TN TN - Teresa 'Trenny' Lynn Gibson, 16, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, 8 Oct 1976

New Posts

Again, school trips were so different in the 1970s. I remember riding in parent's cars to field trips and even being allowed to go on a field trip with my cousin when I was visiting her school- no permission slip required. In 1980, I went on a field trip with my friend's class, in Virginia, with a school where not only was I NOT a student, but I didn't even live in the same state. All that was required was that her mom wrote a note to the teacher saying that I was staying with them. The teacher didn't even know my name. This was a middle school picnic, last day of school trip. Things were very different.

I say that because it doesn't surprise me that there were no permission slips signed. It does boggle me that the trip was spur of the moment and that kids weren't even dressed for conditions....and also, that other parents didn't seem to complain after the fact. Today the teachers would have been disciplined by the county and probably fired.
 
There was a story on local news wrcb in Chattanooga that Ohio authorities had a body they thought was from Tennessee. I thought of Trenny because of the similar features. I tried calling the # they listed but got no answer.
 
Magneto said:
Miss Coghill either a student or teacher stated she was approximately two hundred feet from Trenny and Miss Coghill states that "Trenny bent over on the trail as if looking at something near a flat rock and then disappeared to the right of the trail"

Anita Bounds who was with Trenny when she was last seen - The main group in which Anita was a part of stopped to rest and Trenny continued on " She was on the trail when I last saw her, I looked away and when I looked back Trenny was nowhere in sight. I should have been able to see her if she went up the trail"

"I checked the area where Trenny was last seen, no trail leading off, very rough small stream, brush and trees, yelled but no answer"

taken from Missing 411 Eastern United States book by David Paulides with more statements from fellow students, teachers, search/rescuers on that trail
Click to expand...

Recently read David Paulides "Missing" books and I thought of these types of disappearances also :sheesh:
 
Was she ultimately missed before or after the bus left? I got left behind on a field trip (75 miles from home) when I was 13. My friend said something while the bus was driving down the road and a teacher walked back (they'd only gone about a mile) and got me. It seemed like the teachers were a little negligent in not taking a head count before they took off. If something similar happened to Trenny then there might be some c.y.a. here.
 
I've searched online and can't find anyone ruling out Jane Doe found in 1979 in Bahia Honda Key, FL. Same age, height close, same weight and picture looks like her. I wouldn't rule out an abduction and human trafficking.
 
Here in Illinois I used to work as a Park Ranger - and, I have also hiked many of those trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Many trails are steep, with drop-offs of hundreds upon hundreds of feet. If you step off the trail, you could easily fall as many of the rocks are loose up there and small enough to move under a normal person's weight. I suspect her body was somewhere on the mountainside, possibly between boulders, etc. Anyway, as a Park Ranger, I cannot tell you how many people I wound up helping who had gone out hiking and were completely unprepared! Some people wouldn't bring the map that we gave everyone at the gate, many people had no idea how to read a map or orient themselves to it, some failed to bring water, and a significant number of people were not dressed for the weather. Those times when I was the Ranger-On-Duty (meaning I carried the emergency phones and communication equipment), I'd receive a need for assistance call by someone who was lost. I'd ask them to describe what the trail looked like, what natural features were there, etc. Then I'd tell them I was coming to help, and TO STAY IN PLACE! I'd say it's be like 9 times out of 10 the lost individuals would start walking after a few minutes (mostly it would take me at least 1/2 hour on my ATV to get to many parts of the park - but sometimes it could be longer; I let the lost hikers know this). Also, 99/100 times I knew exactly where the lost subject(s) were located, as when I would be on foot patrol I'd be out in the deep woods for maybe 14 hours per day on my shift (another Ranger would drop me off, and then pick me up later), including at night. So in fact, I knew those woods like the back of my hand. But yeah, it would then take me another hour or so to locate the hikers who refused to wait for me! Many times I would be trying to call them back, but they'd be on the phone with friends or relatives because they were scared of being lost, and would not answer my calls! Ugh, that used to drive me crazy, as I wanted to find those people as quickly as possible and help them! So if you're lost in the woods and a Park Ranger was contacted and is coming for you and they tell you to stay put, then don't move! It might take a while for them to get there, but they're definitely on the way and will be looking for you!
 
She definitely fell: Miss Coghill either a student or teacher stated she was approximately two hundred feet from Trenny and Miss Coghill states that "Trenny bent over on the trail as if looking at something near a flat rock and then disappeared to the right of the trail"

Anita Bounds who was with Trenny when she was last seen - The main group in which Anita was a part of stopped to rest and Trenny continued on "She was on the trail when I last saw her, I looked away and when I looked back Trenny was nowhere in sight. I should have been able to see her if she went up the trail"
 
galateasca said:
Again, school trips were so different in the 1970s. I remember riding in parent's cars to field trips and even being allowed to go on a field trip with my cousin when I was visiting her school- no permission slip required. In 1980, I went on a field trip with my friend's class, in Virginia, with a school where not only was I NOT a student, but I didn't even live in the same state. All that was required was that her mom wrote a note to the teacher saying that I was staying with them. The teacher didn't even know my name. This was a middle school picnic, last day of school trip. Things were very different.

I say that because it doesn't surprise me that there were no permission slips signed. It does boggle me that the trip was spur of the moment and that kids weren't even dressed for conditions....and also, that other parents didn't seem to complain after the fact. Today the teachers would have been disciplined by the county and probably fired.
Click to expand...
In the late 1980s, one of my junior-high teachers would sometimes walk my (small) class to the Wendy's a few blocks away if the weather was nice. I don't even think a teacher would be allowed to do that now. Heck, teachers have to get permission slips to show PG-13 movies nowadays!
 
SpanishMossAntiques said:
She definitely fell: Miss Coghill either a student or teacher stated she was approximately two hundred feet from Trenny and Miss Coghill states that "Trenny bent over on the trail as if looking at something near a flat rock and then disappeared to the right of the trail"

Anita Bounds who was with Trenny when she was last seen - The main group in which Anita was a part of stopped to rest and Trenny continued on "She was on the trail when I last saw her, I looked away and when I looked back Trenny was nowhere in sight. I should have been able to see her if she went up the trail"
Click to expand...

Or perhaps she was PUSHED
I would have polygraphed the girl who last saw her, in addition to the boy with the comb.

All amateur speculation and opinion.
 
SpanishMossAntiques said:
Here in Illinois I used to work as a Park Ranger - and, I have also hiked many of those trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Many trails are steep, with drop-offs of hundreds upon hundreds of feet. If you step off the trail, you could easily fall as many of the rocks are loose up there and small enough to move under a normal person's weight. I suspect her body was somewhere on the mountainside, possibly between boulders, etc. Anyway, as a Park Ranger, I cannot tell you how many people I wound up helping who had gone out hiking and were completely unprepared! Some people wouldn't bring the map that we gave everyone at the gate, many people had no idea how to read a map or orient themselves to it, some failed to bring water, and a significant number of people were not dressed for the weather. Those times when I was the Ranger-On-Duty (meaning I carried the emergency phones and communication equipment), I'd receive a need for assistance call by someone who was lost. I'd ask them to describe what the trail looked like, what natural features were there, etc. Then I'd tell them I was coming to help, and TO STAY IN PLACE! I'd say it's be like 9 times out of 10 the lost individuals would start walking after a few minutes (mostly it would take me at least 1/2 hour on my ATV to get to many parts of the park - but sometimes it could be longer; I let the lost hikers know this). Also, 99/100 times I knew exactly where the lost subject(s) were located, as when I would be on foot patrol I'd be out in the deep woods for maybe 14 hours per day on my shift (another Ranger would drop me off, and then pick me up later), including at night. So in fact, I knew those woods like the back of my hand. But yeah, it would then take me another hour or so to locate the hikers who refused to wait for me! Many times I would be trying to call them back, but they'd be on the phone with friends or relatives because they were scared of being lost, and would not answer my calls! Ugh, that used to drive me crazy, as I wanted to find those people as quickly as possible and help them! So if you're lost in the woods and a Park Ranger was contacted and is coming for you and they tell you to stay put, then don't move! It might take a while for them to get there, but they're definitely on the way and will be looking for you!
Click to expand...

Same in the harsh outback of Australia. People are always told to stay with your vehicle if you are lost or your car breaks down, but many people do not and are found dead miles away, of thirst or heat stroke, when the car has been located days before, when they were still alive.
 
There was actually a pretty widespread press coverage for Trenny back in 76.

One article says that her father suspected a classmate of hers that threatened to kill her before the class field trip because he tried to break into her house and Trenny's mom shot him.

I've never seen that detail before!
 
Two for the road said:
There was actually a pretty widespread press coverage for Trenny back in 76.

One article says that her father suspected a classmate of hers that threatened to kill her before the class field trip because he tried to break into her house and Trenny's mom shot him.

I've never seen that detail before!
Click to expand...

Could you please link that article? That is a very strange detail to learn about. Wonder how we could find out more?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Staff online

Members online

... and 166 more.
Total: 4,591 (members: 167, guests: 4,424)

Online statistics

Members online
167
Guests online
4,424
Total visitors
4,591
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
592,488
Messages
17,969,596
Members
228,786
Latest member
not_just_a_phase
Back
Top