And they ended up acquitting her. Stained glass window above the stairway landing at Glensheen mansion where Velma Pitiela was murdered. Her adopted daughter Marjorie LeRoys mother along with her new husband, Roger Caldwell, were accused of murdering Congdon in an attempt to inherit her fortune. Sociopaths are rarely so engaging. It was as if she was determined to spend every last penny of Chester Congdons fortune. This post is riddled with false statements about both the mansion and the family. They are thinking about restoring the greenhouses, which were torn down in 1971, and bringing in bee hives and selling Glensheen honey. A wealthy woman is murdered in her bed, smothered with a pillow in the landmark lakeside mansion built by her parents. They may charm you, they may trick you, or they may put you in a difficult position. Paul Airport, were found in the Caldwells hotel rooms, authorities arrested Roger and charged him with the murders. On June 27, 1977, the aged heiress to a vast mining fortune is killed along with her night nurse at Glensheen, a posh mansion perched on the Lake Superior coast. In the late 1960s, the Congdon family decided to donate the estate to the University of Minnesota Duluth, although not until Elizabeth died. She saw Velmas legs hanging off the bench underneath the landings stained glass window. Her ability to coerce him in this way hinted at deeper implications. I had an appetite for travel and interest in other cultures, and worked with aborigines in Australia. I started in neonatal care, working with very sick babies, and that was a strong interest of hers as well. Police suspected that Roger Caldwell flew from Colorado to Minneapolis, drove to Duluth, and committed the murders under cover of darkness. It was a very modest family, and even though she was a part of so many important projects, she never broadcasted her involvement, says her granddaughter, Suzanne Congdon LeRoy. He worked in a lumber mill from the age of fifteen to support his family after his fathers death. On June 27, 1977 at 3:00am, Elisabeth Congdon and her nurse Velma Pietila (born April 26, 1911) were found murdered. Our 12-acre estate features gardens, bridges, and the famous, Chester A. Congdon, 1909. From the beginning, the child was different. How do you feel about the recent moves to open up the private areas of the house to the public? The killings were carried out by Roger Caldwell, allegedly at the urging of his wife, Congdon's adopted daughter Marjorie, though she was later acquitted of conspiracy to murder at a trial. They cannot believe the things people say about her. Then in 1951 Marjorie became someone elses problem. They were set to inherit millions of dollars when Elisabeth died. Marjorie Congdon Caldwell was one of two daughters adopted in the 1930s by Elisabeth, who never married. She always seemed like a nice person. Roger. SCL: I visited archives all over the country. The Hagen family planned a memorial service in January 1996 at Westwood Lutheran Church in St. Louis Park. And I have taken all the necessary precautions to keep myself safe. (function(d, s, id) { The murders at Glensheen mansion were sloppy. But even today, guides don't discuss the murder during tours, although they will answer questions after, explained Glensheen Director Dan Hartman. Marjorie could not have been pleased. Tucson police wouldn't discuss what led to the charges, citing an ongoing investigation. In fact, LeRoy herself learned about many of her grandmothers projects only when she began to research her new book, Nightingale: A Memoir of Murder, Madness, and the Messenger of Spring, Kitai Press. You want to raise your hand and draw attention to it, even if it might be considered a bit crass. He did a masterful job. She added that she hasnt had contact with her for 40 years. Is there a movie about the Glensheen Mansion? Also that year, she pleaded no contest in connection with arson fires at an Ajo storage yard believed set for a fraudulent insurance claim. In 1995 an Arizona judge decreed that Wally Hagens ashes must be divided between Hagens children and Marjorie. We hope Marjorie doesnt show up at the theater with a box of matches, Poling says. Later it came to light that her friend had thought the world of her. A psychotic is someone who is out of touch with reality. SEE ALSO: Trail of clues, legal twists kept Glensheen murder case going for years, SEE ALSO: Glensheen murders still intrigue, Authorities ID man fatally shot by Duluth police, First Witness seeks state, local support for larger child advocacy center in Duluth, Court rejects challenge to Hibbing murder. In March 1991 Marjorie was caught red-handed setting fire to her neighbors house with him inside of it. SCL: You never turn your back. Now she was free to do whatever she wanted. Im not going to sell the book at Glensheen. The blood type turned out to be type O; the same blood type of Velma Pietila and Roger Caldwell. MP: Your book includes two riveting and fairly disturbing courtroom dramas the murder trial [starring a sneering Ron Meshbesher] and the settlement of your grandmothers estate. Psychopaths are without a conscience. After other evidence was discovered at their home in Denver, Marjorie tried to poison Roger, but he was sent to Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park on July 5, and was ready to be handed over to Duluth police on July 7, 1977. I wanted more people to understand why she was so special. Overnight, Congdon became a very wealthy man. The Gateway to Hell in Tagus, North Dakota. It is estimated that 1% of the population are psychopaths. Psychopaths are born without consciences, the way some people are born without sight or sound. He and his wife, Mary, live near Kettle River, Minnesota, enjoying time with their seven grandchildren. The bedroom where Elisabeth Congdon was murdered. Rogers trial resulted in two consecutive life sentences, handed down on July 10, 1978. It looked like justice was finally catching up with her. "I don't have any comments about the facts of the new crime," DeSanto said Saturday. Her children were always dressed like out of a magazine ad. At least three books have been written about Hagen, including, "Will to Murder: The True Story Behind the Crimes & Trials Surrounding the Glensheen Killings," by former News Tribune crime reporter Gail Feichtinger, retired Duluth police detective Gary Waller and DeSanto. She professed her innocence in the Ajo fire at trial. They are consummate actors, and the role they play is of being human when, in fact, they are something less than human, and dangerous because of it. But when she fully enters their lives, they become entwined in a series of bizarre crimes. The nurse hurried up the stairs to Elisabeths bedroom. Investigators quickly identify two suspects with a classic motive: struggling financially, the suspects stood to inherit millions upon the victims death. Donations made by check can be made out to MinnPost and mailed to us at PO Box 18438, Minneapolis, MN 55418. On March 24, 1992, she was arrested for burning down her neighbors house. His conviction had been overturned by the Minnesota Supreme Court after fingerprint evidence used in his trial was called into serious question during Marjories own criminal trial in 1979win which she was acquitted of her alleged role in planning the murders. 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. I burst out laughing, says Poling. Glensheen, built just northeast of downtown Duluth in 1909, was the audacious symbol of Congdon's wealth and made the murders that much more intriguing. In 2010, her attorney's court motion to remove her from intensive probation so she could get into an assisted living complex was denied. How do I create a group in Contacts on iPhone? It sounds like fictionlike a murder mystery in a worn paperback novel. In his will Chester Congdon bequeathed his home and fortune to his wife and children, and by succession to his grandchildren. The primary victim, Elisabeth Congdon, was 83 years old. Relations between Marjorie and her family members were highly strained, and the Congdon estate closely monitored all communication between Marjorie and her mother. The combination of Antabuse and alcohol can produce seizures, congestive heart failure and even death. Choose your favorite marjorie congdon caldwell hagen designs and purchase them as wall art, home decor, phone cases, tote bags, and more! The promise of a big pay combined with plenty of publicity may have been factors that led Ronald Meshbesher to take her case. Its one of Americas great houses. Nancy and her brother Tom were always curious about their mother's rich friend, Marjorie Congdon. When Marjorie was three, Elisabeth adopted a second daughter who she named Jennifer. Shortly thereafter, the house burned to the ground. In this light, Marjories difficulty in making friends at school can be seen as trial and error, a long learning curve that resulted in her emerging as an engaging, charismatic young woman at the age of nineteen, enough to snare a man like Dick LeRoy. Thats when Marjorie got an idea. Who wrote youll like my mother?Jo HeimsNaomi A. Hintze. Shes had many aliases. Glensheen, a new musical about the crime by acclaimed playwright Jeffrey Hatcher and music by The Suburbs Chan Poling, opens October 3 at St. Pauls History Theatre. "Someone breaks into a 39-room mansion and killed the nurse on the grand stairway," with a candlestick, recalled Joe Kimball, a reporter with the Minneapolis Tribune who covered the murders. They purchased the house from Kenneth and Alice Wolfe; he was to become mayor of St. Louis Park and a State Senator. When you tour Glensheen Mansion, the 39-room Congdon family home on the shores of Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota, the docents try to avoid talking about the murders. But in the big picture a greater public service could be done by acknowledging the tragedy and handing out information on psychopathology. Marjorie is now the same age her mother was when her mother was murdered. Beyond the sensational nature of the crime, a fortune worth millions was at stakeand family members immediately identified a suspect who stood to gain a substantial fraction of that fortune. In November 2008, Marjorie pled guilty to fraud after illegally taking funds from the bank account of Roger Sammis, who had been under her care before his death. She eventually paid her lawyer out of the income from her $750,000 trust fund. Marjorie was a compulsive spender and liar, and eventually Dick LeRoy had enough and divorced her on April 29, 1971. The Guilford Press, 1999, Hendry, Sharon Darby. Marjorie Hagen, then known as Marjorie Caldwell, was accused of conspiring with her then-husband, Roger Caldwell, to kill Elisabeth Congdon, 83, and hernight nurse in the Congdon mansion in Duluth . Elisabeth Mannering Congdon about the age she was when she adopted Marjorie. A civil suit filed by five of her seven children in 1979 to disinherit their mother from her inheritance on the grounds she was involved in the murders was settled out of court in 1983. He was found guilty and given two life sentences. And I loved nursing; I was very privileged to work in Minnesota, nationally, and internationally as a nurse. Surprisingly, there are some rather significant connections between Marjorie and St. Louis Park. How long does sunscreen last once put on? Spirits Close-Up: The Ultimate Hot Toddy Matrix. Is that your grandmothers influence? All Rights Reserved. SCL: My grandmother donated the estate to the University of Minnesota Duluth in the 1960s, and now Glensheen is run by the UMD fine arts department. Most psychopaths are not violent, but all are treacherous. Psychopaths are at their most dangerous when their manipulations are thwarted. She was released on October 19, 1986, and she and Wally moved to Ajo, Arizona. in Minneapolis in 1957, but took good care of the new, pregnant owner of the Huntington house, giving her all of her maternity clothes and sending up strawberries to the hospital. She was released on October 19, 1986, and she and Wally moved to Ajo, Arizona. Before she was arrested, Marjorie arranged to have the body of her friend cremated. She was a contemporary of Margaret Sanger and in the years after birth control became legal, she helped bring access and information to northern Minnesota, which made a big difference for countless working families and women living in poverty. They consider the legacy of Chester Congdon and his family too important to be tainted by the troubling story of her atrocious behavior. Is she still living? On March 4, 2009, she was sentenced to three years probation. Marjorie had a penchant for arson. Only the quick action of Dick LeRoy prevented the fire from spreading and burning the neighborhood down. Rogers conviction was overturned on August 6, 1982, and instead of retrying the case, Roger was freed on his five years time served after he confessed to two counts of second-degree murder. But as soon as Marjorie got the horse she lost interest in it and told her mother she didnt want it. Roger had gray hair. She got along swimmingly with the other inmates, and she sent a bouquet of flowers to the warden every week. Elisabeth Congdon's funeral was to be held at Glensheen on Thursday June, 30. In some ways, time stands still at Glensheen Mansion, owned by the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD): almost everything in the home is an original possession of Clara and Chester Congdon, who built the house between. Candleholders on Elisabeth Congdons bedside table in Glensheen Mansion. She always had a project going. If Marjorie couldnt have it, nobody would. Her nurse is also killed, bludgeoned with a candlestick. "People do see her out and about. But Congdon was betting on the come. 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. With Roger out of prison under supervision and a retrial looming, authorities decided to strike a deal rather than risk an acquittal. Chester Adgate Congdon was a go-getter. [Elizabeth Congdon never fully recovered, and spent the last decade of her life unable to engage in many of her previous activities]. Authorities said she began serving her sentence in 1993. When authorities called Marjorie to tell her what had happened, she said nonchalantly, It isnt our house. That's because 40 years later, Hartman said, about 70 percent of visitors don't even know about the murders. Then he graduated as class valedictorian from seminary school before taking a law degree at Syracuse University. She went up to the prone figure. Roger confessed to the murders, but was freed after serving just over five years in jail. In late 1992, before sentencing for arson, she was allowed 24 hours to transport her ailing husband from Tucson, Ariz., to their home in Ajo. [She served time for arson.] Roger took Velmas car back to the airport and flew back to Denver. 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