Identified! TN - Gatlinburg, under OberGatlinburg tramway, WhtFem 30-45, UP1589, clothes, Dec'74 - Charlotte Roberta Henry

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astridxx said:
Did I see somewhere she had unshaven legs? Hard to say whether it was a "fad" (you know, hippie 1970s stuff) or if she was possibly homeless and unable to afford razors or have a place to shower.
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Good point. Yes, it did say that.


However, if she was living homeless in Gatlinburg, there are several places she could have gotten a free shower. Tucked behind some trees in downtown (maybe a mile from OberGatlinburg) is an art school called Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. There are showers in the main building (they aren't used now, but still exist in a building that went up in 1967) and the dorms are unlocked and have communal bathrooms. And I can tell you from experience, half of the artists who are mid project, look pretty similar to the average homeless person: dirty, messy hair, covered in clay or charcoal, etc.



In addition to Arrowmont, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park is right there, with an entrance on the outskirts of Gatlinburg. There are camping facilities and facilities for people hiking the park and the Appalachia Trail.


Also, she was wearing pantyhose. I don't know about any of you ladies (or gentlemen, if that's your thing), but I can't go to church and not get a run in my pantyhose, so I doubt they'd last long on someone who was homeless.
 
necco said:
Good point. Yes, it did say that.


However, if she was living homeless in Gatlinburg, there are several places she could have gotten a free shower. Tucked behind some trees in downtown (maybe a mile from OberGatlinburg) is an art school called Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. There are showers in the main building (they aren't used now, but still exist in a building that went up in 1967) and the dorms are unlocked and have communal bathrooms. And I can tell you from experience, half of the artists who are mid project, look pretty similar to the average homeless person: dirty, messy hair, covered in clay or charcoal, etc.



In addition to Arrowmont, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park is right there, with an entrance on the outskirts of Gatlinburg. There are camping facilities and facilities for people hiking the park and the Appalachia Trail.


Also, she was wearing pantyhose. I don't know about any of you ladies (or gentlemen, if that's your thing), but I can't go to church and not get a run in my pantyhose, so I doubt they'd last long on someone who was homeless.
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I was going to say pretty much the same thing. Many parks around there have facilities she could have at least hosed down in. My parents used to camp in Gatlinburg all the time.
 
Hate to think of it, but maybe someone found her unconscious or deceased and stole her boots and purse.....
 
That could have happened. I'm on my phone and it will take me forever to look up but what was the cause of death?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I didn't see a cause of death. I don't even think I saw a manner of death.


It should be noted, there are bears in Gatlinburg and they do occasionally wander into the city. In 2011, one broke into a candy shop and ate a bunch of the stock. Last year, one was seen wandering down the main strip and even used the crosswalk to cross the street.


It is possible, if she had a pack or a purse with food, that perhaps a bear took it. They rarely attack people unless they've got a cub or people are stupid enough to run TOWARDS them.

I don't think they eat shoes though.
 
If maybe this woman lived out of state; it could have taken her family a really long time to realize that she went missing. They may have even thought she just "fell out of touch" with the family. If she'd left TN to seek out employment and meant to return for the holidays, she never made it to where she was going. Three days before Christmas she decides to go skiing, hiking (or whatever she fancied)..and then passes away..
If she wasn't "due to arrive" at anyone's house, or (meant to show up to surprise people) until the holidays she could have stalled herself by staying somewhere until Christmas eve.
IF she was expected, and just didn't show they may not have reported her missing until after the Holidays. Sad to think that she wasn't expected at all, and no one would have been any the wiser to know she was in the area at the time and passed away.. :( JMO
 
If she'd been riding the chairlift in Gatlinburg rather than the tram I would think maybe her shoes fell off and she went to look for them, but the tram is completely enclosed except for windows above waist height that open. I have no explanation for a person being up there without shoes.
When I was in high school lots of us girls would wear pantyhose under our jeans to the football games because they gave added warmth without being bulky like long johns. So maybe Gatlinburg Gal wanted to be warm but still look fashionable. She may not have been in the habit of carrying a purse but you would think she might have ID on her, unless this is a homicide and whoever killed her took her ID with them. And her shoes for some unknown reason. Since cause of death was unable to be determined it's impossible to say if it was a natural death although her sitting position makes it more likely it was natural, unless she was doing drugs there with someone else, died, and they ran away panicked.
 
Clearly I missed something -- this UID didn't have shoes either?! What's with all these shoeless UIDs lately


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dogperson said:
If she'd been riding the chairlift in Gatlinburg rather than the tram I would think maybe her shoes fell off and she went to look for them, but the tram is completely enclosed except for windows above waist height that open. I have no explanation for a person being up there without shoes.
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Respectfully snipped.

Yeah, the tram is totally enclosed. (Pro tip: Don't wear a long flowy hippie skirt on the chairlift, I think I flashed 1/2 of Gatlinburg the first time I was there. Good thing I was wearing pretty skivvies.)

I also wonder if she could have hit her head, skiing or hiking, not bad enough to break her skull, but bad enough to end up with a brain bleed or to rupture an existing AVM or aneurysm. Maybe she took her ski stuff off, maybe even turned it in, felt sick, went out for some air (possibly without shoes if she was getting confused) sat down and died.

Her stuff could have ended up in lost and found or been stolen if it was in the lodge.
 
I've been trying to find pics of her clothing. Here's a vintage 70s Sweettree button-down sweater:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/104066006/vintage-hunter-green-sweettree-cardigan

The pants brand is Mayer-Lang-Marquis of Atlanta. I can't find a pic of 70s MLM pants, but the brand seems to be more fashionable--not ski or athletic clothes.

ETA: Here's an illustration of MLM knit pants from 1971:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...SEsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2p0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1845,6046558

My guess is that her coat (ILGWU with "permanent creases" which I'd guess were pleats) looked something like this, except dark blue:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-70s...=Vintage_Women_s_Clothing&hash=item5ad3ae00ea
 
FiveFelines said:
I've been trying to find pics of her clothing. Here's a vintage 70s Sweettree button-down sweater:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/104066006/vintage-hunter-green-sweettree-cardigan

The pants brand is Mayer-Lang-Marquis of Atlanta. I can't find a pic of 70s MLM pants, but the brand seems to be more fashionable--not ski or athletic clothes.

ETA: Here's an illustration of MLM knit pants from 1971:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...SEsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2p0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1845,6046558

My guess is that her coat (ILGWU with "permanent creases" which I'd guess were pleats) looked something like this, except dark blue:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-70s...=Vintage_Women_s_Clothing&hash=item5ad3ae00ea
Click to expand...


Great work! And oh, dontcha just love the stylish 87-cent panties at the second link? Haha!:floorlaugh:
 
astridxx said:
Did I see somewhere she had unshaven legs? Hard to say whether it was a "fad" (you know, hippie 1970s stuff) or if she was possibly homeless and unable to afford razors or have a place to shower.
Click to expand...

I feel like she was a middle-aged lady who had no reason to shave and so she just didn't.

If this is such a touristy area, maybe she was a solo tourist who walked away from her group tour and was not missed.
 
She could have sat down and taken her shoes off because her feet were sore, but then how did they get missing? Why would anyone or any kind of animal take her shoes? I could see an animal dragging a purse away if she had something edible in it, like a candy bar, etc. But shoes?
Her clothing sounds fairly nice, not really like I would expect a homeless person to wear, unless somebody gave it to her. I still can't understand hiking up underneath the tram without shoes though. It's a steep trail underneath it and wouldn't be too comfy without shoes on. Plus, if she walked any distance at all, I would expect it to tear and snag the foot part of the pantyhose she was wearing. It really seems like she just sat down, made herself comfy, and died right there. If she OD'd on something there must not have been any evidence found of any substances, unless of course as I mentioned earlier, someone else was with her doing drugs. It wouldn't be the first time another person ran away and abandoned someone who unexpectedly OD'd. But the missing shoes are still a puzzle.
 
Pseudonymph said:
I feel like she was a middle-aged lady who had no reason to shave and so she just didn't.

If this is such a touristy area, maybe she was a solo tourist who walked away from her group tour and was not missed.
Click to expand...

Yes, and I would also consider that it was colder weather (late fall/early winter) when she died. Lots of women don't shave then, especially if they know they won't be exposing their legs.
 
I think the clothing is nice--not fancy, but layered and put together. And not necessarily the kind of layering you see with homeless people, where they wear all of their clothing in cold weather. Knit pants, flowered top, cardigan, well-made coat, and pantyhose/socks (I used to dress this way when when I was younger--tights under jeans--to keep warm).

Another thought: I wonder if we're looking for a woman with a slightly pear-shaped body. Her pants were an XL (before the days of vanity sizing), and her bra was a 36A. So she would have be fairly flat-cheated.

Still puzzling on the lack of shoes.
 
Charlotte Rexroad? NamUS # 19498

Long shot but she only had slippers on when she was last seen in 1970. Maybe she just ran away from OH and was living a homeless/transient lifestyle...34 when she went missing.

ETA: seemed to have fairly nice-ish clothes on when last seen.
 
Some pics of people skiing in the area in the '60s and '70s. I suppose she could have gone skiing (if there was snow) in her clothing—her lack of shoes might have come from taking off her skis, although then you would expect to find them with her.

http://www.obergatlinburg.com/album/16/

Also, the tram wasn't built and opened until August 1973.
 
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