OR OR - Betty McCullough, 10, Silver Creek Falls, 21 June 1941

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Bumping up for Betty again. Gone 72 years.

 

[PFF]

http://www.doenetwork.org/2054dfor.html
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/mccullough_betty.html

 

[ellemo]

If her sisters were sleeping, where is the proof she went past them with a water bucket... sorry but I'm wondering if something happened during the night. Not being able to talk, she was a prime candidate for abuse too. Not saying this was necessarily by close family, but could have been a neighbour etc.

Perhaps this was something she did every morning? I assume that the shirt and shoes were missing so that is how they knew she was wearing them.

Was wearing a men's t-shirt and sisters shoes something normal to her or out of the ordinary? I understand that they were poor so perhaps she put on whatever was available. But if this was not her usual dress, why was she dressed that way?

Do they know what happened to the water bucket? Was that missing as well, or did they find it? I realized that no one here can answer these questions because there is so little information available, but if the niece or other family member does check this page one days ...

 

[GeoGirl]

I don't know what the area was like back then, probably her family lived closer to town. But if she wandered away anywhere close to where the falls are then I could see her going undiscovered for a long time. There are 10 falls all within a short distance from each other, which means that in the spring the water around there is fast and dangerous.

I hike in that area quite a bit and there are also places with steep drops and basalt chimneys that aren't accessible. Also, if she did wander into the woods, some of those areas nearby are pretty overgrown, even to this day.

It would be interesting to hear why the family thinks she was picked up by a passing motorist.

 

[PoirotryInMotion]

Betty McCullough
Missing since June 21, 1941 from Silver Creek Falls, Oregon
Classification: Missing

Vital Statistics


Age at Time of Disappearance: 10 years old
Clothing: A man’s shirt, shoes
Medical : She was subject to sudden bouts of illness and was also unable to hear or speak. She was diagnosed as only having a few years to live, possibly to her late teens.

Circumstances of Disappearance

Early morning, on June 21, 1941, Betty McCullough woke up, took a water bucket and quietly slipped by her two sleeping sisters. She was going to get water from the water pump outside. She was never seen again. No sign of her, no clues, nothing left behind.

Days following her disappearance, her father, other family members, neighbors and police scoured the area, searching for signs of her. Nothing was ever found. It is feared she may have been picked up by a passing motorist.

Source Information:
Salem News
The Doe Network: Case File 2054DFOR

LINK:

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2054dfor.html

BBM

In response to a poster above, apparently she didn't need to go to a nearby stream for water, but went to the outdoor pump (my dad's childhood home had one of those).

I wonder what was wrong with her that lead the doctors to believe she was terminal. I think there's a kind of genetic kidney disease that also causes deafness but I forget what it's called.

The last commenter on the article (Feb 17, 2010) mentioned the strong possibility she may have had Freeman Sheldon Syndrome--a very rare genetic condition (her son also has it). After reading up on it, seems it could be likely--she has the unique facial shape, with down-turned nose and receding chin--best seen in this family photo:



In the process of googling about this disease I came across an amazing, humbling, and rather inspiring blog written by a woman named Melissa who struggles with this same disease, and I wanted to share the link with you all:

http://melissabxoxo.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html

 

[Falcon500]

I don't mean to sound disrespectful towards this poor little girl but how do we know that she was really missing? What proof do we have that she walked by two sleeping sisters to go get water? Is there any verified accounts of a police search? Any surviving newspaper articles that document this case?

Obviously I am rather suspicious about the whole thing. There are a host of scenarios that exist in 1941 that could be used to explain away a missing child. A commitment to a state hospital, accidental death, natural death, homicide, or child abuse leading to death.

Has anyone come up with a single document that verifies this story?

 

[Richard]

The earliest news article I could find was the following one from 2006:

Salem-News.com Cold Case from June 21, 1941 Silver Falls Area.

Little Girl Lost in Silver Falls Area - Salem-News.Com


(SILVERTON) - The pain of losing a child never goes away. This case of ten-year-old Betty McCullough is a story passed on to family members since her disappearance in 1941.

Early morning, on June 21, 1941, little Betty woke up, slipped on a man’s shirt, put on her sister’s shoes, took a water bucket and quietly slipped by her two sleeping sisters. She was going to get water from the water pump outside. She was never seen again. No sign of her, no clues, nothing left behind. She just disappeared in an area where previous disappearances have occurred. Six years prior to this same area, a man named Herbert Brown went for a walk and was never seen again, and earlier in the century there was reported another mysterious disappearance in the same area.

Little Betty’s parents were picking berries in a nearby berry field in an area located by the old Methany store outside of Silver Falls, now referred to as Silver Creek Falls State Park.

A niece, Lela Taylor, who grew up hearing about this story, became curious as to what could have happened. The story haunted her. Upon returning back to the Salem area in 1992, she went to the archives at the library and found only two related stories in the Capital Journal (now The Statesman).


She has been slowly gathering the little information she could find. Through the years, immediate family members who lived though this tragedy were reluctant to talk. When they did, tears would flow, or anger would rise up, as they felt being poor migrant workers that not enough time was given by the authorities to continue the search. Lela has been fortunate enough to have met Tim King, of Salem-News, who became intrigued by this story and has offered to help her search for information on this 65-year-old cold case. Maybe somewhere in some morgue or law enforcement basement there are some unclaimed bones of a small child lying in a box. ....


LINK

http://www.salem-news.com/articles/august062006/little_betty_8206.php

 

[VikingBookLady]

It sounds as if no one witnessed Betty leaving the house that morning. Presumably the water bucket, shirt and shoes were not found in the house or anywhere else.

Were Betty and her 2 sisters alone in the house? The article says their parents were picking berries, but it's unclear whether the parents were already out of the house that morning.

My personal theory--please correct me if I'm way off base--is that Betty had a sudden bout of illness (epilepsy?) and died as a result. The article on Freeman Sheldon syndrome says a patient may have difficulty swallowing, so I wouldn't rule out accidental choking, either.

Betty's parents were described as migrant farmworkers. Could they have panicked and concealed Betty's death because they were afraid of being accused of abuse? Or did the sisters hide Betty's body and lie out of fear?

 

[La Louve]

Sounds like the parents were already out working. It was Summer Solstice, so it would have been light very early. I'm guessing that one of their "migrant farmworker" job was picking berries for the fruit packers. That area is prime berry-growing country. In June they'd be picking raspberries, strawberries, possibly even early blueberries.

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bumping

 

[Jake479]

Is there any point in trying to add her to NamUs given the fact that no agency is currently investigating the case?

 

[Mysteries1974]

Is there any point in trying to add her to NamUs given the fact that no agency is currently investigating the case?

I submitted Betty almost two years ago. The staff restricted my access to the case

 

[dogperson]

If there were other migrant farmworkers in the same area I wonder if someone assaulted Betty when they saw her alone that morning. Due to her medical issues/unnamed disability she might have seemed easier to accost than another girl or young woman might have been and then perhaps they killed her and concealed her in the area.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

Betty McCullough has been missing for 80 years.

 

[Richard]

Betty McCullough, age 10
Missing since 21 June 1941

Betty, circa 1941

• Missing Since 06/21/1941
• Missing From Silver Creek Falls, Oregon
• Classification Endangered Missing
• Sex Female
• Race White
• Age10 years old
• Height and Weight Unknown
• Clothing/Jewelry Description A man's shirt and her sister's shoes.
• Medical Conditions Betty was deaf and mute in 1941 and frequently suffered sudden bouts of illness. Doctors believed she would not live past her late teens.
• Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female.

Details of Disappearance

Betty was last seen at her family's Silver Creek Falls, Oregon on June 21, 1941. She woke up early in the morning before her sisters were awake, dressed, and took a bucket outside to get water from the nearby pump. Betty never returned home and has never been heard from again.

Other individuals had disappeared in the same area before. An adult man, Herbert Brown, disappeared from the vicinity six years prior to Betty's disappearance, and was never found. Photographs and vital statistics for him are unavailable. Early in the 20th century, another person also disappeared from the Silver Creek Falls area.

Betty's family members were migrant workers in 1941, and were picking berries at the time she disappeared. Her case remains unsolved, but it is no longer being investigated by law enforcement due to the passage of time.

Investigating Agency

• None

Source Information

• The Salem News
• Betty McCullough – The Charley Project

 

[spartanx]

Poor little girl has been dead for longer than alive. It is more than certain that we will never know what happened to her, but at least find her remains so that the family could give her closure...
wherever you are little girl rest in peace

 

[Quoththeraven]

Details of Disappearance

Betty was last seen at her family's Silver Creek Falls, Oregon on June 21, 1941. She woke up early in the morning before her sisters were awake, dressed, and took a bucket outside to get water from the nearby pump. Betty never returned home and has never been heard from again.

One article stated she was picking berries with her parents and wandered off. No articles that I found mentioned the circumstances above.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

Betty McCullough – The Charley Project