The shores of Lake Superior near Glensheen Mansion. 2023 The Growler Magazine. If you feel you have received this message in error, please contact the customer support team at 1-833-248-7801. Marjorie was released from prison on January 5, 2004, to much trepidation. Suspicions about Marjorie were already heightened by a 1974 incident in which Elisabeth became dangerously ill after eating a sandwich made by her daughter. Congdon's adopted daughter, Marjorie Congdon Caldwell, was acquitted in 1979 of charges that she helped plan the murders in what the prosecution called a scheme to get an early inheritance. As far as Marjorie and Roger: Theyre fair game. And they ended up acquitting her. If you can make a difference in even one life, its meaningful. They are thinking about restoring the greenhouses, which were torn down in 1971, and bringing in bee hives and selling Glensheen honey. When she was alerted to the fire, she was nonchalant. Marjorie stood to inherit $8.2 million upon her mother's death. Please enable javascript and refresh the page to continue reading local news. She recently moved to a house. When word reached Jennifer Congdon, Marjorie Congdons younger sister, the first thing she said was, Marjorie did it. But proving that was going to be difficult. A garden hose was found running from the gas stove in the kitchen to their bedroom. Intelligent and often charming, Marjorie married and had six children before the marriage ended amid stresses exacerbated by her exorbitant spending. She bought her things. Is she still living? Your email address will not be published. Twenty months later she was released for good behavior. She was convicted of attempted arson, and the judge allowed her to go home before reporting to prison to make arrangements for her 84-year-old husband. "I don't have any comments about the facts of the new crime," DeSanto said Saturday. You think youre in a Gothic murder mystery, and then humorous elements come in and you end up popping into different worlds.. Everyones life is important and has meaning, but she was so important to me. To celebrate they bought an Airstream trailer and traveled the country, eventually settling in Ajo, Arizona, a town of 2,500 persons near the Mexican border. She wanted the money, and she was not content to wait for her inheritance. In the late 1960s, the Congdon family decided to donate the estate to the University of Minnesota Duluth, although not until Elizabeth died. Developed by. They win people over, before bending them to their will. She was accused of attempting to deposit his $11,181 inheritance into her account after he died. She was charged with attempted arson and in a 1992 trial found guilty. In an act brazen for the time, Elisabeth traveled to New York City on a summer day in 1932 and adopted a child. We remember all the wrong things about Elisabeth Mannering Congdon. I burst out laughing, says Poling. She was still in jail Saturday on $250,000 bond. Will you still be able to buy Godiva chocolate? Tucson police wouldn't discuss what led to the charges, citing an ongoing investigation. This post is riddled with false statements about both the mansion and the family. If they want something from you, they will stop at nothing to get it. Clarence H. Johnston, Sr.; Charles W. Leavitt, Jr. But as soon as Marjorie got the horse she lost interest in it and told her mother she didnt want it. She was arrested again in 1984 when she burned down her house in Mound, Minn. She was convicted of arson and insurance fraud and sentenced to 21 months in prison. The next morning Walter Hagen was found dead, the victim of an apparent suicide. Congdon worked to improve maternal health and infant survival rates; she provided numerous students with scholarships and even housed at least one Chinese college student at Glensheen; and she was a passionate supporter of the arts. Back in Minnesota for the funeral, police found evidence of foul play in their Duluth hotel room. How long does sunscreen last once put on? The officers who dropped her off found her quirky and engaging, a charming old lady. Before she was arrested, Marjorie arranged to have the body of her friend cremated. The trial was moved to Brainerd and in July of 1978 the jury found Roger Caldwell (Marjorie's husband) to be guilty of the crimes. She was given 15 years, but on October 30, 1992, Wally was found dead, a day before she was to report to prison. Marjorie Congdon Hagen, 78, was placed on three years' intensive probation in March 2009 after she pleaded guilty to attempted forgery. In 1951 Marjorie found herself in St. Louis, Missouri, and married Richard Dick Webster LeRoy, an insurance executive. WALLY HAGEN On January 13, 1984, Marjorie was given 21 months in the Shakopee Women's Prison for burning down her and Wally's home in Mound, Minnesota. May 17, 1988 The combination of Antabuse and alcohol can produce seizures, congestive heart failure and even death. Despite prosecution having only circumstantial evidence to present, Roger was convicted and handed two consecutive life sentences. Psychopaths are without a conscience. I have had no contact with her for 40 years. She delivered hospital meals. Elisabeth, fearing publicity, did nothing. The landing where Velma Pietila was bludgeoned to death with a candle holder. The mansion was constructed as the family home of Chester Adgate Congdon. The building was designed by Minnesota architect Clarence H. The historic Glensheen Mansion, along London Road in Duluth MN, was built for, Released in the fall of 1972 and directed by Lamont Johnson, Youll Like, Glensheen, a mansion and grounds completed in 1908 on the shores of Lake Superior in Duluth, was built by Chester and Clara Congdon. Peter Treworgy LeRoy, born September 2, 1953, Suzanne Congdon LeRoy, born November 1, 1954, Andrew Webster LeRoy, born March 30, 1956, Rebecca Warner LeRoy, born October 23, 1957, Heather Mannering LeRoy, born June 23, 1959, Richard Webster LeRoy, Jr., born September 13, 1960. A wealthy woman is murdered in her bed, smothered with a pillow in the landmark lakeside mansion built by her parents. From the outside, it may have looked like her spending was out of control. Interesting. No witnesses survive, and the cops in a small northern Minnesota city have to make their case based on purely circumstantial evidence. He befriended the US District Attorney in St. Paul and got a job as his assistant. The public needs to be educated. Marjorie did not call the fire department. On March 24, 1992, she was arrested for burning down her neighbors house. Paul Airport, were found in the Caldwells hotel rooms, authorities arrested Roger and charged him with the murders. Thats different from a psychopath. In 1992, Hagen pleaded no contest to a criminal damage charge in connection with a 1990 fire at an Ajo storage yard that was believed to have been set to support a fraudulent insurance claim. Rather, they seek money as a means of control. Marjorie Congdon has been diagnosed a psychopath. Congdon was the only surviving child of mining magnate Chester Congdon, who built the lavish mansion in 1909. Much of the following information came from the book Will to Murder: The True Story Behind the Crimes and Trials Surrounding the Glensheen Killings by Gail Feichtinger, John Desanto, Gary Waller, and John E. Desanto (2005:X-Communication). js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=180027192065175"; She saw Velmas legs hanging off the bench underneath the landings stained glass window. How do you feel about the recent moves to open up the private areas of the house to the public? When did Irene Curie win the Nobel Prize? Marjorie married Roger Caldwell of Latrobe, Pennsylvania, on March 20, 1976, in the Denver, Colorado, area and they lived in Golden, Colorado. Additionally, two other men shes been close to have died in what some have regarded as suspicious circumstances. Sociopaths are shaped by their environment. Some psychopaths are highly successful, exercising wealth and power, but no less dangerous for all that. They purchased the house from Kenneth and Alice Wolfe; he was to become mayor of St. Louis Park and a State Senator. Later it came to light that her friend had thought the world of her. Elisabeth Congdons way of dealing with Marjorie was to appease her. said Kimball. As before, she was not considered a flight risk, so she was permitted to visit her husband one last time before being escorted to prison. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Later in the tour, as you pass the landing where Elisabeths nurse Velma Pietila was brutally bludgeoned to death with an iron candlestick holder, where blood had soaked the rug and dripped off the banisters, you want to ask them to stop and acknowledge it. Even her attorney Ronald Meshbesher couldnt get her off. The day after she was convicted, Wally Hagen was found dead of a drug overdose. She taught me to give back. The grotesque story is nonetheless a true one that unfolded almost 40 years ago now: Duluths Glensheen murders, an atrocity that riveted the region for years. Sociopaths are rarely so engaging. Yet she destroyed the lives of all those around her. Her trustees earlier had cut Marjorie off from the Congdon millions, after the. The Associated Press and Arizona Daily Star contributed to this report. Elisabeth Congdon's funeral was to be held at Glensheen on Thursday June, 30. In 2010, her attorney's court motion to remove her from intensive probation so she could get into an assisted living complex was denied. Whats more, investigators found a dark hair near Velma Pietilas body. Accordingly, when Marjorie was thirteen, Elisabeth bought Marjorie a horse she had been demanding. Speech competition for high school girls in Minnesota welcomes applications through March, Duluth Polar Plunge makes a splash for Special Olympics. Back at home, her third husband, Walter Hagen, was delighted at her return. SCL: You never turn your back. Then the story took another turn when the Minnesota Supreme Court court threw out Roger Caldwell's conviction based on the new evidence introduced at Marjorie's trial. In 1984, Marjorie was convicted of arson in the burning of the Mound, Minn., home she had just sold but remained an insurance beneficiary. It really is part of a bygone era. That's when Kimball decided to write a book about the case, "Secrets of the Congdon Mansion. In 1990, the Hagens moved to Ajo,. Editor's note: This story originally appeared in the June 25, 2017, edition of the News Tribune. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. How did Chester Congdon make his fortune? MinnPost thanks these generous donors: INDIVIDUALS AND FOUNDATI0NS Blandin FoundationOtto Bremer FoundationBush FoundationSage & John CowlesDavid . When I began my research, I discovered so many amazing things. And engaging, a charming old lady Marjorie arranged to have the body of her friend thought... The victim of an apparent suicide purchased the house from Kenneth and Alice Wolfe ; he was to become of... 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