CO CO - Margaret 'Peggy' Beck, 16, Jefferson Co, 18 Aug 1963

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Margaret "Peggy" Beck
August 18, 1963

On August 18, 1963 Margaret "Peggy" Beck, a 16-year-old Girl Scout aide, was discovered dead at the Flying G Ranch Girl Scout camp, near Deckers. Beck had been sleeping alone in a tent near many other campers. Beck had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

If you have any possible information related to this case please contact Investigator Cheryl Moore at (303) 271-5625, or cmoore@jeffco.us.


http://www.co.jefferson.co.us/sheriff/sheriff_T62_R60.htm
 
Girl Scout counselor strangled in tent


Victim’s Name: Margaret “Peggy” Beck
Hometown: Denver
Investigative agency: Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
Date murdered: Aug. 18, 1963
Body found: Flying G Ranch Girl Scout camp near Deckers
Cause of death: Strangulation
Suspects: None identified

Her broken fingernails indicated to investigators that teenage Girl Scout camp counselor Margaret Beck desperately fought her attacker.

The FBI collected scrapings from under her fingernails after the 16-year-old’s body was found in her sleeping bag on Aug. 18, 1963, at a girl’s camp in the Pike National Forest.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/coldcases/2007/10/12/girl-scout-counselor-strangled-in-tent/
 
That evidence, collected 44 years ago, could lead to her killer, according to cold-case investigator Cheryl Moore of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Moore has submitted the DNA evidence for processing, she said.


The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office was not notified until eight hours after her body was discovered and valuable evidence was likely lost at the crime scene, then-Sheriff Harold Bray said at the time. Before authorities were called, camp officials thoroughly cleaned the tent, and her tent companion took all her belongings home.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/coldcases/2007/10/12/girl-scout-counselor-strangled-in-tent/
 
That evidence, collected 44 years ago, could lead to her killer, according to cold-case investigator Cheryl Moore of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Moore has submitted the DNA evidence for processing, she said.


The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office was not notified until eight hours after her body was discovered and valuable evidence was likely lost at the crime scene, then-Sheriff Harold Bray said at the time. Before authorities were called, camp officials thoroughly cleaned the tent, and her tent companion took all her belongings home.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/coldcases/2007/10/12/girl-scout-counselor-strangled-in-tent/

Certainly cleaning a tent out where a woman was violently murdered and sending her belongings home was not SOP even in the 60's right?

Good grief.
 
There are two archived articles that are pay per view.

One talks about a posse calling off the search after her murder.

The other talks about 3 being questioned in relation to Peggy's murder. That's the one I'm interested in.
 
I wonder WHO the camp officials that cleaned out the tent were? Think one of them might be the culprit? Also, sound travels pretty darn far in the woods. As a counselor, she would have to be near enough to hear the other campers. I can't believe no one heard anything. Also, who would have known she would be in the tent alone that night, since it was not the usual routine.
 
Certainly cleaning a tent out where a woman was violently murdered and sending her belongings home was not SOP even in the 60's right?

Good grief.


In the book Tent Number Eight that was written by Gloyd McCoy about the 1977 Oklahoma Girl Scout murders, his book also mentions the 1963 murder of Margaret “Peggy” Beck at a girl scout camp in Colorado.

McCoy wrote in his book that the staff at the Colorado girl scout camp believed Margaret “Peggy” Beck had died of natural causes when her body was found inside her tent on Sunday morning. Her tent had been cleaned and her personal belongings were removed before authorities were contacted eight hours later about her death. Scout officials were later shocked after the autopsy had revealed that Margaret “Peggy” Beck had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

Source:

https://books.google.com/books?id=u...g+g+girl+scout+camp+colorado&output=html_text


I would say that after Margaret’s body was found in her tent that Sunday morning, scout officials kept the news of her death quiet at that camp. And they waited until after all of the girl scouts had left the camp later on that day before her death was reported to the authorities.
 
Who killed Peggy Beck? Almost 57 years later, investigators now say they have a suspect

"Nearly 57 years later, the murder of Margaret "Peggy" Beck has been solved thanks to genetic genealogy testing, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said."

"Jefferson County will hold a news conference Thursday to reveal the identity of the suspect in the cold case homicide. It is slated to start at 10:30 a.m."

Cheryl Moore with Jeffco is such a hero. She's been just absolutely relentless in her pursuit of these cold cases.
 
Last edited:
I've been watching the press conference live. James Raymond Taylor has been ID'd as the suspect. They have an active arrest warrant for him, but have been unable to locate him for months. His last known location was the Las Vegas area in the 70s. I'll update with more details soon.

Edit:

James Raymond Taylor DOB 12.22.39

"Investigators said Taylor lived in Colorado in 1960 in the early 1960s and worked at a TV repair shop in Edgewater. It’s not clear when he left Colorado. Taylor was last seen in the Las Vegas area in 1976."

Genetic Genealogy Helps Solve 1963 Murder Of Margaret 'Peggy' Beck
 
Last edited:
1963 cold case murder of Margaret "Peggy" Beck solved through DNA testing

"Taylor also lived in Edgewater in the early 1960s and worked as a TV repairman. He was married at the time. It’s possible that Taylor knew of the Girl Scouts camp because he went in the area to test HAM radios that he built, Alberti said.

Nobody heard or saw anything the night Beck was killed in her tent, Alberti said. Beck’s tentmate was ill and in the infirmary that night, so Beck was sleeping alone. The tentmate discovered Beck’s body the following morning when Beck didn’t show up for breakfast."


Looking over local newspapers from 1963, I noticed that local scout troop camping trips were often reported on. It wasn't uncommon to see a story in the paper that announced a local Girl Scout troop's upcoming camping trip, including the location, dates, names and grade levels of campers. Anyone reading the paper could've easily figured out exactly where and when a bunch of girls would be camping.

I'm a Flying G alum myself and this case absolutely breaks my heart. I can understand why Peggy was so excited to be a counselor. I admired my counselors so much. My time at camp really built my confidence and played a big role in my growth as a young woman. The only thing I was scared of as a lil camper there was mountain lions. This sort of predator was absolutely unfathomable to me.
 

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