TN TN - Disappearances in the Great Smokey Mountains

[Richard]

There have been some mysterious disappearances in the Great Smokey Mountains over the years.

25 September 2006 will mark the 25th Anniversary of the disappearance of Polly Melton.

8 October 2006 will mark the 30th Anniversary of the disappearance of Trenny Lynn Gibson.

Could they be connected?

Here are summaries of their cases:

----------------------------------------
Thelma Pauline Melton
Missing since September 25, 1981 from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee.
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: 1923
Age at Time of Disappearance: 58 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'11"
Distinguishing Characteristics: Auburn hair; brown eyes. She wears eyeglasses.
Medical Conditions: Melton was overweight, suffered from high blood pressure and nausea, and took medication for these ailments.
Clothing: Melton was last seen wearing a white and pink sleeveless striped blouse, tan polyester pants and tan, low cut, size 8 1/2 shoes with crepe soles. The left soul had a crack across the ball of the foot, which would have given distinctive footprints. She also had with her Virginia Slims cigarettes, a diamond studded white gold wristwatch and a wedding bank.
AKA: Polly

Circumstances of Disappearance
On September 25, 1981 Polly Melton was hiking Deep Creek Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park together with two friends. On the hike back she walked ahead of the others and disappeared. She had hiked this trail for almost 20 years.

Prior to hiking, Polly had prepared sauce for the spaghetti she intended to cook for supper and had taken a short nap. If she took money, identification, or medicine with her, these items had been concealed from her friends. Polly was barred from driving that summer, so she had no car keys. No one in Polly's family could believe she would leave of her own free will and fear she met with foul play.

Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact: Tennessee Bureau Of Investigation 615-744-4000

Source Information:
Smoky Mountain Disappearances
The Doe Network: Case File 483DFTN

Link:
http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/483dftn.htm


------------------------------------------
Trenny Lynn Gibson
Missing since October 8, 1976 from Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee.
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: August 17, 1960
Age at Time of Disappearance: 16 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'3"; 115 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Brown hair; green eyes.
Clothing: Gibson was last seen wearing blue jeans, a blue blouse, a blue and white striped sweater, blue Adidas shoes, and a star sapphire and diamond ring. She initially had no jacket with her, but during the hike borrowed a brown plaid jacket from a friend. She was wearing the jacket when she went missing.


Circumstances of Disappearance
Gibson accompanied 40 of her classmates from Bearden High School in Knoxville, Tennessee on a field trip to The Great Smoky Mountains National Park on October 8, 1976. The students were hiking to Andrews Bald on the trip and separated into small groups when they arrived at the trails. Gibson apparently hiked with several different sections of her classmates at different paces during the day. She was last seen at approximately 3:00 PM near Clingman's Dome.

Gibson disappeared without a trace and has not been seen again. Extensive searches of the park continued until the end of October 1976, but she was never located.

Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation 1-800-TBI-FIND

NCIC Number: M-008253504
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:
Smoky Mountain Disappearances: True Stories From The Great Smoky Mountains By Juanitta Baldwin and Ester Grubb

The Doe Network: Case File 425DFTN

Link:
http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/425dftn.html

 

[meggilyweggily]

I knew a girl at college whose mother had been a high school classmate of Trenny Gibson. The girl told me the high schoolers' prevailing theory at the time was that Trenny ran away. She was allegedly dating a black man, which was a Big Deal back in 1976, and her parents disapproved.

As to whether this is true or not, I cannot say. I am somewhat leery of second-hand, thirty-year-old memories.

 

[HollywoodBound]

I had never heard that. I think it's possible she ran away, but being in the mountains she ran a big risk of being found hiding. I wonder when she's last scene at the Clingman's dome if she was heading back with a group or she was trailing behind alone.

 

[reb]

these cases are fascinating to me (and sad, of course)-- the ones where people are with a group in broad daylight, they get a bit separated from others on a mountain trail, and then POOF they are gone.

one theory i have (about trenny, pauline & dennis): a very quiet, stealthy, crafty mountain lion... who was desperate for food and ready to pounce on any 'prey' that had gotten separated from its 'pack'. i don't know much about their behavior, but i imagine they could be very quiet when they kill, much like a housecat... and if they knocked someone down, they could have knocked their victim unconscious before they got a chance to scream. then they might drag them into the bushes without spilling any blood, and take them away.. into a den, and perhaps these dens are up a steep hillside & well-hidden... where searcher's couldn't go or didn't know about.
or, i've also heard they might bury their kill (what is left of it).

another is that trenny (&/or maybe pauline) climbed off the trail to pee... think about it, you're on a long walk (and i think in both the women's cases, they were both lost on the way back?) and there's no bathroom, you've been up there for hours... you really gotta go. so maybe they hopped off the trail (on the down side) when they were seperated from the group for a quick pee where no one would see, and they were holding onto a branch, rock or tree root,, and slipped, or the branch broke, or the rock came loose, and they tumbled down the steep side of the hill & fatally injured themselves. in trenny's case, a group of girls walking together may have been talking & laughing loudly- and may not have heard any sounds up ahead- it could have blended in with the wind rustling the trees. maybe she fell so far down, in an area where it was difficult to search, or by the time anyone had searched there (days later?) an animal had gotten her, or it could have caused a small avalanche that buried her.

other things that could lead someone to the edge of a trail... a beautiful view, where they go to get a better look and then get dizzy for whatever reason, or step up on a rock to get a better look, and stumble & fall.

another thought-- and this concerns people who wander off further into the woods.... i wonder if there is some kind of rare geological formation where you might have a hole or 'bubble' undergound, that is separated from the surface by a thin layer of earth, and disguised by leaves or even branches.. that forms a naturally-occuring booby-trap. sometimes whole caverns are discovered when a farmer digs into the ground, and breaks through that thin layer. i know such a thing probably doesn't exist on a mountain, but you never know... (perhaps a small one?)
if someone fell into a big enough hole and it caved in on top of them, when that area was searched it might just look like a shallow crater. it would be like the earth was literally swallowing them up.

but i would assume that the searchers would have found drag marks (if it was an animal), or if someone fell down a hill, you'd probably see evidence of that- but not necessarily.. and i assume that they searched areas that were very steep off the trail.

of course it's possible too that there are lone crazed serial killers in the woods.. or someone who lived up there in the mountains went crazy... but it's strange that no one would see any evidence of them.

 

[Richard]

these cases are fascinating to me (and sad, of course)-- the ones where people are with a group in broad daylight, they get a bit separated from others on a mountain trail, and then POOF they are gone...

... i wonder if there is some kind of rare geological formation where you might have a hole or 'bubble' undergound, that is separated from the surface by a thin layer of earth, and disguised by leaves or even branches.. that forms a naturally-occuring booby-trap. sometimes whole caverns are discovered when a farmer digs into the ground, and breaks through that thin layer. i know such a thing probably doesn't exist on a mountain, but you never know... (perhaps a small one?) if someone fell into a big enough hole and it caved in on top of them, when that area was searched it might just look like a shallow crater. it would be like the earth was literally swallowing them up....

... of course it's possible too that there are lone crazed serial killers in the woods.. or someone who lived up there in the mountains went crazy... but it's strange that no one would see any evidence of them.

You bring up some good points. There are indeed a number of possible explanations for the disappearances - ranging from a simple accident to a criminal attack.

Your scenario about someone dropping into a crevice or hole is certainly a possibility. Back in the mid 1990's, the body of a US Army soldier was found in a crevice on the island of Adak, Alaska. He had gone missing in 1945. It was determined that he must have fallen into this hole, or cave, and then attempted to alert potential rescuers by firing his M-1 Rifle. He was found and identified some 50 years later.

 

[Bluecat]

I agree, very good points - however, mountain lions have been extinct from the Smokies since around 1920. The only large predator at the time was the black bear - and although it is certainly possible that one or both women were killed by bears, there are only a couple of such incidents on record in the area. Since bears do not drag their kills away, I would think that they would each have been found near where they went missing.

Could Thelma Pauline Melton become disoriented due to her medical conditions? It would not take long to get really lost, depending on how dense the woods are. The trail, according to the park map, is 3.9 miles long and seems to parallel Deep Creek. I wonder if they searched the creek...

Harder to know what could have happened to Trenny Lynn Gibson, if she was not meeting someone to run away. The hike they took was about a mile each way from Clingman's Dome parking. It's certainly possible that she met someone back at the road and drove off, but I suspect she would have been seen.

 

[reb]

well... sometimes there are small groups of animals that were thought to be eradicated, but are still around, and are good at hiding...

as for trenny, was there any indication she had trouble at home, or emotional/social problems that would make her want to run away? was she well-adjusted & well-liked?

as for the 'crater-in-the-ground' theory.... wow that's an interesting story about the soldier.... the poor guy.
i always thought that some people might literally be swallowed up by the earth.. and it seems it would be more likely in a wooded area... a place that had not been disturbed by much human traffic, and was camoflagued by leaves. then if it caved in, there might be very little evidence of that. of course someone would still have to wander off the trail to encounter this... and it doesn't appear that happened in these cases!
this is just me brainstorming about what could make a person disappear in an instant, in the woods... besides abduction by psycho, animal attack, covered up hunting accident, falling down hill & getting buried, & running away.
i was kind of thinking about the bennington triangle cases too...

 

[MissAmanduh13]

I am not exactly sure where the point the two women went missing from, but from my own experience of driving through the smokey mountains.... the highways are smack dab in the forests. They also have truck ramps (for out of control trucks) that go pretty high up into the woods. Maybe one of them got lost.... maybe found the highway and some trucker might of picked them up. There are tons of trucks on the highways down there.... and from what I saw... it looked like you could be hiking through the woods and eventually end up on the highway.

That is so interesting about falling into holes like that. Its a very good point. Who would know if you fell into one of thoes holes? They are probably so deep and well hidden.

Did they have search dogs out there looking for the two women? Were they able to pick up on any scent?

 

[joellegirl]

Hope no one minds I bump this thread, as there is a new one discussing these cases. This thread also mentions a 3rd missing person mystery from the Smoky Mountains, Dennis Martin in 1969.

I tried posting a link on the new thread but I couldn't get it to work.

Just thought some might be interested to see our old discussion on these mysteries.

If there is a way to merge these threads that would be great.

 

[reb]

as for trenny... her profile says she was last seen walking a moderately steep trail with sharp dropoffs. seems to me that if you are tired, dehydrated, light-headed, or you stumbled on a rock, or walked to the edge to get a better view, and stumbled or fainted... you could easily fall over. just think about when you're doing stenuous exercise (i.e., a long hike)-- and you might go over the steep edge to use the bathroom for a second, but then when you stand up after kneeling, you suddenly become light-headed and off-balance... you could certainly fall. but either way, your body would have to become hidden.

it doesn't seem possible that she alone would just wander off the trail for no reason.
i mean, how on earth could you get so last if you are following a TRAIL?? this is what i can't understand about these disappearances. UNLESS... she got so far behind from the group that she ended up taking a wrong turn (fork in the trail), then eventually started running, thinking the group was ahead & wondering why she couldn't find them.. or she may have panicked & ran through the woods hoping to find a short cut. she may have eventually realized her mistake, but by then it would have been getting dark and cold.

it says crews searched extensively for a month, but doesn't say if dogs were used. i would think they would have been?

 

[HollywoodBound]

Fork in the trail is a possibility. I would think dogs would have been used though I wonder if the group was going back the same way they came up dogs could still be used because she made the scent trail on the path already.

 

[reb]

as for polly melton, the doe network/charley project info doesn't say whether dogs were used or how long the search went on. but how the heck could you be right ahead of your friends, on the trail, and just vanish with no trace? it does seem she could've had some kind of health emergency,, but how could you just disappear.........????????........????????

 

[reb]

the dennis martin case is equally strange. playing hide and seek, and 'disappeared behind a bush never to be seen again'.... who was he playing H&S with? obviously someone saw him go behind the bush.. who was it? if there was some killer lurking in the woods, how could be possibly be snatched up that fast and get away without anyone seeing? it is certainly possible if everyone else was in the house, and not paying attention to him.
i wonder in this scenario if he wasn't killed (accidently or otherwise) by the males who were with him.. father, grandfather, older brother & 2 cousins.... and maybe they hid the body. it could have something to do with his being a special ed student... i could see where a father deep down might feel he was 'defective'... he might have financial hardships trying to make ends meet & resent taking care of a child who wasn't 'perfect'.. or perhaps the brother/cousins bullied him on a regular basis, and went too far this time. or the uncle was molesting him & he had threatened to tell..... who knows. all pure speculation of course. it would be interesting to see what the family had to say about it, and if they were all together when he disappeared.... or was anyone gone for a while?? also, where was his mom....?

 

[tuitsweet]

There are numerous 'hidden old mine holes' in this area, as I used to live in this area and hiked to Clingman's Dome frequently. Although I lived there in the early 80's I do not remember these cases, however this area is 'notorious' for these old mine shafts that have now been grown over on the surface. We were always very careful and had to 'poke' the area ahead of where we walked with a stick to keep from falling into one, especially if you EVER left the designated trail...for ANY reason, perhaps this is what occurred?

ttfn (ta ta for now)
tuitsweet

 

[reb]

BINGO! that's exactly what i was getting at. if not from a geological anomaly,, then man-made. i forgot about mine shafts! and i bet many of these would no longer be on maps, and be forgotten about. and i guess the only reason the searchers would not find a tell-tale hole would be because there was a slight cave in after someone stepped on one & fell in. it would have to collapse in such a way that it would blend in with the environment and appear undisturbed.

 

[reb]

not at all, i've ben reading this one too. moderator? can we merge....?

 

[mattsmom]

Originally posted by Tuitsweet

There are numerous 'hidden old mine holes' in this area, as I used to live in this area and hiked to Clingman's Dome frequently. Although I lived there in the early 80's I do not remember these cases, however this area is 'notorious' for these old mine shafts that have now been grown over on the surface. We were always very careful and had to 'poke' the area ahead of where we walked with a stick to keep from falling into one, especially if you EVER left the designated trail...for ANY reason, perhaps this is what occurred?

I never knew about the mines. We go down there every other December and do a lot of hiking. I have the creeps now - when we go in '07 I'm going to be more aware.

In Dec '03 we hiked the Deep Creek Trail. We left Gatlinburg in the afternoon and didn't realize how long it would take to drive to the trail head. And we didn't realize how long the hike would take. So it was dark for the last 45 min of the hike. We were nervous and I'll never forget my 12 year old niece making me hold her hand as we walked (she'd die right now if I brought it up since she is now 15). Anyway we almost got lost at a path crossing. My husband and I argued - I was positive of which way to go and I was wrong. Good thing we went his way. None of our cell phones worked there and we had 4 phones from 3 different companies with us. I'm just glad that you all didn't have to add us to the list of the missing down there.

I think it's really easy to get lost there and even easier to step off the trail for a moment to look at something. Is it possible for those mines to be located and charted for searching when someone is lost? It is a really good theory about what happened to these people.

 

[Richard]

Here is a link to the earlier discussions on this subject in Websleuths...


http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19312

 

[Richard]

Hope no one minds I bump this thread, as there is a new one discussing these cases. This thread also mentions a 3rd missing person mystery from the Smoky Mountains, Dennis Martin in 1969.

I tried posting a link on the new thread but I couldn't get it to work.

Just thought some might be interested to see our old discussion on these mysteries.

If there is a way to merge these threads that would be great.

Sorry to have started a duplicate thread. I wanted to post about the anniversaries of Trenny's and Polly's disappearances. When I tried to find this thread, I used their full names and that eliminated the thread from my searching, since this one did not have their middle names in the text of the posts.

Here is a link to the new thread, and there is a link to this thread on it as well.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43442

 

[joellegirl]

Thanks, Richard for posting the link! I couldn't get it to work for me.

Don't be sorry for starting a new thread on a previous discussed case, it happens all the time and this board moves so fast that posts get buried quick. Looks like it was about a year and a half ago since this topic was last discussed so it needed a new thread to bring it back to life!

I think the mention of old mines is very interesting. Instead of falling off the face of the earth, a person could very well fall into the earth and leave no trace. I hope this can be looked into further.