County of home: St. Charles County
Location: 3rd & Jefferson, St. Charles
Marker sponsor: R-G-H Real Estate & Department of the Interior
His Find-A-Grave Listing
"In the shadow of the old St. Charles County Courthouse is an even older house. A brick dwelling
"built in 1869 with a decorative cornice that gives it character, but it's the ghostly characters inside that people tend to talk about.
"I was warned about the office," Linda Hertelendy says. She's worked for SSM Health for several years, however when she became the VP of Care Coordination for SSM Health she moved into the Dr. John H. Stumberg Home.
"I heard lots of stories of people being here and feeling a presence of what they call a little girl and an older woman," she goes on to say.
"A woman many assume is Helen, the daughter of Dr. Stumberg. Linda was skeptical, but before she had really settled in she had her own stories to share.
"I would be sitting at my desk and I would feel like there was maybe something tickling my feet or the back of my neck and I remember talking to somebody who had a lot of experiences at this office and they said oh that's the little girl."
"It was the first of many hard to explain experiences she tried to make excuses for.
"One night I was here working and it was late and I had all of the lights off except my office and I was sitting there and all of a sudden I saw a shadow on the wall I was like ok that's probably lightning because it was lightning outside. Shortly after that my radio went off I said eh my radio is probably set on a timer, that's okay no problem. And all of a sudden I felt something across my cheek."
"That was her cue to leave, but the strangest thing appeared when she got home.
"When I got home and looked in the mirror I had a true scratch all the way down and it was a scratch that was there for a week."
"Jeff Clobes has also spent a lot of time in the office.
"I always felt like I was being watched for lack of a better description," he says.
"He isn't afraid to say he'd rather not do business here.
"I tried to avoid it and when I had to come over and get files or what have you it was a quick in and it was a quick out."
"Michael Henry on the other hand is the man behind St. Charles Ghost Tours. He's even written a book on the subject, but this is the first time he's been in the Stumberg Home so he didn't come empty handed.
"It's my quick and dirty box of tools," he says pulling a few things out.
"He brought his spirit bell that rang when no one was around it and a pendulum board.
"Put your elbow on the table and hold the pendulum so it's just above the board," Henry instructs me.
"So is Helen here?" I ask and the pendulum slowly starts to swing to yes.
"I think I'm done with this,"
"Luckily I can be it's not my office." ~ KSDK, Channel 5, by Heidi Glaus, October 31, 2017