium, a swimming pool, and a ballroom. In the main bathroom are a barber chair, a sink with glass legs, and a free-standing shower that William Lemp brought back with him from Italy after discovering it in his hotel. There is an upstairs room called the Lavender Room, a moniker taken from Lillian Handlan Lemp, William Jr.'s wife, known as "the Lavender Lady." She apparently dressed only in lavender in imitation of the Czarina of Russia.
Eccentricity is one thing, though, and insanity is another. Troubles began for the Lemps in 1901, when William Sr.'s favorite son, Frederick, died mysteriously at the age of 28. He was the heir apparent to the Lemp legacy, and his father was crushed. In 1904, still despondent over his loss, William Sr. went into his office and shot himself through the heart. His son, William Lemp, Jr., took over the business. In 1920, William's sister Elsa also committed suicide by shooting herself, although not in the mansion. In 1922, William sold the brewery at a huge loss. After the sale, he went into the same office that his father had nearly two decades before and shot himself. Despite all the tragic events that transpired in the mansion, the surviving Lemp, Charles, remained there. He was brother to William, Elsa, Frederick and one other surviving Lemp, Edwin. In 1949, at the age of seventy-seven, Charles killed the family dog and then shot himself. The house was then sold and used as a boarding house until 1977, when renovation began to make Lemp mansion into a bed and breakfast. This is when the paranormal events began.
Workers were disturbed by inexplicable banging noises and objects moving about on their own. What was most distressing, though, to the point where several workers quit, was the eerie sensation that they were being watched. Some of the men claimed that the unseen stares practically burned through them.
Today, visitors to the Lemp Bed and Breakfast have claimed to feel cold spots and see strange lights. Both guests and employees have been frightened by a "Lady in Lavender" on the third floor stairwell. She has also been seen in the first floor bathroom. Inexplicable noises still abound, the most notable being piano music and the barking of a phantom dog.
Lemp Mansion Restaurant
3322 De Menil Place
St. Louis, MO 63118
(314) 664-8024
Website: Lemp Mansion
If you have had an experience at Lemp Mansion, please E-MAIL me.
