What ended the game of hide and seek 60 years long (5 photos)

It is very scary and sad when people disappear without a trace. BUT It's especially hard when children go missing. Most of them are not found. But there are exceptions. Amazing.





Like the case of Marjorie West. The story with a 4-year-old baby began May 8, 1938. A girl with her mother, father, sister Dorothea and brother Alan went to church. After the service, the family planned Mother's Day picnic trip.

The company is located on a clearing by the river - in a favorite hunters and fishermen of the town. After a snack, the men went to fishing. Dorothea, 11, took little Marge and the girls went collect flowers for bouquets.



Marjorie West

The eldest daughter went to her mother for a minute, and when she returned, she Marjorie was gone. The baby loved the game of hide and seek, so the older sister was not afraid and began to look into the bushes, behind the trees, to find baby. But soon I realized that the game was too long, and began to call adults for help.

While family friends combed the forest, the parents drove to the nearest police station. Literally an hour later, the forest was completely cordoned off by the police. Volunteers joined the search: about 3 thousand local residents. Oil field workers given time off from work to help in search of a child.



The forest was combed up and down until late at night. Police involved dogs. In the morning we examined the river and the hard-to-reach part forest area. The newspapers published an announcement about the missing girl with a photo. All motorists and motorcyclists were stopped for inspection. Two helicopters circled the array several times to try to locate girl from the air. But all was in vain.

What happened to Marge?



For a week of searches, volunteers combed an area of about 90 square kilometers. It must be said that at that time the abduction of children from the purpose of selling to wealthy childless couples was not uncommon. Kidnappers handed over babies both directly to customers and acted through administration of orphanages, which also often participated in such fraud. Polenyev was thrown into the fire by a taxi driver who told what he had seen in a nearby town matching the description of the red-haired blue-eyed girl with an older man. But the trace turned out to be false: checking showed that they were father and daughter.

There were also versions that the girl was picked up on the highway and taken away by a random driver. The option with a well was considered, which were in the forest several, as well as with a bear attack.

When the war began, the investigation stalled because resources should have been redirected to higher priority tasks.

New Marge



In 1995, the story took a new turn. Journalist Harold Thomas Beck published an article about the missing person, and a few years later a reward was announced - 10 thousand dollars to the one who will give information about missing. Photos and additional information provided by Dorothea. The woman blamed herself all her life for the loss of her sister. Thanks to modern tech photo babes aged to get a relatively accurate identikit taking into account age.

In 2000, a woman contacted the journalist and said that the identikit is very similar to her colleague. Sylvia Waldrop London, whom was 66 years old, agreed to a meeting. But when I found out about the reasons, got angry and categorically refused to listen further, saying that everything this is mistake. And she has nothing to do with the missing person. But then she changed her position and agreed to meet with Beck.

In 2010, he published a book titled "In Search of Marjorie West. In it, the journalist said that shortly before her death, the mother confessed to Sylvia that she was not related to her by blood. And got into their family as follows: who worked in 1938 at an oil refinery factory, the husband accidentally knocked down a girl on the road. He put the baby in the back seat and drove to the hospital. On the way, the baby came to her senses. For half a year before that, grief happened in the family: the loss of a daughter. And the man thought it was a sign from above - to bring a child to a desperate wife on Mother's Day.

At first, the girl told where she lived, about her relatives, about places where there is a lot of snow (she was born in a northern state). But Gradually Marge-Sylvia forgot everything.

Alas, the meeting of the separated sisters did not take place. Dorothea is gone out of life in 2007. And Marge two years later. Itsher story allowed Beka to be made public, but only after her death.

Remarkably, Dorothea's relatives have not yet confirmed truthfulness of history. And they even hinted that all this is an invention of a journalist. The easiest way to confirm or disprove this is to compare the DNA of children elder sister and daughter of Sylvia-Marjorie. But for some reason they didn't do it. Or they did, but decided not to betray the results publicity.