40 of the Most Intriguing Disappearances in History

Year: Circa 1590
Search Conducted by: Governor White and his men
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: Unknown 

This eerie story began when a group of over 150 English settlers decided to start a new life on Roanoke Island, North Carolina. Among them was Eleanor Dare, the pregnant daughter of Governor White. She gave birth shortly after their arrival, naming her daughter Virginia. 

Virginia Dare and the Lost Colony ©Wikimedia Commons

At the behest of the colonists, Governor White reluctantly sailed to England for supplies, finally returning on what would have been Virginia’s third birthday. However, when he came back, the entire colony was gone. Only one carving in a tree of the word “CROATOAN” remained. Despite a lengthy search, none of the colonists were ever seen again. Some surmise it was a mystical entity that swept them away, while others believe they took up with a nearby Indian tribe. 

Year: 1930
Search Conducted by: NYPD, FBI
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $10,000*

Joseph Force Crater may not be a name that we hear much these days, but back in the 1900s, he was a tour de force on the New York political scene. Crater, the son of Irish immigrants, was appointed to the New York State Supreme Court in 1930. Some believed he secured this role by paying off the right people, though it was never proven. 

The Missingest Man in New York @nydailynews/Pinterest

During a vacation with his wife in 1930, Crater headed back to New York where he had dinner with his mistress, showgirl Sally Lou Ritzi, and his friend William Klein. Both Klein and Ritzi claimed he left in a taxi that evening but later changed their story to say it was them that left in a cab. Despite pages and pages of witness reports and national headlines, Crater was never seen or heard from again. With no tangible evidence to suspect foul play, the case was officially closed in 1979. 

Year: 1826
Search Conducted by: N/A
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: N/A

American-born William Morgan moved to Ontario, Canada in the 1800s after serving in the War of 1812. He set up shop as a brewer, before becoming a member of one of the world’s most infamous secret societies, the Freemasons. A series of unfortunate personal events including fire and bankruptcy led Morgan to flee back to America, where he claimed to be a senior Freemason and attempted to set up new chapters. 

The Disappearance of an Anti-Mason ©Victor Moussa/Shutterstock.com

Despite this, there seemed to be tension between the group and Morgan, prompting him to write an expose. He would later blame the faction for starting several fires in the printing shop in retaliation. By this point, Morgan was often in a drunken stupor and found himself in trouble with the law. On one such occasion, he was bailed out by a mysterious figure and was led away from the jail shouting “murder.” Needless to say, that was the last known sighting of him.

Year: 1978
Search Conducted by: Aviation authorities
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $50,000+*

20-year-old pilot Frederick Valentich was no rookie when he took to the skies on a training flight in 1978. Everything seemed to be running smoothly for him as he zoomed along the Bass Strait…until he radioed the ground with some surprising news. According to Valentich, he was being pursued by a bright metallic object flying at super-fast speed. 

Strange Lights Before Cessna 182 Goes Missing @annarather333/Pinterest

This was no mere trick of the light. Frederick continued to radio the Melbourne Flight Service and describe the actions of the small UFO for five minutes. After that time, Valentich’s small plane began to falter with unexpected engine failure. When asked if he could describe what kind of plane was tailing him, Valentich’s last words were, “It isn’t an aircraft.” His plane was never recovered.

Year: 2014
Search Conducted by: Government officials
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $56 million for the underwater search alone*

When we think of aircraft disappearances, it’s easier to believe they are a thing of the past. Sadly, that isn’t always true. In 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 totally vanished from the skies without a trace while en route to Bejing from Kuala Lumpur. 239 people were on board when the plane veered off course and headed toward the Indian Ocean, with communication manually turned off. 

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 @binhnguyenduc244/Pinterest

Considering the sheer size of the Boeing-777, it seems impossible to think that the flight has never been recovered – but that’s exactly what happened. Several small pieces of debris have washed up on shores in places like Mozambique, but the tragedy of Flight 370 remains one of aviation’s greatest mysteries.

Year: 2007
Search Conducted by: Met Police
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $12 million and counting*

The disappearance of three-year-old British toddler Madeleine McCann has garnered public interest ever since the case came to light in 2007. Madeleine was on vacation with her parents, Kate and Jerry, and her twin siblings when she vanished from their rental apartment in the Algarve. Kate and Jerry had left the unattended children sleeping to go out for dinner at a nearby restaurant, but when they returned at 10 pm, Madeleine was gone. 

The “Most Heavily Reported Missing Person Case In Modern History” ©Milos Bicanski /Getty Images

Over $12 million has been spent by the Met Police in the years since, but despite the case remaining open, no charges have ever been filed against potential suspects. Even Kate and Jerry faced suspicion but were formally cleared in 2008. A Netflix documentary detailing the events surrounding Madeleine’s disappearance was released in 2019.

Year: 2007
Search Conducted by: Coast Guard, friends
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $1 million+*

These days, the biggest names in the tech world are hard to shy away from, with icons like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg often hitting headlines. Jim Gray may not have been a household name, but he was one of the most important American computer whizzes in history and a Silicon Valley titan. 

High Tech Hunt for a Missing Silicon Valley Legend @wired/Pinterest | ©Wikimedia Commons

Aside from his work prowess, Gray lived a fairly ordinary life. On January 28, 2007, he decided to take a trip on his sailboat Tenacious to scatter the ashes of his late mother. There was no sign of trouble, the weather was perfect, and Jim was an experienced boatman. Nevertheless, he never returned. The Coast Guard performed a vast search both over and underwater, but neither Gray nor his boat was found. He was declared legally dead in 2012. 

Year: Three separate times
Search Conducted by: Local authorities
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $25,000+*

Hannah Upp’s story is enough to defy belief. In 2008, the young teacher went out for a run in New York and disappeared. Her friends and family were anxiously searching for her for weeks, posting flyers and working with local authorities. Eventually, Hannah was found lying face down in the water by the crew working on the Staten Island Ferry. She was alive but didn’t remember what had happened to her.

Doctors diagnosed Hannah with a type of amnesia that can cause people to forget who they are – but the story gets more bizarre. Three years later, Hannah went missing again in Maryland but was found in a local creek the next day. Upp disappeared for the final time in 2017 while living in Montessori. At the time of writing, she has yet to reappear. 

Year: 1763
Search Conducted by: Friends, family, local authorities
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $5,000*

Not much is known about the strange disappearance of Owen Parfitt, but what is known is eerie and unsettling. Parfitt lived with his sister in Shepton Mallet, a small town in England. In his youth, Parfitt had been somewhat of a tearaway, before his fast-living caught up with him and rendered him virtually immobile. 

The Disappearance of Old Owen Parfitt from His Sister’s Front Porch ©Karen Culp/Shutterstock.com

One day in 1763, 60-year-old Parfitt asked his sister to carry him outside to sit on the porch and enjoy the warm air. She did so, returning to the house and coming back sometime later to bring him inside – but he was no longer there. Nearby farmworkers hadn’t seen anyone take him and there remain no leads on what happened to Old Owen Parfitt – the man that vanished into thin air.

Year: 1939
Search Conducted by: N/A
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: N/A

Not many people can write four novels and have them published by the age of 25. Barbara Newhall Follett was an acclaimed novelist in the early 20th century, writing books such as The House Without Windows, which was published when she was just twelve. 

Barbara Newhall Follett, The Vanished Novelist @Ned Winkler/Facebook

Barbara married Nickerson Rogers in 1933 when she was still a young woman. The marriage was happy for the next few years, but by 1937 there was discontent. According to Rogers, Follett walked out of the marital home after an argument. She was never seen again. 

Year: 1928
Search Conducted by: Arizona Police, Colorado Police
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: Unknown

The Grand Canyon isn’t just a popular vacation destination, it is also a popular honeymoon spot. Bessie and Glen Hyde were on their honeymoon when they disappeared. They had been traveling down the Colorado River in the fall of 1928.

The Honeymooners That Sailed Away @arizonahighways/Instagram

Boaters who ran into them on the river during that time said that Bessie wanted to turn back, but Glen pushed her to go forward. He knew that, if they completed the Colorado River successfully, there would be a paid lecture in it for them. Several months later, Glen and Bessie’s boat was found, in perfect condition and full of supplies, but the couple had vanished. There are different reports about what happened to them, and more than one person has claimed to have seen Bessie over the years. 

Year: 1974
Search Conducted by: Mexican Police, American Police
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: Unknown

Oscar Zeta Acosta was a Mexican-American novelist, activist, and politician involved with the Chicano movement. He is most famous for his novels The Revolt of the Cockroach People and Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo. Acosta disappeared in May of 1974 while traveling in Mazatlan, a city in Sinaloa.

The Writer That Said Too Much @twebberbr /Twitter

His son, Marco, was the last person to speak to him, and he told Marco that he was about to get on a boat “full of white snow.” Marco believes that his father likely “mouth[ed] off, [got] into a fight, and [ended up] getting killed.” Author Hunter S. Thompson, who was friends with Acosta and also investigated his death, believes that he was the victim of a political assassination or drug-dealing-dispute crossfire.

Year: 1949
Search Conducted by: L.A.P.D.
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: Unknown

Jean Spangler was born in 1923, and she got a small name for herself in Hollywood after she had bit roles in movies like When My Baby Smiles At Me, The Miracle of the Bells, and Mummy’s Dummies. Spangler gained far more attention, however, for her mysterious 1949 disappearance.

Jean Spangler Went To Work And Never Came Home ©Bettmann/Getty Images

She left home on October 7, 1949 to head to a film set. She was last seen at the grocery store down from her apartment. Somewhere between the store and her house, she disappeared. Spangler’s disappearance was never solved, and it gave rise to many theories, one of which being that she ran away with L.A. gangsters she knew, or passed away during a botched illegal operation. Over the decades, no additional evidence has ever been uncovered. Spangler vanished without a trace.

Year: 1981
Search Conducted by: L.A.P.D.
Est. Search & Rescue Cost: $1,147 per hour (maritime search boat only)*

Natalie Wood was a successful actress, beginning as a child star in Miracle on 34th Street when she was just eight years old. Wood starred in high-profile movies and won awards, and her death, in 1981, shocked everyone. She passed under strange circumstances, to say the least.

The Mysterious Passing Of Natalie Wood ©Images Press /Getty Images

She had been on a boat trip to Santa Catalina when she vanished from the vessel in the middle of the night. Eventually, Wood’s body was found in the water with inexplicable injuries and a dinghy beached ashore nearby. Her husband, Robert Wagner, was finally named a person of interest in her death in 2018, but eventually cleared in 2022. Still, the mystery of how she ended up in the water and why remains. Interestingly, actor Christopher Walken was also onboard the boat at the time.