It’s a ghostly experience : Lemp Mansion

by Mary K. Morgan
The Halloween spirit is “alive” and well in South St. Louis on Demenil Place, the location of the very spooky, historic Lemp Family Mansion. There it is said that family tragedies produced many troubled souls that still inhabit the dwelling and appear from time to time to both suspecting and unsuspecting visitors. With this in mind, review the tales of sadness and death surrounding the Lemp Mansion and see if you believe it might qualify as a perfect setting for supernatural visitations by restless spirits. Certain spots in the house, where troubling acts and occurrences took place, are deemed to be very “active” by visiting paranormal researchers. So if it’s a ghostly good time that you seek, or just a fine meal, be sure to pay a visit. You might just get more of a “visit” than you bargained for.

And here’s how it all began…

Many, many years ago, in 1838, a man named Johann Adam Lemp traveled to St. Louis from far away Eschwege, Germany. He built a modest grocery store and it prospered. In his store he sold a homemade lager beer that he brewed in small quantities for family use. Demand for his special, light beer grew and soon he built a brewery near where the Arch stands today. His story was that of the “American Dream.” Adam died a millionaire and all the family holdings passed on to his son, William.

It was William’s life and times that set the dark tone of the Lemp Family and its heirs. It was he who bought the Victorian mansion at 3322 DeMenil Place and turned its 33 rooms into lavish living and entertaining quarters. A tunnel in the basement was constructed to connect the house to the limestone caves once used in the brewing process. Then he added an underground swimming pool, theater and bowling alley. By the 1890s, the Lemp Brewery and its holdings were considered the epitome of entrepreneurial success. And then, suddenly, tragedy struck the golden family. 

Frederick, William’s beloved son, died in 1901 at only 28 years of age. Frederick’s heart had failed his sickly body and, in doing so, his father William’s heart was irreparably broken. Next, William’s business partner and old friend, Frederick Pabst, died, leaving the already seriously depressed brewer devastated. In 1904, William committed suicide by shooting himself in the head, thus ending the second generation of the Lemp brewing dynasty on a very tragic note. 

It was in that same year, 1904, that the baton of the William J. Lemp Brewing Company was passed to the decadent William Lemp, Jr. Suddenly, the family mansion was filled with tradesmen, servants, lavish furniture and drapes, works of art and assorted finery. It was the very picture of over-indulgence, which was soon to turn into decadence. 

William Jr.’s beautiful, wealthy wife, Lillian, was known as the Lavender Lady because of her love of the color. But it was her love of shopping that was to be her legacy. And while she was at the boutiques, her unfaithful husband was cavorting with ladies of the evening—many ladies and many evenings. The result of one of his liaisons was a male child, born severely handicapped, known as The Monkey Boy, who was hidden away in the attic of the house for his entire lifetime.

Lillian and William, Jr., divorced in 1909 and custody of their child, William III, went to his father. Lillian was destroyed by the public display of their family’s dirty laundry. The scandalous behavior of William Jr. was the talk of the town, a town that could not get enough gossip about the wealthy, prominent family.

After the divorce, the business began to deteriorate rapidly. It was Prohibition in 1919 that hammered the final nail in the coffin that was once a brewing empire in St. Louis. The brewery was officially closed, but the ill-fated Lemp family continued its downward spiral of misfortune.

Elsa Lemp Wright was the youngest daughter of William Lemp, Sr. In 1910, she wed Thomas Wright, making her the richest heiress in St. Louis. In March, 1920, heiress Elsa committed suicide by shooting herself. 

December, 1929, the philandering William II shot himself in the heart with his father’s .38 revolver that had been used for the same purpose just a generation before. 

In 1943, William Lemp III died suddenly, and prematurely, of a heart attack at the age of forty-two.

William’s brother, Charles, decided to move back to the Mansion in 1943 with the child known as The Monkey Boy and a few servants. He became a captive of his own fears, including that of germs that caused him to constantly, obsessively wash his hands. Eventually he, too, committed suicide by revolver.

The Monkey Boy died in the Mansion during Charle’s period of residence.

The last of the Lemp’s, Edwin, died a peaceful death on his country estate in Kirkwood in 1970. As per his last wishes, all family papers and artifacts were burned upon his passing. 

The Bellefontaine Cemetery is the custodian of the remains of the tragic Lemp Family.

Today, the historic Lemp Mansion Restaurant, located at 3322 DeMenil Place in St. Louis, is not only a fine dining establishment, but also a popular bed & breakfast, and a must-see destination for those seeking to get a “feel” for the tragic family who once dwelled there. Often, radio shows focus on the Mansion for their Halloween night specials, but the eerie “cold spots” and the presence of the “restless, troubled souls” can be found at all times of the year, that is, if you are sensitive to such paranormal “vibes.” Pay them a visit and test your sensitivity this Halloween season. Happy Haunting!
                Reprint from the October 2007 issue of Java Journal.

Lemp Haunting!