I’ve been on the tour a few times. A few years ago while i was on the tour we went up stairs to the attic and I saw in the corner of my eye a woman in a white lacy dress walk towards the back of the group. when i turned my head to see where she was going she wasnt there. i didnt think much of it again until we left the attic and she wasnt apart of the group. haunted or not i love this house!

Has anyone been to the fourth floor? What is it like? Do you know who resided in it?

My husband and I had an opportunity a few years ago to take a reduced cost or free tour of the mansion (I don’t remember which). The tour was being offered in conjunction with a silent auction held in the basement (again, trying to remember) to raise funds for maintenance of the mansion. We experienced nothing strange during our visit.

Glensheen is beautiful, the woodwork is craftsmanship at its best, the grounds are spacious and gorgeous. The carriage house was interesting. Overall, Glensheen is a wonderful visit to the time period of the late 1800’s.

I wish that people would be respectful of the dead and the living relatives, make sure their facts are straight, and not make up things like having s*x or relieving themselves in the areas where tours are conducted and where that type of activity would be impossible because of the constant tours.

Elisabeth is our great-grandma, and we have been to the house many times, but we don’t live in the area. We have experienced many strange things around the house including noises in the infirmery during private tours. Neither of us have even stayed in the house because the University of Minnesota inherited it before we were born. We both feel it might just be our imagination because of what happened to our family, but we both heard the noises. This stuff is really scary, especially since were related!

“Has anyone been to the fourth floor? What is it like? Do you know who resided in it?”

Glensheen has a basement, three floors, and an attic. I’m not sure what you mean by the “fourth” floor. The third floor was for the male sons in the family. In addition, married females could stay in the West Guest Bedroom with their husbands. Walter, the oldest son, and his wife did stay in his room while their house was being built. There was also an infirmary on that floor.

ya did you no there is a demon doll that makes people do bad things to there wife or husband and trys to separate them its terible dont you think?

my sister has been there

“Elisabeth is our great-grandma, and we have been to the house many times, but we don’t live in the area. We have experienced many strange things around the house including noises in the infirmery during private tours. Neither of us have even stayed in the house because the University of Minnesota inherited it before we were born. We both feel it might just be our imagination because of what happened to our family, but we both heard the noises. This stuff is really scary, especially since were related!
Comment by Jenna & Jackie Congdon | 12.25.2007 | 5:45 pm”

LIARS!! Niether one of Elizabeths duaghters had children!!! I know this because I am a close and personal friend of the Congdon’s. My Step-Mother is best friends with Elizabeth’s niece. Oh and the reason why the staff don’t mention the murders is because they have to stay in 1920’s period.

Robin, both of her daughters (Marjorie and Jennifer) had children. In fact, Marjorie had SEVEN children. I am a docent there, and we are allowed to mention the crime when it is appropriate.

People, I don’t get why you guys make up lies to put on here. It’s stupid and childish. I know i’m not the smartest person around, but i’m smart enough to decipher fact from fiction. To the lady thinking the girl with the cat portrait was a mirror. Are you mentally challenged?? Do normal people go to random places with a cat? Yeah, I didn’t think so. If you guys are going to say mean and crude things to people, get IM or e-mail. It’s much easier to comprehend. This isn’t a chat room, we’re kinda talking about the Glensheen Mansion, folks, not your pesonal lives!!

Okay, just wondering, weren’t all of Elizabeth’s children girls, or was it just Marjorie and she had all girls? Because if the girls got married they wouldn’t be Congdons anymore. So it would be impossible for decendents of Elizabeth to have the last name Congdon unless they kept their last names. (and just to make this clear, when I say decendents, I mean adoptive decendents)

Here’s the family tree:

Chester and Clara had seven children. One boy died as a toddler. That left them with three girls and three boys, but they did raise a nephew as well (who did not have the last name of Congdon). The names of the children were: Walter, Ned, Robert, Marjorie, Helen, and Elisabeth. The nephew was named Alfred Bannister.

All six of them married and had families except for Miss Elisabeth. She never married, but did want children. As a single mom, Miss Elisabeth adopted two girls (very unusual at that time–the 1930’s). She named one of the girls Marjorie (after her older sister) and one was named Jennifer.

Elisabeth’s daughter Marjorie married and had seven children. None of them have the last name of Congdon, as you said. Jennifer also married and had many children, but their last name is Johnson.

Hope this sort of helps clear things up.

Have you ever wondered why there was never any DNA testing done of the Congdon crime scene blood evidence? In the 70’s there wasn’t that type of technology of course, but with Marjorie getting aquitted of conspiracy, a person would think they would go back & re-evaluate the blood evidence to confirm killer(s) identity. I think there was an accomplice, Stephan LeRoy. He had just spent the weekend with Elizabeth was headed back to Mpls. He was in the area and would know the house well and would have alot to gain from Elizabeth’s death. Remember that Velma the nurse had BLACK hair in her hand at time of her death, Roger Caldwell doesn’t have black hair. However, Stephan LeRoy does. I heard that a police authority disclosed a few years back that they has had a box of evidence in their basement for years, which contains hair samples and blood stained clothing. I guess it was a botch job from the beginning, so to go back & do evidence testing would be too political. That is a complete shame if it’s true, it’s not fair to the families involved or the public. I’ve been to the mansion twice, I didn’t think there was anything weird. I felt the house had a very empty feeling and that whoever lived there was long gone.

i was visiting the glensheen mansion with my friends about 2 years ago. we were playing a soccer game in duluth and since we lived so far away we decided to spend the night and tghe next day go looking around the town. we stopped at the glensheen mansion. we did not go on a tour because we had no time. but we did take a picture in front of the house. after the picture was taken i looked up and saw a white figure looking down at me. it kinda looked like a woman. i was so terrified i called to one of my frineds. as soon as i looked away to call her name the figure was gone. but one of my friends did recall seeing something like that but payed no attention to it at the time. in the picture the window wasn’t involved but i wish it would have been. i do wish that someday they will solve this case and maybe hopefully put the spirits to rest.

Thanks, vgs.
Now I get it, but I was wondering something if anyone can figure this out. There were two girls who said Elisabeth was their great-grandma. they said their last name was Congdon… but vgs said that their last names weren’t Congdon, but Johnson.

Vgs, I had you as a tour guide and you were awesome, me and my family stayed behind in the basement asking questions and about the house and the Congdons past. You were very helpfull! Thanks and Keep up the good work!

P.s. To everyone who said stuff about the house and how it was creepy, no one should believe that stuff because the house is gorgeous and amazing!!! There is nothing weird going on in that house. It’s all in your minds…

Paranormal is not something new to me. But whether you believe or not believe in the mansion being haunted you gotta stop thinking about that and admire the people who built it and lived there? Can you imagine living out that far away from people and being so wealthy you could ship imports there! They had to grow and raise everything. It was a farm like existence. The lady of the house had to have been a wonderful woman with a pioneering spirit!

I was just there today it is not haunted at all! and they do not talk about the murder UNLESS you ask (as of this year)if you go on the standard tour you only tour the 1st floor or if you do the extended tour you tour ALL 5 of the floors in the summer of it gets to hot you dont tour the third floor and up (no AC)

Elisabeth did not die in her childhood room she died in Helens room so you people dont have a clue

When you first arrive at the Glensheen, I suggest you go to the carriage house where there is a shop of items for sale related to the Congdon estate. I highly reccomend buying the book “A Will To Murder” It will shed light on how totally wacky and crazy Marjorie (Elisabeth Congdon’s adopted daughter) was. It is interesting to note that upon Elisabeth Congdon’s death, Marjorie was to inherit approx. 8.5 million dollars. Anway, the book is well worth reading. Taking the tour is a bit expensive, but it gives us a chance to see how the “other half” lived. The floor to celing woodwork in the main hall is phenomenal. I have been on 2 standard tours, and ate lunch in the winter garden for mothers day. I must go back and take the expanded tour which includes everything the standard tour does, but also allows us to tour the 3rd floor and attic as well. I believe there may also be a “bedroom slippers” tour, which allows you to go behind any roped off areas. Considering the cost of these tours, it would be nice to be allowed to take pictures of the interior of the mansion. The public can take pictures of the mansion exterior and grounds, but interior pictures are strictly prohibited. Perhaps UMD (the current ownership) feels that flashbulbs would have an adverse effect on the paintings hanging in the halls. I would like further explanation of disallowing interior photographs. If you go to the Glensheen website, you can see interior photos. Why were they allowed and others are not ? There also is a link at the Glensheen website to a photograph taken outside up at a window where there appears to be a ghost like image of a woman looking out that window. To the naked eye, it looks very real. Finally, I have noticed there are a variety of mansions in Duluth that offer bed & breakfeast service. I would hope UMD would consider offering a bed & breakfeast service at Glensheen, at least on a trial basis initally. To be able to spend the night at the historic Congdon Mansion would be wonderful, an experience one would remember for a lifetime. As do many others, I love the Glensheen Estate, and the family that lived there during the first half of the 20th century, were extremley fortunate. Holidays at the mansion I am sure were marvelous.