#lemps

day 42/60

The Lemp Mansion

The Lemp Mansion is probably the most talked about and written about haunted homes in Missouri. This house has seen both great prosperity and great tragedy. It is believed that the location is haunted by several members of the Lemp family, a ghost dog, and possibly even the presence of an evil inhuman entity. There is a large array of reported activities including feelings of being watched, feelings of being followed, objects moving, lights turning off and on, kicking and pounding on the basement door, appliances behaving strangely, doors that lock and unlock on their own, cold spots, people being touched by unseen hands, sounds of barking, an apparition of elderly man has been seen in the dinning area, overwhelming feelings of sadness and of being unwelcome, etc.

History: Home was purchased in 1880’s by Lemp Family. The family became very wealthy through their brewery, but in the times of prohibition the lost everything. In 1919 “Billy” Lemp closed the brewery and sold off all the family’s property. Several members of the Lemp family committed suicide in the home. In 1904 William Lemp shot himself in the heart and in 1922 William Jr. committed suicide in the same way in the same room. Charles Lemp shot his dog in the mansion basement and then went up to his room and then killed himself. His dog, trying to return to it’s master died on the steps and is said to haunt those very same stairs. William Lemp’s daughter Elsa killed shot herself in a neighboring home. Other deaths in the home where that of a 28-year old son who died of illness, Mrs. Lemp reportedly died in a difficult way at 47, and there are rumors of a disfigured child that was kept locked in the attic that might have also died in the home. There are also stories that another family member may have been killed by an accident in the brewery.

After many years of being poorly cared for the Lemp Mansion was restored and now is a restaurant bed & breakfast.

By day, the mansion is a bustling restaurant filled with people and activity, but at night, after everyone gone and the doors have been locked tight, something still walks the halls of the Lemp Mansion. Adam Lemp began making beer in St. Louis in 1838. His first brewery was located near where the arch is located today. William Lemp Sr. took over in 1862 and the brewery prospered. He purchased the mansion in the 1870’s as well as a five block area where he constructed his brewing empire. After the turn of the century, everything began to unravel. William’s favorite son, Frederick, became ill and died in 1901. William Sr. committed suicide in 1904 after the death of his longtime friend, Frederick Pabst. William Lemp Jr took over after his father’s death but paid little or no attention to the brewery needs and the brewery suffered, He committed suicide himself in 1922 after closing and selling the brewery when prohibition ruined the business. Charles Lemp committed suicide in 1949. At the time of his death, he was a bitter and spiteful man.

The Lemp family line ended with Edwin in 1970, but while no one remains in the family today, it certainly doesn’t mean that some of them are not around. After the death of Charles, the mansion was sold and turned into a boarding home. Shortly after that, it fell on hard times and began to deteriorate. In later years, stories began to emerge that residents of the boarding house often complained of ghostly knocks and phantom footsteps in the house. In 1975, the Pointer family bought the house and began to renovate the house, turning it into a bed and breakfast. But they soon found out they were not alone. During the renovation, workers reported strange things happening. Many of them left and didn’t come back. A painter brought in to finish the ceiling stayed at the house while he worked. He told the Pointers that he had heard a horse trotting on cobblestones outside his window. He was told that he was mistaken, because there were no cobblestones or horses on the premises. Later that year, Mr. Pointer found cobblestone hidden under the grass and realized the painter had heard phantom horses outside his window. Other ghosts have been seen as well, including William Lemp Jr’s first wife, Lillian, who was called the Lavender Lady, because her clothes were always of that color. Charles and William Jr have also been seen as well. Charles likes to haunt the bar, which was the room he killed himself in, while William likes to hang out in the girl’s bathrooms. Another weird story is of a deformed child called the “monkey boy,” who was supposedly the offspring of William Jr and a servant girl. He spent his entire life locked in the attic. he is rumored to have died in the late 1940’s. Since then he has been seen staring out of the attic windows. Although the Lemp’s denied his existence, former employees of the Lemp’s claimed he did exist. It is also believed that when the boy died is when Charles committed suicide. People have reported hearing the faint voice of a child saying, “help me, help me” in the attic and some people believe they have caught a glimpse of him in the shadows.

Other strange phenomena include cold spots , electric al anomalies, feelings of being watched, a piano that plays a note in the middle of the night, vibration from the floors, feelings of sadness, tappings on the shoulders, and many photographic anomalies; both film and digital.

The Lemp Brewery