CA CA - Merrianna Virginia Royce, 8, Humboldt/Del Norte County, 16 July 1985

[victoriarobinson642]

Merrianna Virginia McFarland Royce (1979-1988) -...

Born on 19 Sep 1979. Died on 4 Apr 1988. Cremated.

www.findagrave.com

NAMUS:

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

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Missing Age - 8 Years
Current Age - 44 Years
First Name - Merrianne
Middle Name - Virginia
Last Name - Royce
Sex - Female
Height - 3' 6" - 3' 8" (42 - 44 Inches)
Weight - 75 - 80 lbs
Race / Ethnicity - White / Caucasian
Date of Last Contact - April 3, 1988
Hair Color - Blond/Strawberry
Eye Color - Brown
Circumstances of Disappearance - Merrianne was reported missing at the same time as her mother Marilyn Royce. Their American Eagle station wagon was found abandoned on Fish Lake Rd on 4/16/1988, in Humboldt County. A note indicated they would return for the vehicle soon. The vehicle appeared to have possibly gotten stuck in the snow. On 07/11/1988, the remains of Marilyn were found in the Bluff Creek drainage of Onion Mt. in Del Norte County. Merriane remained missing despite extensive searches in the area.
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[sonz82]

She was so cute! I hope one day they find her.
Fyi The information is wrong in the title.

 

[Mysteries1974]

She was added to for network today. I also viewed her information on ancestry and noted the brief news article about them being missing. I tried doing a search on newspapers spelling the names differently based on the info online and from that news article but came up with nothing. I wish we had more answers about Marilyn’s death such as the exact cause and whether it was deemed a homicide or not.

If both were killed, it’s quite possible Merrianna could be a Jane Doe or unknown set of remains that haven’t been identified yet. I hope we get more details about the case in the future.

4607DFCA - Merrianna Virginia Royce

4607DFCA - Merrianna Virginia Royce​

circa 1984

Name: Merrianna Virginia Royce
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: April 3, 1988
Location Last Seen: Hoopa, Humboldt County, California

Physical Description​

Date of Birth: September 19, 1979
Age: 8 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 3'6"-3'8"
Weight: 75-80 lbs.
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers​

Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance​

Merrianna Royce and her mother, Marilyn, were last seen in Hoopa on April 3, 1988.

On April 16, Marilyn's maroon 1980 AMC Eagle station wagon was found abandoned on Onion Mountain Road near Fish Lake. A note indicated they would return for the vehicle soon. The vehicle appeared to have possibly gotten stuck in the snow.

They were reported missing on May 17.

On July 11, 1988, the remains of Marilyn were found in the Bluff Creek drainage of Onion Mt. in Del Norte County. Merrianna remains missing despite extensive searches in the area.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: Humboldt County Sheriff's Office
Agency Contact Person: Andrew Campbell, Forensic Specialist II
Agency Phone Number: 707-445-7251
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 198802803

NamUs Case Number: MP108896

Information Source(s)​

NamUs
Humboldt Times - Jun. 2, 1988
Ancestry.com

Admin Notes​

Added: 12/28/2023; Last Updated: 12/28/2023 - By: hb

 

[Mysteries1974]

I searched on Facebook and found this photo of Merrianna. It looks a bit more recent than the ones we’ve seen of her so far

 

[Mysteries1974]

According to mom’s Find a Grave entry, she passed away from exposure.

 

[Mysteries1974]

Marilyn Virginia Royce (1947-1988) - Find a Grave...

Born on 18 Sep 1947. Died on 4 Apr 1988. Cremated.

www.findagrave.com

 

[Megsc]

How did she end up in the drainage if she died from exposure ? Was she put there ? What happened to Merrianna ? I would have thought that, being a kid, she would have succomb to the elements earlier than her mom. But then I guess if it was the case we would have found them together, since I can't imagine a mother leaving her dead child behind.

Also do we know anything at all about the father ?