TX TX - Linda House, 29, 8 months pregnant, Dallas, 8 Nov 1985

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In this day and age, if a 29 year old pregnant mother of two went missing, never to be seen or heard from again, the story would be plastered all over social media and part of national headlines everywhere. In 1985, that simply was not the case, at least not for my mother-in-law Linda House and her soon to be daughter.

At the young age of just 5 years old, my husband and his brother, who was just 10 at the time, hugged their mother goodbye just like any normal day. But this, by no means, was any normal day.

That hug was the embrace either of them would ever feel from their mother.

Linda went missing from Dallas, TX that day and has never been seen or heard from again. There has never been so much as a trace from her or her unborn child, and although the case has been "investigated" by both the Dallas Police Department and the Texas Rangers, the case remains OPEN and unsolved to this day.

Although the grief of this loss is something my husband carries with him every day of his life, the anniversaries of his mother's birthday and her disappearance are always particularly tough on him and our family.

In a recent Facebook post on October 1, 2020, while celebrating what would have been Linda's 64th birthday, Chris wrote:

"Happy Birthday, Mom, wherever you are! Dallas Police Department, I hope you have changed your policies and do a better job of investigating other missing person cases. For those that don’t know my mother, Linda Ann House went missing on November 8, 1985. At the time, she was 8 months pregnant with her then boyfriend's child. His name was James “Jim” Watkins. He worked for a place in Dallas called Watkins and Associates. I believe it was an architectural firm. The little that I have been told by authorities was that they contacted Mr. Watkins and he first denied knowing her. The next time they approached him he directed them to talk to his attorney. To our family’s knowledge, that is where it stopped. On that day, we didn’t just lose a mother, a daughter, a sister, or a friend, but we also lost my soon to be sister. A few years back, I went to speak with the Department of Public Safety as they have this case as well now. They took my DNA to run in the national cadaver lab but nothing matched. They said that their cold case department would look into it. After calling them multiple times, their response was "no new leads". Well of course there won’t be any new leads until you go out and find them. I think enough is enough and I will start my own investigation into finding out what happened. If anyone knows of an organization that helps in these types of cases please PM me. If anyone knows anyone in law enforcement that can be of any assistance please PM me. Feel free to share. #justiceforLindaHouse"

Moved by the incredible response we recently received in regards to this story on social media, we have decided to start a public Facebook page to bring attention and awareness to her story as well as aGoFundMe to help launch a private investigation into her mysterious disappearance and generate enough funds to be able to offer a reward for any details leading to a break in her case.

We greatly appreciate your support and prayers as we step out in faith to pursue justice for Linda and closure for our family.

Anything helps, especially your prayers! Thank you, and God Bless!

PLEASE SHARE WITH THE HASHTAG: #justiceforlindahouse

LINK: Justice for Linda House, organized by Laci House
 
AWerner20 said:
I would like to talk to you and have you talk to my mom. Our moms were good friends and coworkers. One of the last times they talked your mom asked my mom to get a photo of you and your brother from her office. My mom still has the photo. Please let me know if you would be willing to talk, and I will find a way to get you my personal details.
Click to expand...

@AWerner20 , the Linda House thread is rolling again!
 
I wish there were at least a few details. Ex: Once she got the kids off to school, she went grocery shopping. When was it realized she was missing? What steps were taken? Etc.
This case really makes me sad. Especially for those little boys.
 
Housec7 said:
In this day and age, if a 29 year old pregnant mother of two went missing, never to be seen or heard from again, the story would be plastered all over social media and part of national headlines everywhere. In 1985, that simply was not the case, at least not for my mother-in-law Linda House and her soon to be daughter.

At the young age of just 5 years old, my husband and his brother, who was just 10 at the time, hugged their mother goodbye just like any normal day. But this, by no means, was any normal day.

That hug was the embrace either of them would ever feel from their mother.

Linda went missing from Dallas, TX that day and has never been seen or heard from again. There has never been so much as a trace from her or her unborn child, and although the case has been "investigated" by both the Dallas Police Department and the Texas Rangers, the case remains OPEN and unsolved to this day.

Although the grief of this loss is something my husband carries with him every day of his life, the anniversaries of his mother's birthday and her disappearance are always particularly tough on him and our family.

In a recent Facebook post on October 1, 2020, while celebrating what would have been Linda's 64th birthday, Chris wrote:

"Happy Birthday, Mom, wherever you are! Dallas Police Department, I hope you have changed your policies and do a better job of investigating other missing person cases. For those that don’t know my mother, Linda Ann House went missing on November 8, 1985. At the time, she was 8 months pregnant with her then boyfriend's child. His name was James “Jim” Watkins. He worked for a place in Dallas called Watkins and Associates. I believe it was an architectural firm. The little that I have been told by authorities was that they contacted Mr. Watkins and he first denied knowing her. The next time they approached him he directed them to talk to his attorney. To our family’s knowledge, that is where it stopped. On that day, we didn’t just lose a mother, a daughter, a sister, or a friend, but we also lost my soon to be sister. A few years back, I went to speak with the Department of Public Safety as they have this case as well now. They took my DNA to run in the national cadaver lab but nothing matched. They said that their cold case department would look into it. After calling them multiple times, their response was "no new leads". Well of course there won’t be any new leads until you go out and find them. I think enough is enough and I will start my own investigation into finding out what happened. If anyone knows of an organization that helps in these types of cases please PM me. If anyone knows anyone in law enforcement that can be of any assistance please PM me. Feel free to share. #justiceforLindaHouse"

Moved by the incredible response we recently received in regards to this story on social media, we have decided to start a public Facebook page to bring attention and awareness to her story as well as aGoFundMe to help launch a private investigation into her mysterious disappearance and generate enough funds to be able to offer a reward for any details leading to a break in her case.

We greatly appreciate your support and prayers as we step out in faith to pursue justice for Linda and closure for our family.

Anything helps, especially your prayers! Thank you, and God Bless!

PLEASE SHARE WITH THE HASHTAG: #justiceforlindahouse

******** LINK: Justice for Linda House, organized by Laci House
Click to expand...
If I were your husband, James Watkins would also be on Texas's list of missing persons.
 
I have been working on a potential match for Linda in NamUs. Being pregnant is a very identifiable feature. I have only been able to identify ONE Jane Doe within a year who was either pregnant or had recently delivered. NamUs link below #UP12324. This Jane Doe was found 3/25/86 in Hamlin NY. She was either pregnant when she died or had recently given birth. She was believed to have been deceased for 5 months when she was discovered, putting her date of death sometime around the end of October 1985. Linda went missing October 1 1985. The interesting thing about Hamlin NY- It is the home of a woman with many children, one of whom is named James Wilkinson, according to her obituary.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (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
Linda now has rule outs/exclusions listed on her profile, it was modified today 5/23/22
UP89322
02/13/2022
Collin
TX

UP2202
01/24/1988
Bucks
PA

UP8419
01/16/2001
Isle of Wight
VA

UP12683
06/06/2014
Newport News
VA

UP6796
11/18/1985
Alleghany
VA

UP6150
11/07/1998
Stafford
VA
 
ChatteringBirds said:
Bumping case up.
Click to expand...

There's an obituary for someone that matches the details provided by the daughter as the boyfriend who refused to answer questions to the police - He passed in March of 2021.

The last post on the FB page by her family (linked above) was November 2021. There was mention that they were hiring a private investigator in 2020, but there aren't any updates on that mentioned on the FB page.
 
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