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. Just before the fire, Marjorie was seen carrying valuables out of the house and loading them into her car. She delivered hospital meals. Elisabeth Congdon, heiress to a taconite fortune in Duluth, never married and could not have children so she adopted Jacqueline and changed her name to Marjorie. She got along swimmingly with the other inmates, and she sent a bouquet of flowers to the warden every week. That heiress was Elizabeth Congdon, the last living child of Chester Congdon, who'd earned his fortune developing the Mesabi Iron Range. What they inadvertently let loose on a summer day in 1932 destroyed many lives, and it all began with an act of generosity. After breaking off an early engagement, she settled into the life of a spinster. While Marjorie stood to inherit millions after her mother's death, she actually got a pittance in comparison. 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. Congdon was the only surviving child of mining magnate Chester Congdon, who built the lavish mansion in 1909. She left an extensive record of philanthropic activities, with the Red Cross, the Duluth Art Institute, the Kings Daughters, numerous museums, hospitals, historical societies. They were soon up to their ears in debt and desperate for money. 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. The primary victim, Elisabeth Congdon, was 83 years old. Marjorie Caldwell served two prison terms for arson, and she's been linked to several mysterious deaths. Marjorie kept on spending, writing bad checks and driving her new husband deeper and deeper into debt. Adopted by one of the wealthiest families in Minnesota, she was brought up in lavish surroundings with all the comforts money could buy, Marjorie had an idyllic childhood. Is that your grandmothers influence? In January 2004 Marjorie Congdon was released from prison after serving ten years of her fifteen year sentence for arson. As her personality emerged from behind a wall of introversion, it was aggressive and unpleasant, and she made people uncomfortable. A stroke had left her mobility and speech seriously impaired, requiring full-time medical supervision. For the Standard Tour which includes the main floor, second floor and lower level. At many times, her life was filled with loss, illness and hardship, and yet she was always optimistic. Shortly thereafter, the house burned to the ground. Even her attorney Ronald Meshbesher couldnt get her off. Suddenly his ore was worth a fortune. Marjorie Congdon became Marjorie LeRoy on June 30th, 1951. When she was alerted to the fire, she was nonchalant. In 1985, she was imprisoned. Suspicions about Marjorie were already heightened by a 1974 incident in which Elisabeth became dangerously ill after eating a sandwich made by her daughter. Marjorie pleaded guilty to the crime of forgery and was given probation. Psychopaths are without a conscience. When he drank, he turned violent. She told the new buyers she wanted to do some work on the house before handing it over to them. Eight years later in 1974 after arranging for the remodeling of a house shed purchased, Marjorie was slow to pay the contractor, so the contractor placed a lien on her property. I found out that her classmate at Vassar was the poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. Marjorie said they had a suicide pact, but she couldn't go through with her end of it. Avoid being drawn in. Now, the city might start buying garbage trucks, Let's talk about our racist and ugly state flag, Minnesota Democrats might spend big in bid to fix a struggling child care industry, The long, bitter fight over Minneapolis Roof Depot site, explained, Time to celebrate our Minnesota public schools, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license. I was only 9 years old when she had a stroke. Elisabeth named her Marjorie. 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 . It might help visitors better understand Marjories behavior, and raise awareness about these dangerous people among us. She always seemed like a nice person. The family has written some letters, and weve had discussions. Its a significant part of the mansions history, even if it is a bit unsettling, especially in light of the fact that the likely murderer is still alive and not in prison. But psychopaths are different. Whatever the diagnosis revealed was something Elisabeth would never tell anyone. Caldwell's conviction was. The first time she invited me over I was met at the door by the Doberman pinscher peering out through the little window on the door. Marjorie was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. 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. As far as Marjorie and Roger: Theyre fair game. Soon, Marjorie turns into the stepmother from hell. Police said they believed he was exposed to natural gas from the kitchen stove through a garden hose. But prosecutors didn't want to risk a not guilty verdict. To control that wealth mustve been very enticing to someone like Marjorie. These days few Americans find it cynical to observe that our justice system is vulnerable to the influences of wealth and celebrity. "I think also a downside of the murder is that people always viewed it from that lens, even in the history community," he said, "that they kind of forget it's actually this incredibly important historic site for our state. Roger took Velmas car back to the airport and flew back to Denver. By 1977, she was living in Colorado and married to her second husband, Roger Caldwell. 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. "We spend a lot of time trying to make sure that the focus of Glensheen is not the murder. We sold it.. MinnPost: Although Glensheen is well known, your grandmother is not. In 1991, she was caught trying to set fire to a neighbor's house. June 27 marks the 40th anniversary of the Glensheen Mansion 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. Shop for marjorie congdon caldwell hagen wall art from the world's greatest living artists. I burst out laughing, says Poling. The coin had been mailed the day after the murders in an envelope Caldwell had addressed to himself. In 2010, her attorney's court motion to remove her from intensive probation so she could get into an assisted living complex was denied. Required fields are marked *. She was released on October 19, 1986, and she and Wally moved to Ajo, Arizona. If she could not get it by lying, cheating and stealing, she would find some other way. 2023 The Growler Magazine. Donations made by check can be made out to MinnPost and mailed to us at PO Box 18438, Minneapolis, MN 55418. Dumbest of all, a rare Byzantine coin that had been taken from Elisabeths Congdons room on the night of the murders turned up in Roger Caldwells home in Golden, Colorado. In 1990, the Hagens moved to Ajo, Ariz. 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. Details could be released next week. An additional note: The History Theatre musical, "Glensheen" is on stage starting July 6 and runs through July 30, 2017. Police alleged it was a crime of greed, saying Marjorie Caldwell and her new husband, Roger Caldwell, were desperate for money and wanted to speed up their $8 million inheritance. Will you help us keep it this way by supporting our nonprofit newsroom with a tax-deductible donation today? The Duluth newspaper archives included thousands of mentions of her activities. "I don't have any comments about the facts of the new crime," DeSanto said Saturday. Female psychopaths are rare, occurring at half the rate of men. Marjorie Congdon Caldwell with her attorney Ronald Meshbesher. How can I tell how big my Cockapoo will be? A deposit of iron ore had been found sixty miles to the north in the Mesabi range, and Pittsburgh steel magnate Andrew Carnegie had shown an interest in it. var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; In 1951 Marjorie found herself in St. Louis, Missouri, and married Richard Dick Webster LeRoy, an insurance executive. Condgon was found smothered with a satin pillow. I wanted more people to understand why she was so special. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. No one is born a sociopath. She saw Velmas legs hanging off the bench underneath the landings stained glass window. Was it your intention, in writing this book, to correct that? She appealed, was let free on bond and, after a year of setbacks and delays, she was finally remanded to Shakopee Womens Prison in Shakopee, Minnesota. She was arrested and convicted of second-degree arson and insurance fraud. She had been smothered to death. Candance Renalls is a retired Duluth News Tribune reporter and freelance writer. People are drawn to psychopaths like moths to a flame. Sadly, Marjories mother neglected to mention Marjories psychological problems to her new husband before he married her. Partially paralyzed by a stroke for more than a decade, eighty-three-year-old Elisabeth Congdon required around the clock care. Hare, Robert D. Phd. They never suspected what was about to happen. The child shed adopted was olive skinned with straight, black hair and was so nearsighted she had to wear thick glasses. But if anyone thought Marjorie was the victim in this relationship, they had another thing coming. The Guilford Press, 1999, Hendry, Sharon Darby. Sign up for The Growler's mailing list to receive the latest news in food, drink, and culture, and special events you won't want to miss. Additionally, two other men shes been close to have died in what some have regarded as suspicious circumstances. But if anyone thought Marjorie was the victim in this relationship, they had another thing coming. Genres True Crime History Nonfiction Biography Biography Memoir 332 pages, Paperback First published November 23, 1998 Book details & editions It happened because she lacked a conscience. Make a gift of any amount today to support this resource for everyone. Caldwell served five. The cause was arson, but her presence there could not be connected to the crime, and she was not arrested. Her trustees earlier had cut Marjorie off from the Congdon millions, after the. "It was clear she was then on a path to wanting to speed up her inheritance," said DeSanto, who's a judge now and co-author of a book on the case, "Will to Murder.". 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