PA PA - Beverly Sharpman, 17, Philadelphia, 11 Sept 1947

There's a February 29, 2008 article, "Lost, but not forgotten", that mentions her in The Philadelphia Daily News. It's subscription only, so I don't know if I can post the article here, but it basically sums up the information from this thread. It also says that when her father died in 1981, Beverly was still listed as the beneficiary for his life insurance policy. Her parents never gave up hope. So sad.

Bumping case up. Next month will mark the 65th anniversary of Beverly Sharpman's disappearance.

My aunt's name is Brenda and we call her Bobbie. Just FYI. I'm in the Charleston SC area if I can help. I've done searches but found nothing.

Bumping for Beverly.

i wonder if there was any record of her or someone else trying to claim the insurance money?

False lead ? I think there may have been a grain of truth in it. Article starts on page 1 and moves to page 2.

'Living with a woman called Bobby'
http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...IBAJ&pg=4344,454788&dq=beverly+sharpman&hl=en

Added this, hope I can explain, so you understand. If I have it correct the address given by the guy on the postcard that was a false lead- West street, Charleston, this is classed as ward 4 on the 1940 census. So I looked for a J. Edwards in that area and found a guy called James G. Edwards aged 21 living with his wife Bertha C. Edwards _ could she be 'Bobby' ? Not sure where 'Wilson' comes in to the equation though. I did think it was worth the mention.

Interesting story!

Bumping this case up.

It certainly sounds like she made plans to leave voluntarily. She withdrew her savings and gave notice at her job.

what kind of business did she work at? Could she have gotten involved with a coworker or possibly a customer?

Were they able to determin it was her that sent the telegram?
If she was planning to go away, why didn’t she just leave a note in her room?

Why would she feel the need to put in the telegraph they would never see her again? If she did send that, it seems there would have had to be some type of trouble at home.

It is possible she found herself in a situation where she believed her family would not accept it. Is anything known about if the parents were overly strict or devoutly religious?

I hope she did go on and live a good life. It’s doubtful this one will be solved since family now is gone.

I can't wrap my head around the thought that she lived/is living a full life and never once made any sort of contact with her family - not even a postcard to say "I'm still alive" or anything. I feel like the only reason for never contacting anyone ever again would be some sort of abuse at home. Obviously looks can be deceiving, but from the outside looking in, it seems like her parents loved her and never gave up on the hope that she would come home, which makes me think there weren't any big problems there. I definitely think she left for a man of another race, a married man, or a woman. What other reason would she have to run away? Her parents probably would've let her marry a white man, maybe they would've made her wait until after high school, but there would've been no need to leave. And even if she was with someone deemed unacceptable, as I mentioned before, she could have written letters, mailed them from another town or even another state so that her parents couldn't track her down, just so they would know that she was okay. Of course, we don't know her backstory, so maybe she just didn't want to be at home anymore for whatever reason. Maybe she was promised a better job position in Chicago (since she told coworkers that's where she was going) and met with foul play. Maybe she lived a long and happy life. Maybe she's still alive today. There are so many possibilities. I wish we knew the real answer.

According to a newspaper article I did in researching this case they did receive a letter from her. However, the letter's authenticity isn't totally known. I wrote about this case and researched it for a few hours tonight. I found a couple things that I felt needed to be pointed out.

Firstly, many people that have commented on this case, whether websleuths or journalists, have remarked that she sent a telegram on the day of her disappearance that stated that she was going to get married. However, the news coverage at the time reported the remarks in the telegram differently. Her telegram said "Got married. Leaving town. Will not be back. Don't worry. Babe."

"Got married" doesn't mean that she was eloping to get married: it means she already was married at the time of the telegram. Pregnancy seems probable to me. Forbidden love, like with a man who her parents wouldn't approve of seems plausible enough to. It is conjecture but according to the reporting at the time, the telegram indicated that Beverly was married when she skipped town, not off to get married. That no one knew of a significant other doesn't surprise me at all: teenagers have tons of secrets. If she was married, as reported, then that means she's got a new name.

Also, I came across a photo of her that is widely used in her reports. However, I found the photo that is waste up and not just a headshot. In that photo I thought I could see a ring on her right ring finger. I realize that's the wrong finger for engagement or marriage in North America but I found it interesting. I spoke to my grandma, who remembers the 1940s vividly, and she said that Europeans would wear the ring on the right hand. Maybe that was her husband's custom and a convenient way of hiding the relationship?

I think she left town on her own to be with her new husband, maybe because of pregnancy, maybe because of love, or maybe because of both. I find it hard to accept that she would disappear forever but if the people in her new circle did not know her maiden name and only her new husband's name then that would hurt in connecting the dots. There was a report of communication, albeit with unclear certainty that it was from her. I've included that newspaper article about the communication from her in my own article.

It could be that she left town with her new husband and lived an otherwise normal life until she died. If she died unexpectedly then there would be no chance to reconnect even if she was to develop a desire to.

Do you know what the letter was supposed to have said?

Maybe Beverly got married under a false name. Would she have had to produce some ID like a birth certificate? A lot of women in 1947 didn't have driver's licenses or any type of photo ID.

dogperson said:

Do you know what the letter was supposed to have said?

Maybe Beverly got married under a false name. Would she have had to produce some ID like a birth certificate? A lot of women in 1947 didn't have driver's licenses or any type of photo ID.

Click to expand...

I don't know much about how easy it was for a woman to marry without ID.

If you want to read the articles, I posted them for you. It's easier to do that at my blog since my website recognizes the embed codes.

Follow this exit link to read the articles.

UncoolNegated said:

I don't know much about how easy it was for a woman to marry without ID.

If you want to read the articles, I posted them for you. It's easier to do that at my blog since my website recognizes the embed codes.

Follow this exit link to read the articles.

Click to expand...

Thank you!

The same thing happened with Anita Drake. Her case is solved and She ran away from home in 1963. After her death her daughter wasn't able to find any marriage documents for her parents. Her mother said they married in Dec 1963. She did find a name change document which is how she found she was a missing person. She believes her parents were married under the common law in their state.

The interesting thing about this too is Anita left due to a family member abusing her which is what has been speculated with Beverly. Disappearances of Anita and Beverly were almost 20 years apart, but with Anita leaving in the 60's, she was able to relocate over 1,000 miles away, get her name changed, and find a job at just 15 years old. Not to mention she disappeared on the 15th of Oct and met her husband by Halloween. Maybe Beverly did something similar.

https://www.google.com/amp/www.cant...re-than-50-years---or-was-she?template=ampart

It has been just over 71 years and still missing.

LINK:

The Forgotten Cases

72 Years Missing...



Beverly Sharpman

• Case Classification: Endangered Missing

• Missing Since: September 11, 1947

• Location Last Seen: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Physical Description
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance
Date of Birth: December 10, 1930
Age at Time of Disappearance: 17 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height at Time of Disappearance: 5' 3"
Weight at Time of Disappearance: 135 lbs
Hair Color: Brown, long, wavy hair.
Eye Color: Brown
Alias(s) / Nickname(s): Babe
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
Dentals: Not available
Fingerprints: Not available
DNA: Available
Clothing & Personal Items

• Clothing: Gray or brown suit or dress. Brown in black shoes, flush colored stockings.

• Jewelry: Was wearing earrings when last seen.

• Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance
Beverly Sharpman was last reported seen at a train station with a suitcase, and sent her parents a telegram telling them she was leaving home to marry and not to worry. She was never heard from again. On September 10, 1947 Beverly told her mother she had something to tell her. Beverly seemed troubled, her mother later told police. Nettie Sharpman went to make tea and did not pressure her daughter to reveal her secret. And Beverly, apparently reconsidering, later went to bed without confiding her concerns. The next day, she disappeared, leaving her parents and brother agonizing over what could have driven the teen away. Police labeled Beverly a runaway. Although she'd gone to Overbrook High School to register for her senior year the day she disappeared, she was last seen carrying a suitcase at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Station at 24th and Chestnut streets. Her parents received a telegram that night: "Got married. Leaving town. Will not be back. Don't worry. Babe."

Beverly had no boyfriends, and her friends told police and relatives that they knew of no men in her life, nor of anyone with whom she might have eloped. Police found that Beverly had taken $173 from her savings account, resigned her clerk job at a downtown firm the day before she vanished and told coworkers she was going to Chicago. Although she seemed to have left willingly, police still searched for her.

Detectives checked marriage-license bureaus in all 50 states but found no evidence that Beverly had married. And although the Sharpmans had family in Chicago, those relatives reported that they hadn't seen or heard from Beverly.

Investgators:

If you have any information about this case please contact;
Agency Name: Philadelphia Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Detective Valarie Miller-Robinson
Phone Number: 209-937-8377
Agency Case Number: 2010-16-028710
NCME Case Number: NCMC1148707
NamUs Case Number: MP #7034
Please refer to these numbers when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Information Source(s)
NCMEC
NamUs
The Doe Network: Beverly Sharpman - 2220DFPA

Bumping

Beverly Sharpman

• 

Beverly, circa 1947

• Missing Since 09/11/1947
• Missing From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Classification Endangered Runaway
• Sex Female
• Race White
• Date of Birth 12/10/1930 (89)
• Age 16 years old
• Height and Weight 5'3, 135 pounds
• Clothing/Jewelry Description A gray or brown suit/dress, flesh-colored stockings, brown or black shoes, and earrings.
• Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Beverly's nickname is Babe.

Details of Disappearance

Beverly was in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 11, 1947. The day before her disappearance, she appeared to be troubled and told her mother she had something to tell her. She then changed her mind and decided not to confide in her mother, and her mother did not press her about it.

Beverly went to Overbrook High School to register for her senior year classes the next day, then vanished. She was last seen carrying a suitcase at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Station at 24th and Chestnut Streets.

That same evening, she sent a telegram to her parents reading: "Got married. Leaving town. Will not be back. Don't worry. Babe." Authorities discovered Beverly had withdrawn $173 from her savings account, quit her clerking job, and told her coworkers she was going to Chicago, Illinois.

Investigators checked marriage license bureaus in all states, but did not find evidence that Beverly married as she said in her telegram. In addition, her loved ones stated she was not dating anyone at the time of her disappearance.

There were many reported sightings of Beverly in cities all over the United States after September 1947, but none of the accounts were confirmed. Her parents published advertisements in newspapers appealing for her to contact them, but she never did.

One theory is that she ran away because of an illegitimate pregnancy, which carried a heavy social stigma in the 1940s, but there is no evidence to support this. It is highly unusual for a teen runaway to vanish completely and never contact any of her loved ones again, as Beverly apparently did.

Beverly's parents are both deceased. Her disappearance has never been closed and it remains unsolved.


Investigating Agency

• Philadelphia Police Department 215-685-3252

Source Information

• The Philadelphia Daily News
• The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
• The Doe Network
• NamUs
• Beverly Sharpman – The Charley Project

This article says the grandmother was heartbroken almost 6 months after and that her disappearance contributed to her death. The article called it a disappearance.

Ads were still running in the newspapers 5 years later. This one in Pennsylvania offered a $1,000 reward. Chester Times September 9, 1952.