IT’s just a mystery!
Sally Tharaldson and Virgil LaPanta went missing on 30 August 1978 in Duluth. Five years later they were found in Lake Superior 31 August 1983. The Philip R. Clark dropped its anchor and when they pulled it up, Sally Tharaldson’s car was on the end of it. It is unknown how they drove off the pier, it’s been said Sally Tharaldson would never have gone there at 2 am.
Two bodies found in a car that was pulled…
UPI Archives   ⋅  Aug. 31, 1983
Found this on a bulletin board:
The double mystery of Sally Tharaldson and Virgil LaPanta are one of Duluth’s dirtiest secrets and many people would rather it die at the bottom of Lake Superior just like they did. For those who remember or care to read this, Sally was a 44-year-old housewife with 5 children & 2 grandchildren.
Her husband was Jerry Lee Wayne Tharaldson former owner of Jerry Lee’s Truck Stop on 28th Ave West & Superior Street. The truck stop was a very popular place until it burned down in the mid-’70s. Virgil LaPanta was a 66-year-old former Longshoreman who due to an injury he sustained was not able to work any longer. He lived alone at the Seaway Hotel. Virgil was harmless, that can’t be said about Sally’s husband. Many people just thought, or were led to believe that Sally and Virgil were drunk and looking for a good time when she drove her car off the pier and into Lake Superior in 1978. For five years they were considered missing persons. Five years to the exact date that they disappeared, the steel ore ship, the Philip R Clarke dropped its six-ton anchor into Lake Superior as it was approaching the harbor berth. Guess what was attached to the anchor when they pulled it up? Yep, Sally’s car, and inside were the perfectly composed bodies of Virgil and Sally. There is tons of information that the family of Jerry Lee either doesn’t know about or would rather it not be talked about. Not just information about the incident talked about but also years and years of activities in Duluth that, how can I say, we’re not family friendly which involved Jerry Lee. I could continue on for pages and pages, but this might be too shocking or not “nice” for those who participate in this blog. This is part of Duluth’s dark past and you will see more coverage regarding this on TV in Duluth & Minneapolis plus a national podcast by a former New York City Prosecutor who is also fascinated with this case. Stay tuned.
I have been going through the interviews that are online! Â Part 2 will be out soon!
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