Strange Unsolved Mysteries from Each State
The world is a mysterious place, and the United States harbors unpleasant secrets just like anywhere else in the world.
From creepy encounters, to depressing cold cases, here are 50 of the strangest unsolved mysteries lurking in America.
Alabama: The Brasher-Dye Disappearance
In 1956, The Dye brothers, Billy Howard and Robert, disappeared along with their cousin, Dan Brasher.
The group was last seen leaving a relative’s house in the rural area of Jefferson County in 1947—several years prior to the missing persons report.
What took so long to report them missing?
Alabama: The Brasher-Dye Disappearance
The group was known to be heavy drinkers, and would spend days sleeping off a binge, and often disappeared for long periods of time without telling people.
When the missing persons report was filed, locals didn’t exactly cooperate.
Alabama: The Brasher-Dye Disappearance
Investigators were given ridiculous stories, like a bulldozer burying a car under a highway. Their questioning led them is so many different directions.
The guys were never found and the case remains unsolved.
Irlam,Cadishead,Rixton with Glazebrook old photos , Flickr
Alaska: The Investor Slayings
In 1982, a fishing boat named Investor—worth $850,000—was found burning in the waters off the coast of Craig.
The bodies of eight people were found inside—the owner, his pregnant wife, their two daughters, and four crewmen.
Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, Picryl
Alaska: The Investor Slayings
The family had been shot and left to burn.
Investigators had one suspect, but he was later acquitted due to a lack of hard evidence. The case is said to be Alaska’s biggest and most famous unsolved mystery.
U.S. Forest Service, Wikimedia Commons
Arizona: Fugitive, Robert Fisher
On April 10th, 2001, Robert William Fisher arrived at his home in Scottsdale and suddenly ended the lives of his wife and two kids and then blew up the house.
By the time emergency services arrived on scene, Fisher had fled.
United States FBI, SweetCanadianMullet, Wikimedia Commons
Arizona: Fugitive, Robert Fisher
Fisher is the only suspect in the case—and he quickly became on of the FBI’s ten most wanted fugitives.
Investigators say it is possible he took his own life as well, or perhaps he is living far away under a new identity.
There is still a substantial award for information leading to his arrest.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Flickr
Arkansas: The Mysterious Gurdon Light
Dating back to the 1930s, thousands of people have reported seeing a mysterious light that appears above the railroad tracks near Gurdon—usually in late October.
The mystery is what causes the light.
Arkansas: The Mysterious Gurdon Light
Some people believe the light is a ghostly entity, specifically the spirit of William McClain, a railroad worker whose life was tragically taken in 1931.
Arkansas: The Mysterious Gurdon Light
Others believe the light is a natural phenomenon caused by swamp gas or rock quartz underground.
This intriguing mystery was features on a TV series called Unsolved Mysteries in 1994.
Donnie Nunley, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
California: The Escape from Alcatraz
The California prison, famously known for housing famous fugitives, is also the grounds that claimed the lives of 33 inmates who attempted to escape.
But they weren’t the only inmates who attempted to flee.
Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
California: The Escape from Alcatraz
In 1962, John Anglin, Clarence Anglin, and Frank Morris decided to flee the escape-proof building by drilling holes in the wall of their cell.
Did they make it?
California: The Escape from Alcatraz
That’s where the mystery lies.
Alcatraz is situated on an island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. The inmates would have had to escape the prison walls and then flee by water.
Extensive searches did find evidence of makeshift life-vests and paddles, but the inmates were never found.
Colorado: The Haunting of Black Forest
The Lee family moved into their new home in the Black Forest area of Colorado Springs, and within a matter of weeks all sort of strange things started happening.
Flashing lights, footsteps, orchestra music, strange smells, and even ghostly encounters occurred on a regular basis.
Colorado: The Haunting of Black Forest
The strange occurrences cannot be explained.
Though one Hopi shaman, who was called for help, believes the house sits on a “rip in the space-time continuum”—where spirits can freely move between worlds.
The Lee family still lives there today.
Connecticut: The Gravesite
During Hurricane Sandy in 2012, a tree fell on New Haven Green—a 16-acre park—and it uncovered a human skull, dating back around 200 years.
Entangled in the roots were many other bones, which lead to further investigations.
The U.S. National Archives, Picryl
Connecticut: The Gravesite
As archeologists dug, they discovered more body fragments, as well as coffin nails.
It is believed that there were more than 5,000 bodies buried under the Green as bones were scattered, and skeletons appeared to be on top of one of another.
What exactly happened here?
Suzi-k, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Connecticut: The Gravesite
To this day, no one knows. A common belief is that bodies may have been wrapped in sheets and buried in shallow, unmarked graves—perhaps as a result of an epidemic.
Many theories circulate, but no one knows for sure.
Joshua Tree National Park, Flickr
Delaware: Jane Marie Prichard
In 1986, Jane Marie Prichard was working in the Blackbird State Forest, conducting botany experiments when she was shot and lost her life.
Campers stumbled across her body later and called it in.
Delaware: Jane Marie Prichard
There were apparently many hunters in the area on the day of question, but evidence from her body prove that it was not a hunter who ended her life.
To this day, we still don’t know who would have wanted Prichard unalive, and why.
Florida: The DIY Cremation
In the summer of 1951, the remains of an almost completely burned body were found in a St. Petersburg apartment.
Authorities were able to identify 67-year-old Mary Reeser by her lower leg and part of her spine that remained among the ashes.
But wait, it gets weirder.
Richard Reeser, Wikimedia Commons
Florida: The DIY Cremation
Cremation is said to require three hours of burning at 3,000 degrees.
The body was nearly entirely burned, but the rest of the apartment remained untouched, including a pile of newspapers located beside the body.
There was no evidence that the body may have been burned anywhere but that apartment.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Georgia: Unexplained Blood
In 1987, Minnie Winston discovered blood on the floor of her Atlanta home. Thinking it was from her husband, she panicked and went looking for him.
As she searched for her husband, she found more blood—everywhere.
Georgia: Unexplained Blood
Finally, Winston found her husband. Shockingly, he was fine—not a scratch on him. There were no other people in the home.
Authorities confirmed that the blood was from a human body, but they don’t know who it was from, or how it got there.
Hawaii: Lisa Au
Several decades ago, 19-year-old Lisa Au vanished without a trace. She was reported missing right away. Authorities found her car abandoned along a highway in Kailua, with no further evidence of Au.
But ten days later they found something else.
Philip Halling, Wikimedia Commons
Hawaii: Lisa Au
Ten days after the search for the young woman began, her body turned up in a local ravine—unclothed and already decomposing.
The location she was found was fairly far from where she was last seen, and witnesses reported an unsettling clue.
Hawaii: Lisa Au
According to witness reports, the young woman’s vehicle was seen pulled over—in the exact spot it was abandoned—by a vehicle with flashing blue lights.
Apparently, this had been a common occurrence in the area, specifically with women.
Hawaii: Lisa Au
It was clear to authorities that her life was taken from her at the hands of another, but they could never find out who.
It is assumed that an individual posing as an officer was to blame for her demise, but to this day, the case remains cold.
Idaho: Unexplained Mutilations
Since the 1970s, the towns of Jerome and Bliss have experienced bizarre mutilations among humans, cattle and deer.
Without getting too graphic, these mutilations included removing genitals, draining the bodies of blood, and dismembering.
Nilfanion, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Idaho: Unexplained Mutilations
The problem here is that there has never been any evidence left at the scene. No footprints, no tools or materials—nothing.
Law enforcement officially blames it on “cult rituals”, but that is simply speculation.
Illinois: The Gassing of Mattoon
Back in the 1940s, authorities received more than two dozen cases of “gassings”, where victims reported paralysis, coughing, nausea and vomiting.
Illinois: The Gassing of Mattoon
Shortly before the onslaught of symptoms, victims said they smelled a strange odor in their homes. However, no evidence was ever found.
The gas caused a temporary illness, but the victims all survived.
What was this gas, and who did this?
Illinois: The Gassing of Mattoon
There are many theories as to what went on during this period. Many believe it was a perpetrator they refer to as “The Mad Gasser”.
Others believe they were “attacks of mass hysteria”, or possibly the result of paranormal activity. To this day, we have no truth.
Indiana: The Pyro Poltergeist
In 1941, a farmer in Odon enjoyed breakfast with his family and then went outside to begin his chores. He suddenly noticed large flames spewing from an upstairs bedroom.
The family instantly evacuated, and the fire department were on scene within minutes—just in time for things to start getting weird.
Indiana: The Pyro Poltergeist
Upon arrival, the fire was localized to the one bedroom only.
But as soon as the fire was put out, another one spontaneously started in another bedroom. As soon as that one was put out, another fire started in another room of the home.
Indiana: The Pyro Poltergeist
The spontaneous fires only appeared when another was distinguished. There were 28 separate fires within the home during this time.
Emergency services were completely baffled. There was nothing to explain what could have been happening.
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Picryl
Indiana: The Pyro Poltergeist
The farmer believed the house was haunted, as there were no other possible explanations. So he tore down the house and built a new one on a different part of his property.
The cause of the fires has never been determined.
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration,
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
In 2013, a twelve-year-old boy caught a sudden illness, that seemingly happened over night. Upon recovery, something inside him changed, drastically.
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
Landon Jones was completely fine until he got sick. He was a typical, average pre-teen boy. One evening he had devoured pizza and ice cream, and later went to bed as usual.
But something happened in the middle of the night that doctors cannot explain.
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
Jones woke up in the morning, suddenly having lost his appetite, being dizzy and his chest was clogged with phlegm.
Doctors diagnosed him with a bacterial lung infection that was quickly cleared. But not all of his symptoms went away.
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
Since the illness, Jones has never regained a feeling of hunger or thirst. He quite literally never feels hungry or thirsty, and, well, eating when you’re not hungry can be extremely challenging.
The boy has lost an incredible amount of weight, and struggles every day to nourish himself.
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
The family has been seeking medical opinions from all over the country and is still looking for answers, as the boy deteriorates in front of their eyes.
Medical professionals cannot pinpoint what is going on inside his body. Soon he will require a G-tube.
Iowa: The Medical Mystery
In addition to not eating, he no longer runs and plays, he quit all sports teams and lays on the couch after school. He doesn’t even have an interest in junk food or candy.
To this day, Landon Jones struggles immensely to nourish himself, and doctors cannot figure out why.
Kansas: Randy Leach
Back in 1988, teenager Randy Leach disappeared from a high school party and has never been found.
This may sound like an accidental situation among teens, or perhaps a runaway, but the circumstances surrounding his disappearance are actually quite unsettling.
Kansas: Randy Leach
During this time, there had been rumors circulating that “satanic cult activity” had been going on in the county only days before Leach’s disappearance.
In fact, even the party site had been meticulously cleaned before investigators arrived.
Kansas: Randy Leach
Not only was the site cleaned, but soon after the first wave of investigations, the entire party site had been burned to the ground.
If that isn’t sketchy enough, it gets worse.
Kansas: Randy Leach
Given that this was a high school party, authorities turned to the local high school students for answers.
And shortly after questioning began, the body count started to rise. Anyone who cooperated, lost their life.
Kansas: Randy Leach
As soon as authorities discovered the link between the Randy Leach case and the added body count, they halted all questioning and have declined to pursue further leads.
cottonbro studio, Pexels
Kentucky: Raining Meat
In 1876, a group of people reported meat falling from the sky over a farm in Kentucky. To be specific, the meat came down in chunks and appeared to be raw animal meat.
It was a quick shower, but enough to cause attention.
State Library of Queensland, Picryl
Kentucky: Raining Meat
The only explanation that has ever seemed plausible is that the meat was the prey of vultures, who had possibly gorged themselves and then vomited while flying.
Even then, the amount of meat that fell from the sky is more than what one would expect to come from bird vomit—but as usual, it remains a mystery.
Louisiana: Marie Laveau
Marie Laveau was a woman living in New Orleans, back in the 19th century, who practiced voodoo.
This may sound silly to some, but many people back then truly believed this woman had powers, and requested her help on many occasions.
George Catlin, Wikimedia Commons
Louisiana: Marie Laveau
Laveau would regularly perform spiritual ceremonies that had apparently made people possessed. But she could also heal the sick.
She created charms and potions for people upon request. Although many people believed she was a quack, her stories have been passed on for generations of other voodoo practitioners.
E. W. Kemble, Wikimedia Commons
Maine: Sarah Ware
Way back in 1898, the body of 52-year-old Sarah Ware was discovered in a wooded area of Bucksport. She had been brutally beaten.
Ware was missing for two weeks before her body was located—along with something else.
Maine: Sarah Ware
After finding her body, authorities found a blood-stained hammer belonging to her neighbor—who they assumed was the perpetrator.
The neighbor was apprehended, and witnesses came forward stating that he had paid them to move the body—but then suddenly the case went sideways.
Maine: Sarah Ware
The hammer had gone missing, and the witnesses all recanted their statements. The neighbor was acquitted of all charges and set free.
But it doesn’t stop there.
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Picryl
Maine: Sarah Ware
Upon initial discovery of Ware’s body, her head was so brutally bashed that when they went to pick up the body, her head fell off.
During the investigation, which took years, her body had been exhumed numerous times. In the end, authorities decided to keep the head as evidence for future trial.
Maine: Sarah Ware
Her head—which became a skull after decomposing—remained in evidence at the Ellsworth Courthouse until 1982, when clerks discovered it and started a petition to have it buried.
A century later, her skull was laid to rest, in a completely separate grave than the rest of her body.
Maryland: The House of Horrors
In more recent year, 2017 to be exact, a house fire in Bethesda lead to several very disturbing finds. First, a body was found in the basement.
Maryland: The House of Horrors
The body belonged to Askia Khafra. Unfortunately, the body was badly burned and it was difficult to tell the exact cause of his demise.
But further investigations lead to some haunting answers.
Maryland: The House of Horrors
Investigators discovered hand-dug tunnels starting from the basement and leading out to the street—large enough for people to easily crawl through.
Maryland: The House of Horrors
The home owner, Daniel Beckwitt, was charged in relation to Khafra’s demise, assuming he hired the guy to dig the tunnels for him.
But the reason for the tunnels was never disclosed.
Massachusetts: The Black Flash
Between 1939 and 1945, residents of Provincetown were “terrorized” by a being they called the “Black Flash”—a shadowy figure described as tall, dressed in black, and growled ominously.
Massachusetts: The Black Flash
The creepy figure first appeared to a group of children, who all reported seeing the exact same thing. Then, in 1945, a group of officers reported seeing the same thing leap over a 10-foot fence.
The intriguing part is that numerous people were questioned separately and all had the exact same description and story.
Massachusetts: The Black Flash
Townspeople finally believed the terrifying tale, and decided to pay more attention. A month after the officers had seen the figure, another man came across it in his home.
He threw a pot of boiling water at it, to see if it was actually real.
Massachusetts: The Black Flash
Sure enough, the figure apparently let out an ear-piercing scream and ran off into the dark outdoors. Since then, there have not been any more reports of this “Black Flash” reappearing.
Sam Pearce-Warrilow, man running on the street in dark.
Michigan: The Paulding Light
In 1966, a group of teenagers reported seeing a mysterious light above the valley in Paulding. Many theories circulated as to the cause, including: paranormal activity, swamp gas, and headlights.
Since then, the light has been reported by others as well, but continues to remain a mystery.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
In December of 1980, 19-year-old Jean Hillard’s car went off the road during a snowstorm. She abandoned the vehicle and tried to walk for help, but didn’t make it very far considering the extreme low temperatures.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
The following morning, a local cattle rancher discovered her body—"frozen solid as a log”, according to Thirteen Towns newspaper.
Assuming she had passed, her body was taken to a nearby hospital to prepare for thawing.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
Doctors report they were not hopeful upon her arrival. They had assumed she already passed, but decided to warm her up anyway.
By mid-morning, Hilliard’s body started to spasm as she miraculously woke up.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
By noon, Hilliard was talking coherently. In only a matter of hours she went from a block of ice to a scared teenager worried about her dad finding his car in a ditch.
She was able to recount most of the details from that night.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
Hilliard reports that her vehicle had gone off the road and she knew she had a friend just up the road, so she decided to walk, but it ended up being much farther than she expected.
At some point she blacked out, but still ended up crawling the rest of the way to the house’s front porch, where her body eventually froze with her eyes wide open.
Minnesota: The Frozen Survivor
Considering her body was completely frozen, her heart slowed but did not stop. And miraculously, Hilliard did not suffer any damage to her body.
In most cases, body parts would need to be amputated due to frost bite—but this was not the case for Hilliard—and she made national news because of it.
Mississippi: Home Invasions
In 1942, Pascagoula experienced a series of peculiar home invasions.
According to Southern Living, “The intruder took locks of hair from each of the people whose homes he broke into.”
Mississippi: Home Invasions
Investigations pointed to one suspect, who was eventually let go after passing a lie-detector test. Since then, there were no other leads and locals now refer to the perpetrator as the “Phantom Barber.”
Missouri: Robert Rayford
Back in 1969, 16-year-old Robert Rayford became very sick with extreme, unintended weight-loss and a whole bunch of infections throughout his body.
Sadly, doctors could not figure out the cause of his illness, and he passed. But the story doesn’t end there.
Missouri: Robert Rayford
A decade later, the HIV virus was discovered in America. The family pushed for testing, and sure enough, Rayford’s blood tested positive for the virus.
Somehow, Rayford, who had never left the country, never received a blood transfusion, and was not intimately active, had passed of AIDS a whopping ten years before it was even discovered.
Montana: The Vortex
Not far from Glacier National Park lies a “portal” in which the laws of nature don’t apply.
A gravitational pull forces trees to grow sideways and makes people appear as though they are six inches shorter.
Montana: The Vortex
A small shack built within this Vortex area—called The House of Mystery—is home to another bizarre phenomenon, where a marble rolled on an incline will travel upward, and a rope hanging from the ceiling falls in a curve.
Lost_in_the_Midwest, Shutterstock
Nebraska: The Lucky 15
Back in March of 1950, fifteen members of a Beatrice’s West Side Baptist Church were scheduled to meet for choir practice.
Strangely, none of them arrived on time.
Nebraska: The Lucky 15
Of all 15 members, most of them were well known for their timeliness, so the fact that all of them were late was odd.
They did all have different reasons for their tardiness—but perhaps a higher power intervened, and for good reason.
Nebraska: The Lucky 15
Shortly before they all arrived, the Church went up in flames from a gas leak. The entire building was destroyed within minutes.
If you didn’t believe in Divine Intervention before, you might now.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
This one is probably one of the most well-known mysteries of Nevada.
In 1996, hip-hop star Tupac Shakur was the victim of a drive-by attack. He succumbed to his injuries almost a week later.
Columbia, Poetic Justice (1993)
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
Two-years prior to this, Shakur was shot five times during a robbery, but survived. Producer Sean Combs and rapper Notorious B.I.G. were suspected of setting him up.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
When Shakur was fatally shot in 1996, a witness—who was in the same car as Shakur when it happened—met the same fate only two months later.
Authorities suspected Notorious B.I.G. was somehow connected.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
But then of course, a few months later, Notorious B.I.G. was also shot and lost his life. It is still widely believed that the two celebrity fatalities are connected.
But then another suspect surfaced.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
A year after Shakur’s demise, Orlando Anderson, an LA group member, filed a lawsuit against Shakur’s estate for damages in a brawl that happened before he passed.
Shakur’s mother retaliates and alleges that Orlando is responsible for Shakur’s demise.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
The following spring, Orlando is shot in a group-related incident and passes.
The case went cold for quite some time, until a book release in 2019 divulged further detail.
Nevada: Tupac Shakur
In 2023, the author of the book, Duane Keith Davis (Keffe D), who was one of two living eye-witnesses to Shakur’s demise, was apprehended and his home was searched.
According to new reports, Davis was charged in relation to Shakur’s passing. Although there is recent closure, many Tupac fans remain skeptical.
Columbia, Poetic Justice (1993)
New Hampshire: Rachel Garden
In 1980, a fifteen-year-old girl named Rachel Garden bough a pack of smokes at a market in Newton and was never seen again.
She was seen talking to three-men at the market, but all of those men were located and questioned and none of them were considered suspects in her disappearance.
New Hampshire: Rachel Garden
Garden told her family she was spending the night with a friend, but the friend denied having plans with her. It is possible that she ran away, but her parents strongly opposed that theory.
She was never found, and the case remains cold.
New Jersey: The Sniper
In 1927, Camden experienced a terrifying and strange event. Suddenly, bus and car windows were shattered, and an officer was struck. People ran for their lives in fear of this unexpected attack.
But that isn’t the strange part.
National Museum of Denmark, Picryl
New Jersey: The Sniper
No bullets or casings were ever found, and no one ever saw the actual sniper. One witness reported heading a man’s laughter, but no one else heard or saw a thing.
To this day, no one knows what happened.
New Mexico: Roswell
In 1947, a Roswell rancher found mysterious debris in his sheep pasture.
The Air Force first claimed that the debris belonged to a crashed weather balloon, though most people didn’t believe that story.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram Photograph Collection, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
New Mexico: Roswell
The residents of Roswell suspected it came from a UFO, but the forces continued to deny that to be true. Fifty years later, they revealed it actually belonged to a secret atomic project.
To this day, residents are skeptical, especially since the government changed their story on more than one account.
New York: The Leatherman
During the late 1800s, a “leather-clad hermit” roamed the streets of Westchester and Putnam Counties. He apparently never spoke, and did not appear to be looking for work (which was most typical of wanderers back then).
New York Public Library, Picryl
New York: The Leatherman
Many attempts were apparently made to find out who this man was. Locals offered him free meals, and returned every year on the same date to the same homes for his free meal.
James F. Rodgers, Wikimedia Commons
New York: The Leatherman
In 1889, his body was found in one the caves he often slept in. But to this day, no one was able to identify who this man was or why he spent his life wandering around New York.
He is now known as “The Leatherman”.
North Carolina: The Shadow
In Cashiers, there is a naturally occurring phenomenon that keeps people talking.
During certain times of the year, and on sunny days only, the shadow of a bear is seen in the North Carolina Mountains—though the landscape doesn’t hold a similar shape.
North Dakota: Eugene Butler
In 1915, in small town Niagara, six bodies were found in a small crawl space. Their lives were taken in tragically graphic ways.
They were found in the basement of reclusive resident Eugene Butler.
North Dakota: Eugene Butler
The victims were not known residents of the area, and their identities remain a mystery to this day. Eugene Butler was committed to a mental hospital and passed in 1911.
North Dakota State Library, Wikimedia Commons
Ohio: The Mysterious Letters
In 1976, residents of Circleville started receiving random letters, that taunted and threatened them with person details about their lives.
One of the residents then lost their life, and things went in a different direction.
Ohio: The Mysterious Letters
Soon after the first resident lost their life, another resident almost suffered the same fate. Authorities then apprehended a suspect named Paul Freshour.
But that wasn’t the end.
Raymond Wambsgans, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Ohio: The Mysterious Letters
While Freshour was locked up, the letters continued, and he was later released.
Residents of Circleville were terrified, and Unsolved Mysteries aired a segment on the ordeal—which had its own consequences.
Ohio: The Mysterious Letters
Shortly after Unsolved Mysteries aired the episode about the Circleville letters, they received their own letter.
It read: “Forget Circleville, Ohio…if you come to Ohio, you el sickos will pay. The Circleville Writer.”
To this day, the writer is unknown.
Oklahoma: The Jamison Family
In 2014, young couple, Bobby and Sherilynn Jamison, took their daughter and family dog and drove out to look at a property in Red Oak that they were interested in buying.
But they never returned.
ORION PRODUCTION, Shutterstock
Oklahoma: The Jamison Family
Days later, their truck was discovered, along with their dog, wallets, phones, and $32,000 in cash. And a month later, hunters found their remains, along with their daughter’s, in a wooded area nearby.
No cause of death could be determined. Theories include the witness protection program and the family’s involvement with cults and/or witchcraft.
Oregon: Forest Grove
In 2016, the small, quiet town of Forest Grove was terrified with reports of “otherworldly shrieking” that “seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.”
Some people were able to record the sounds as proof, but no explanation has ever been given.
Andrii Iemelianenko, Shutterstock
Pennsylvania: The Boy in a Box
In 1957, a young boy’s body was discovered in a cardboard box in a wooded area just outside Philadelphia.
Sadly, no one came looking for the boy, and authorities were unable to identify him. A psychic brought officers to a foster home, but the leads ended there.
Dwkaminski, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Rhode Island: Adam Emery
In 1993, one of America’s most wanted criminals—Adam Emery—disappeared just hours after being convicted of ending the life of 20-year-old Jason Bass in a road rage incident.
Authorities found Emery’s abandoned car on Newport Bridge. But it doesn’t end there.
Eric Harrison, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Rhode Island: Adam Emery
Less than a year later, Emery’s wife’s remains were found in Narragansett Bay.
Some believe that the two jumped to their demise from that bridge after the road rage incident changed their lives. But since Emery’s body was never found, he is still on the most wanted list.
South Carolina: The Lizard Man
In 1988, Browntown residents reported seeing a seven-foot-tall creature with red eyes and having incredible, superhuman strength.
This creature is now referred to as, “The Lizard Man.”
Evgeny Drablenkov, Shutterstock
South Carolina: The Lizard Man
The first incident involved the creature mauling a car with people in it. And although there have been many sightings of it since, even as recently as 2015, the identification of this creature remains a mystery.
South Dakota: Tom Keuter
In 1994, a woman named Tina Marcotte called her friend to inform them that she had a flat tire and would be late, but that her coworker, Tom Kueter, was going to help her out.
Marcotte was never seen again. Kueter was questioned, but denied any involvement. Then it got worse.
South Dakota: Tom Keuter
The very next day, Kueter’s body was found—he had been run over by his own forklift.
Authorities could not determine what had happened to him, or where Tina Marcotte had gone. Was she alive? The case remains cold.
Tennessee: The Craigmiles Mausoleum
In 1871, seven-year-old Nina Craigmiles tragically lost her life when the buggy she was riding in was hit by a train.
The family built a mausoleum made of white Italian marble for her, and future members of the family.
Tennessee: The Craigmiles Mausoleum
Shortly after the little girl was placed there, red streaks started to appear in the white marble. Nothing could clean or erase them.
Each time family member’s bodies were places in the mausoleum, the red streaks would appear. Some believe the red stains are Nina’s tears.
Texas: Amber Hagerman
Amber Hagerman, a nine-year-old girl from Texas, was kidnapped while riding her bike in January of 1996.
A witness quickly told officers he’d seen her being forced into a black van.
Texas: Amber Hagerman
A massive search was unsuccessful and Amber’s body was found five days later about four miles from where she was taken.
No one was ever held responsible for her tragic demise, but her abduction led to the invention of the “Amber Alert”.
AlvaradoSarah, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Utah: Jean Baptiste
In the 1800s, Jean Baptist was a notorious grave robber who was banished to a remote island in Great Salt Lake (the equivalent of solitary confinement).
But within three weeks, he was gone.
Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, Picryl
Utah: Jean Baptiste
There is little evidence to prove anything in this case. It is believed that Baptiste might have built a raft in order to escape, but nothing has ever been found.
He was never seen or heard from again.
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Vermont: The Bennington Triangle
Similar to the Bermuda Triangle, the Bennington Triangle is an area surrounding Glastenbury Mountain where several people have apparently disappeared without a trace.
The missing people include: a trail guide who vanished while leading a hunting party, a man who vanished from a bus while traveling the area, and many more.
Vermont: The Bennington Triangle
None of the bodies of the missing persons have ever been located, nor has any evidence of foul play. Authorities believed a serial slayer may have been to blame, but others believe it is caused by paranormal forces.
Virginia: The Old House Woods
In small town Diggs, there’s an old house in the woods called “Old House Woods” where soldiers and pirates used to use for hiding.
It has since become a hotspot for paranormal activity, including ghost sightings and unprompted horse spooking.
Washington: Jason Padgett
In 2002, Jason Padgett, an average man working in furniture sales (and a self-described “partier”) was attacked by two men outside a bar, leaving him with a severe concussion.
When he woke up, he noticed something extremely different about himself.
Washington: Jason Padgett
Upon recovery, it was determined that Padgett acquired the ability to “visualize complex mathematical objects and physics concepts intuitively,” according to Live Science.
He is now one of 15 cases of the “acquired savant syndrome”, where people develop certain abilities after suffering a head injury.
West Virginia: Danny Casolaro
In 1991, Danny Casolaro, a freelance writer, went to Martinsburg to meet with a source about a secret story he was writing, nicknamed “Octopus”.
The story involved high-ranking government officials and an international cabal. I think you can guess where this is going.
West Virginia: Danny Casolaro
Casolaro’s body was found in his hotel room not long after his arrival. Given the circumstances surrounding his demise, authorities quickly claimed he took his own life—but many people believe the opposite to be true.
Wisconsin: The Bunkbed
In 1987, a seemingly normal family brought a second-hand bunkbed into their home in Horicon. And for the next nine months, they were haunted by what they believe were poltergeists.
Wisconsin: The Bunkbed
The family experienced numerous hauntings, including clock radios turning on by themselves, blankets being thrown off the bed, and a paint brush that dipped itself in paint.
It got worse—the kids got suddenly sick, and there was an unexplained fire in the bedroom.
Wisconsin: The Bunkbed
The family finally had enough and took the bed outside and destroyed it. There has not been a single incident within the family home since then.
Wyoming: Devil’s Tower
The Devil’s Tower National Monument continues to confuse scientists today.
It is known as a sacred site for various Native American tribes, and many have their own originating stories of the massive stone structure.
Geologically speaking, the structure is connected to a previously-existing volcano, but exactly how it came to exist is a mystery to many.
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