The Bennington Triangle Disappearances

"Bennington Triangle" is a phrase coined by American author Joseph A. Citro to denote an area of southwestern Vermont within which a number of people went missing between 1945 and 1950. The region's dense forests and rugged terrain seem to swallow people whole, leaving behind no clues, no bodies, and no logical explanations.

The legend of the Bennington Triangle is built around five specific cases that have baffled investigators and intrigued paranormal enthusiasts for decades.

1. Midshipman James Tetford (December 1, 1949) The most bizarre disappearance involves James Tetford, a U.S. Navy midshipman. Tetford was on a bus traveling to Bennington, the town where he lived at a soldiers' home. Witnesses on the bus confirmed he was on board and his belongings were in the luggage rack. The bus was relatively crowded. Yet, when the bus arrived at its destination, Tetford was gone. His luggage remained, and no one on the bus could recall seeing him leave. It was as if he simply vanished into thin air between stops.

2. Paula Jean Welden (December 1, 1946) Exactly three years prior to Tetford's disappearance, college sophomore Paula Jean Welden vanished while hiking on the Long Trail near Glastenbury Mountain. She was seen by several people heading up the trail late in the afternoon, but she never returned. A massive search ensued, involving the FBI and local authorities, but not a single trace of her was ever found.

3. Bennington's Other Victims The cluster includes three other cases:

Middie Rivers (November 12, 1945): A 74-year-old experienced hunter who disappeared while hunting near the area. Only one single spent rifle casing was found.

Paul Jephson (October 12, 1950): An 8-year-old boy who disappeared from the back seat of his family’s truck near the northern edge of the Triangle.

DCI Carl Morck [Matthew GoodE] is a brilliant cop but terrible colleague. His razor-sharp sarcasm has made him no friends in Edinburgh police. After a shooting leaves a young pc dead, and his partner paralysed, he finds himself exiled to the basement & sole member of Department Q; a newly formed cold case unit. The department is a PR stunt, there to distract the public from the failures of an under-resourced, failing police force that is glad to see the back of him. But more by accident than design, Carl starts to build a gang of waifs & strays who have everything to prove. So, when the stone-cold trail of a prominent civil servant who disappeared several years ago starts to heat up, Carl is back doing what he does best - rattling cages and refusing to take no for an answer. Dept. Q is a series created and written and directed by American writer / filmmaker Scott Frank, screenwriter of Out of Sight, Minority Report, The Interpreter, The Lookout, Marley & Me, The Wolverine, Logan; and creator of "The Queen's Gambit" & "Monsieur Spade" series. Written by Stephen Greenhorn, Colette Kane, & Chandni Lakhani. Adapted from the novels written by Jussi Adler-Olsen. With episodes directed by Scott Frank. Made by Flitcraft and Left Bank Pictures. Exec produced by Rob Bullock, Scott Frank, & Andy Harries. Netflix debuts Frank's Dept. Q streaming on Netflix starting May 29th, 2025.*

*Just in time to qualify for Emmy nominations : )

Photo: Netflix

New video is live on Unsolved America Series.

In 1965, Mary Shotwell Little walked toward her car at Lenox Square in Atlanta and never made it home. Her car was later found, but Mary was gone.

Nearly sixty years later, her case remains one of Georgia’s most haunting unsolved disappearances.

Her story is featured in my upcoming book, Unsolved Georgia: Cold Cases, Missing Persons, and Unidentified Victims Still Waiting for Answers, available on Amazon June 16.

The brutal 1947 murder of Elizabeth Short, known as the Black Dahlia, remains one of the most infamous cold cases in American history.

Found mutilated and bisected in Los Angeles, her murder sparked decades of speculation, wild theories, and deep fascination.

Background

Elizabeth Short was born on July 29, 1924, in Boston, Massachusetts. After her father faked his death in 1930, her mother raised five daughters alone. Troubled by lung issues, Elizabeth spent winters in Florida before dropping out of high school. Elizabeth was about to be an aspiring actress at the young age of 22 when she moved to Los Angeles in hopes of making a name for herself. She was last seen alive on January 9, 1947. Just days later, her body was discovered under horrific circumstances.

The Murder

On the morning of January 15, a woman walking with he child in a vacant sidewalk near Leimert Park found Short’s body. At first she thought that the body was a naked mannequin, after a closer inspection, she was horrified to find out it was a dead body .Short had been sliced at the waist with surgical precision, her face cut into a chilling smile, and she was completely drained of blood. The body had been carefully posed, adding to the eerie nature of the crime.

Despite the gruesome scene, no signs of struggle or defensive wounds were found, suggesting she was killed elsewhere and then transported to the lot.

The Investigation

Short’s murder sparked a media chaos, with newspapers naming her “The Black Dahlia.” The case drew hundreds of leads, but the investigation quickly became chaotic. The Los Angeles Police Department was flooded by false confessions—more than 60 people claimed responsibility, but none were credible.

Possible suspects

There was no single confirmed killer, but over 150 suspects were considered. The most suspecting ? Dr. George Hodel, a wealthy physician with connections to the LA elite. His own son, a former LAPD detective, later claimed to have evidence linking him to the crime.

The Evidence

• Elizabeth Short’s body was sliced at the waist with surgical precision.

• Her face was slashed from ear to ear in a disgustingly creepy smile.

• Her body was completely drained of blood, suggesting she was killed elsewhere.

• Her body was placed and posed in a terrifying manner, hinting at a twisted message from the killer.

Theories Behind the Murder

1. The Surgeon Killer – Many believe the precision of the cuts points towards a doctor, possibly Hodel.

2. A Crime of Passion – Some critics argue she was killed by a jealous lover or rejected proposal.

3. The Mob Connection – The crime’s brutality led some to link it to organized crime figures. Because of the violence of the crime in that period of time, some people have connected it to members of organized crime.

4. A Serial Killer’s First Victim? – Some theorists connect her murder to others homicides in LA at the time.

Why Wasn't the Case Solved?

Despite police efforts, the case went cold. The media coverage caused harm to the investigation. There was also corruption in LAPD which might've played a role in the case. Later, the Files were lost, leads vanished, and evidence was weak. It’s now a haunting mystery of Hollywood’s dark past, forever unsolved.

My thoughts on the case

Elizabeth Short’s murder remains one of the most haunting unsolved cases in history. She was a young woman with dreams of a better future, but her life was taken in a brutal and unimaginable way. The details of her death are horrific, but what’s even more tragic is that justice was never served.

Despite countless theories and suspects, her killer was never caught. The mystery lingers, leaving behind unanswered questions and a sense of injustice that remains to this day.

If you want to learn more about Elizabeth Short’s life, the investigation, and the theories surrounding her murder, check out the FBI’s official case files on their website.(added below) You can also listen to in-depth discussions on the case in true crime podcasts like "Solved murders: true crime story's "podcast, and other podcasts which explores the Hodel family’s dark past and its possible connection to the crime, available on Spotify.

Elizabeth Short mug shots and fingerprint from when she was arrested by the Santa Barbara police for underage drinking. The Bureau also had her “mug shot” in its files and provided it to the press.

So what do you think happened to the 22-year old Hollywood upcoming sensation? Was Elizabeth Short the victim of a jealous lover, a serial killer, or someone with surgical knowledge? Why has no one been caught, and why was her body presented so intentionally?

With so many suspects and lost evidence, will we ever uncover the truth, or will this case remain one of Hollywood’s darkest unsolved mysteries?

That's a wrap for today's case! See you in the next post.

I periodically get new Death and disappearance Items. (Also ones I can't remember if we did in the 2023 poll). Since we have enough to make a poll, I'm reviving it here.

A lot of the big famous ones like Jack the Ripper, we covered in 2023. If your fave doesn't go this time, odds are it was one I remembered we already did.

As long as there is a reasonable mystery such as cause of death, reasons for murder, where they went, etc., it counts.

I will not do ones that are 21st century, because it makes me feel creepy and ghoulish. I will not do ones that are credibly definitively solved.

and the Wiki page is all excited like "WELL OKAY SO WE DID THIS PODCAST ASKING MUSEUMS IN THAT PART OF THE UK TO CHECK THEIR HUMAN REMAINS COLLECTIONS CAREFULLY IN CASE-"

"oh so there are new leads?"

"...no"