MA MA - Dr. Margaret 'Peg' Kilcoyne, 50, Nantucket, 26 Jan 1980

[Ten-96]

Are you thinking more along the lines of Bi-polar possibly?
Are there places on the island where she could have hid out for a day or two without being found?
I'm still leaning more toward hiding out, staging a fake suicide by placing her belongings in an area they would be found, and then simply leaving without being noticed.

Yes, certainly. Many, many of the homes on the island are vacant in the winter. It's possible she could have hid in one briefly.

Although the investigators didn't seem to think much of it I am quite concerned about the blood evidence found on the wall, baseboard and floor of her bedroom and in the bathroom lav and tub.

I don't like Leo's trying to convince folks she was depressed and suicidal, nor do I like his apparent rush to have her declared dead.

Additionally, about the rock where Margaret's belongings were found: it was indicated several times in both articles that "the area" was searched, but nowhere did I see anyone say that they saw that rock and there was nothing on it. The scrub oak ( I believe that's what it's called) is extremely dense around Tom Nevers. One could be 2 feet away from something and never see it. Which is to say: "the area" is meaningless in this context.

I don't think her apparent mania drove her to disappear into the ocean or anywhere else, although it's certainly possible. It appears to me Margaret's ego was such that she would have stuck around to receive all the accolades she was convinced were due her.

This is all JMO. I don't know, and I doubt we ever will.

 

[Alleykins]

Yes, certainly. Many, many of the homes on the island are vacant in the winter. It's possible she could have hid in one briefly. Although the investigators didn't seem to think much of it I am quite concerned about the blood evidence found on the wall, baseboard and floor of her bedroom and in the bathroom lav and tub.
I don't like Leo's trying to convince folks she was depressed and suicidal, nor do I like his apparent rush to have her declared dead.

Additionally, about the rock where Margaret's belongings were found: it was indicated several times in both articles that "the area" was searched, but nowhere did I see anyone say that they saw that rock and there was nothing on it. The scrub oak ( I believe that's what it's called) is extremely dense around Tom Nevers. One could be 2 feet away from something and never see it. Which is to say: "the area" is meaningless in this context.

I don't think her apparent mania drove her to disappear into the ocean or anywhere else, although it's certainly possible. It appears to me Margaret's ego was such that she would have stuck around to receive all the accolades she was convinced were due her.

This is all JMO. I don't know, and I doubt we ever will.

Thanks for the info on the area.
I must have missed the information on blood evidence being found.
Is that in one of the links posted in this thread, by chance?

 

[Ten-96]

Yes, it's in the N magazine article linked in the first post. Very comprehensive article! I'd gladly relink it but I'm on a tablet. Do read it, though!

 

[Alleykins]

Yes, it's in the N magazine article linked in the first post. Very comprehensive article! I'd gladly relink it but I'm on a tablet. Do read it, though!

I confess, I skimmed through it, but will go back and pay closer attention this time. Thank you!

 

[Rayemonde]

the police dog was drawn to a wall in Kilcoyne’s bedroom, at one point even scratching and biting at the wall. Robbins then conducted a series of chemical tests using sodium chloride irrigation solution, as well as luminol solution, in an effort to detect the presence of human blood – remember, this was well before the days of DNA evidence. But not only did the wall that got K9 Zeus’ attention show positive results for the presence of blood, but so did the baseboard and floor below the wall, as well as the bathtub and bathroom sinks.

Robbins reported his findings to Nantucket police and Bob Mooney, but it appears the new information did not lead them to believe Kilcoyne was the victim of foul play. “Due to the sensitivity of the testing reagents and the fact that no large masses of blood stains were found, it would appear, and it is the opinion of this officer, that each stain and/or positive reaction could have been produced under perfectly normal circumstances”

http://www.n-magazine.com/cold-case/

 

[Rayemonde]

I don't think her apparent mania drove her to disappear into the ocean or anywhere else, although it's certainly possible. It appears to me Margaret's ego was such that she would have stuck around to receive all the accolades she was convinced were due her.

This is all JMO. I don't know, and I doubt we ever will.

If she was manic, she may not have intended to commit suicide, but she may have become psychotic and done something in that state that led to her death. Sometimes manic people will jump off buildings because they believe they can fly, for example. Maybe she heard God telling her to go into the water, or something like that.

 

[dotr]

Columbia Daily Spectator, Volume CIV, Number 75, 14 February 1980


http://spectatorarchive.library.col...9800214-01.2.5&e=-------en-20--1--txt-IN-----
Missing prof's stability debated
By ESTHER PESSIN

Conflicting statements from close associates of Dr. Margaret Kilcoyne, assistant professor of medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons (P&S), have deepened the mystery of her 18-day disappearance. Kilcoyne vanished from her Nantucket vacation home on January 26. The Nantucket police department has established suicide as the primary theory in the disappearance. Citing Kilcoyne's mental health at the time of her disappearance, George Rezendes, the investigating officer, said that

although police have not ruled out the possibility of an accidental death, he believes it a suicide. Kilcoyne's brother, Dr. Leo Kilcoyne, and a colleague at P&S who wished to remain anonymous, both cast doubts on her mental stability. According to Rezendes, Leo Kilcoyne was "concerned about her well being and mental health." At the time of her disappearance, Kilcoyne had been on the verge of a breakthrough in a study of adolescent hypertension which she thought would bring her' a Nobel Prize. "The woman was on a high," Rezendes added, "and had been making some strange
phone calls." Her colleague indicated that Kilcoyne had "some emotional disturbance." She "overratedher work" considerably, he added, and would not have received the Nobel Prize that she "was convinced she would win." Other associates, including Dr. Thomas Morris, acting chairman of the Department of Medicine, Dr. Carl Steeg, associate professor of clinical pediatrics, and Dr. Samuel Ritter, a pediatric cardiology fellow ," dismissed these contentions out of hand> "At no time did I doubt her mental stability," Ritter said. "I only knew her casually, but she was the most stable kind of person," he added. Ritter and Kilcoyne were researching "substances that control and regulate blood pressure and seem to have something to do with hypertension." Ritter refused to specify further.

rbbm.

 

[Ten-96]

If she was manic, she may not have intended to commit suicide, but she may have become psychotic and done something in that state that led to her death. Sometimes manic people will jump off buildings because they believe they can fly, for example. Maybe she heard God telling her to go into the water, or something like that.

Maybe! It happens, sadly.

 

[dotr]

Researcher Vanishes Hoax Suspected.

March 16, 1980
By Micheal Knight


http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1980/03/16/page/58/article/researcher-vanishes-hoax-suspected

 

[Alleykins]

Does anyone else think her brother was up to something?
The more I read, the more I see his behavior as odd as hers was purported to be.

 

[dotr]

Article followup. 1981
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1981/02/16/page/16/article/followup

" I think she is alive, I have felt that way all along " said Nantucket Police Chief Paul Hunter still troubled by stories of an apparent look-alike reported along remote Maine highways

 

[Ten-96]

How interesting about a look alike spotted on remote Maine highways! That's certainly bizarre. I'd love to know what highways.

Alleykins, I do think it's possible her brother had a hand in her disappearance. The investigators were quick to rule out homicide, but don't state why. I'm not ruling it out. But, what's a motive? The brother was described as a "successful businessman," IIRC, so her assets were likely peanuts to him. (Although as I mentioned earlier, he didn't waste any time trying to get his hands on them.) Some kind of familial honor thing, as it may have been becoming increasingly clear that she was losing her marbles? But! She was about to achieve some degree of professional recognition, which it would seem would have been more of a benefit to the family name than mental illness would have been a detriment. Maybe.

 

[Alleykins]

I hope it is okay to post this link here, as it references a few very old Globe articles from archives.
It gets more and more interesting, for sure
http://www.officialcoldcaseinvestig...-Margaret-M-Kilcoyne-7-25-1980-Nantucket-Mass

 

[Moreack]

This is a strange case. I remember hearing years and years ago that her brother left nantucket on the ferry soon after her disappearance, in his car, with a rolled up rug from her house, in the trunk.

 

[Alleykins]

This is a strange case. I remember hearing years and years ago that her brother left nantucket on the ferry soon after her disappearance, in his car, with a rolled up rug from her house, in the trunk.

Is that local lore or something that can be verified, by chance?

 

[Alleykins]

How interesting about a look alike spotted on remote Maine highways! That's certainly bizarre. I'd love to know what highways.

Alleykins, I do think it's possible her brother had a hand in her disappearance. The investigators were quick to rule out homicide, but don't state why. I'm not ruling it out. But, what's a motive? The brother was described as a "successful businessman," IIRC, so her assets were likely peanuts to him. (Although as I mentioned earlier, he didn't waste any time trying to get his hands on them.) Some kind of familial honor thing, as it may have been becoming increasingly clear that she was losing her marbles? But! She was about to achieve some degree of professional recognition, which it would seem would have been more of a benefit to the family name than mental illness would have been a detriment. Maybe.

I'd love to know which highways in Maine, too, because she looks familiar to me.
I would have been a teen when she went missing, so it's doubtful I've ever seen her, but she still looks familiar somehow.

 

[fred&edna]

Intriguing case.

I wonder a new forensic investigation of the home (assuming the current owner would allow it) would be of any value?

Really strange is/was the finding of her belongings (sandals, bank book, wallet, etc) in an area already searched. And, included with these items was a handwritten receipt for a $300 necklace purchased in Florence, Italy. I haven't found any additional information about this and maybe it's not important (I dunno?). Does it make sense to keep such a receipt for 3 months? In case it broke? Tax or bookkeeping purposes?

 

[liz b.]

Columbia Daily Spectator, Volume CIV, Number 75, 14 February 1980


http://spectatorarchive.library.col...9800214-01.2.5&e=-------en-20--1--txt-IN-----
Missing prof's stability debated
By ESTHER PESSIN

rbbm.

Wonder what the "strange phone calls " actually were ? I also wonder why she called Leo, and asked him to come to Nantucket. In this article Leo is called " Dr. Leo Kilcoyne", and he has also been described as an executive with IBM... I must say, her research sounds interesting...jmo

 

[liz b.]

They found sandals ? Who would supposedly go outside in the winter in New England wearing sandals ?

 

[Alleykins]

Does anyone know if Dr. Kilcoyne has DNA or dentals somewhere?
I'm not finding her in NamUs (if she's there, link please!) and DN doesn't list any biometrics.