VA VA - Brenda Davidson, 13, Woodbridge, 4 March 1974

New Posts

P

PastTense

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2014
Messages
1,908
Reaction score
4,255
Virginia.

Lisa Davidson was just seven when her oldest sister Brenda disappeared. She remembers very little of that day. "My mom just told us that Lisa didn't come home from school," Lisa told Dateline. "I know they reported her missing, but nothing really happened after that." It was March 4, 1974 when Brenda was last seen. She was four days away from her 14th birthday, and was the eldest of five siblings...

When Lisa was in her early 20s, she began to grow more and more curious about the sister who disappeared all those years ago...What she discovered was several strings of rumors and theories, each the more puzzling than the next.

A woman at the local bus station in town told authorities she remembered a girl resembling Brenda purchasing a bus ticket the afternoon Brenda disappeared. But the woman couldn't recall the ticket's destination. A story later emerged that the woman also told police she took the young girl to the bank with her before the girl was set to board the bus, as she was nervous about the girl being at the station all alone.

There is also a record of two classmates of Brenda's saying they walked her to the bus station that day. Lisa tracked the boys, both now adults. Both told her they didn't walk Brenda to the station that day.
Click to expand...
http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/cold...sure-1974-disappearance-virginia-teen-n735441
 
I find it troubling that there are so many theories and stories around this girl's vanishing. That story about the woman esp seems off.
 
Center for Missing and Exploited Children Helps Woman Search for Sister Missing for 43 Years

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/l...or-Sister-Missing-for-43-Years-422875784.html

Rumors say Brenda snuck out of school and took a bus to run away, but there’s never been proof she bought a ticket or boarded a bus.

Lisa, her sister, said her parents felt helpless and grew frustrated with the investigation. One phone call between her mother and a detective still stings.
“He said that they ruled her as a runaway and that my mom was an unfit mother,” Lisa said.
 
After listening to the episode on Vanished Podcast, my heart just breaks for her sister who is so desperately trying to find answers. So many things about this cold case just does not add up.
 
I lived in Dale City Virginia. Which is part of Woodbridge. When I was 10 years old. I was walking in my subdivision.. It was 1974.. Two men pulled up to the corner where I was standing. One older man with gray hair was driving. A younger guy in the passenger seat. It was a dark blue or black late 60s early 70s model two door Chevy or Ford... The younger man was holding out Smarties candy out the window... And it was like slow motion I stood there and watched as the older guy .The driver came around to approach me from the back.. While the younger guy tried to entrance me with the candy...I snapped out of it quick and turned around and ran screaming back to my house. I never told my parents because I was afraid they'd never let me out by myself again...it's very possible Brenda was abducted. And it's possible these two guys were never caught. Til this day I worry about my kids. Always.
 
Sethannah said:
I lived in Dale City Virginia. Which is part of Woodbridge. When I was 10 years old. I was walking in my subdivision.. It was 1974.. Two men pulled up to the corner where I was standing. One older man with gray hair was driving. A younger guy in the passenger seat. It was a dark blue or black late 60s early 70s model two door Chevy or Ford... The younger man was holding out Smarties candy out the window... And it was like slow motion I stood there and watched as the older guy .The driver came around to approach me from the back.. While the younger guy tried to entrance me with the candy...I snapped out of it quick and turned around and ran screaming back to my house. I never told my parents because I was afraid they'd never let me out by myself again...it's very possible Brenda was abducted. And it's possible these two guys were never caught. Til this day I worry about my kids. Always.
Click to expand...


I am not questioning the validity of your post, but you should attempt to contact law enforcement to give them this information. If what you describe truly happened, LE would at least be interested in knowing some of the descriptions you so vividly recall. This info could possibly help reinforce a theory they have or may even bring a suspect to their attention that may not have been a person of interest for whatever reason. The MO that you describe could have been used by someone known to LE or someone even arrested locally for attempting to use that particular ruse, but was never tied to this specific case. Please at least e-mail or call the person in charge of her case and give them the same info you posted here. In cold cases like these, sometimes the smallest lead can break a case wide open. Contact Prince William County Police Department @ 703-792-6500, let me know if you need any help because I would be more than willing to help you contact them...Good Luck!
 
Brenda Sue Davidson – The Charley Project

Brenda Sue Davidson
  • brenda_sue_davidson_1.jpg
  • brenda_sue_davidson_2.jpg
  • brenda_sue_davidson_3.jpg
Brenda, circa 1974; Age-progression to age 57 (circa 2017)

  • Missing Since03/04/1974
  • Missing FromWoodbridge, Virginia
  • ClassificationEndangered Missing
  • Date of Birth03/08/1960 (58)
  • Age13 years old
  • Height and Weight5'7, 135 pounds
  • Clothing/Jewelry DescriptionA denim coat with a fur collar, and boots.
  • Distinguishing CharacteristicsCaucasian female. Brown hair, brown/green eyes.
Details of Disappearance
Brenda was last seen in Woodbridge, Virginia on March 4, 1974. She lived there with her parents and four younger siblings. According to her mother, she stole $100 from her father's wallet before she went to school. She didn't return home from school that day and has never been heard from again.

An employee at the local Greyhound bus station reported a young girl bought a bus ticket on the afternoon Brenda disappeared, but the witness couldn't remember whether the girl was Brenda, whether she actually boarded the bus, and where that bus was headed to. Brenda had reportedly spoken about wanting to run away to Florida. Two girls in her class at school did run away, but when they were found and brought home, Brenda wasn't with them.

Brenda's younger sister Lisa, who was seven years old in 1974, describes their father as an alcoholic who physically abused his children and may have sexually abused Brenda. She said their mother told contradictory stories about the circumstances of Brenda's disappearance, and she thinks it's possible Brenda did not run away and that her parents knew more about her case than they said.

Lisa's two older sisters, who were close to Brenda's age, recall little about the time Brenda disappeared. Lisa stated that after she went missing, the family never spoke of her again, and their parents didn't keep any of her belongings. Brenda's father died in 1985 and her mother in 2015.

It's possible that Brenda did run away, but it would be highly unusual for a runaway to be missing for this long without resurfacing or contacting loved ones. Lisa still hopes for answers in Brenda's case.
 
Brenda Sue Davidson
3634DFVA.jpg
3634DFVA1.jpg
3634DFVA2.jpg

The image on the right has been age-progressed to 57 years.

Name: Brenda Sue Davidson
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: March 4, 1974
Location Last Seen: Woodbridge, Prince William County, Virginia

Physical Description
Date of Birth: March 8, 1960
Age: 13 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'7"
Weight: 135 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown/green
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers
Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Denim jacket with fur collar.
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Boots

Circumstances of Disappearance
Brenda was last seen on March 4, 1974. There were reports of her boarding a bus at a bus station, but those accounts later proved unfounded.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Prince William County Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Detective Eugene Barnhart
Agency Phone Number: (703) 792-7264
Agency Case Number: Unknown
NCIC Case Number: Unknown
NamUs Case Number: 26739

Information Source(s)
NamUs
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
NBC 4
The Doe Network:
3634DFVA - Brenda Sue Davidson
 
This girl's disappearance is close in time and geographical area to several other disappearances of young girls. In particular, Sheila (12) and Katherine (10) Lyon who were abducted a year later in Wheaton, Maryland.
 
FEB 29, 2020
Hiker searching for answers in sister's 1974 disappearance
LD was 7 years old when her oldest sister Brenda Sue ran away from home on March 4, 1974. The family never heard from her again.

After years of talking with detectives, coordinating family DNA tests and sifting through interviews, LD, of Auburn, Kentucky, has stepped up her search to find her missing sister.

Last week, she took to the Appalachian Trail, which stretches almost 2,200 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. She plans to hike as much of the trail as she can, documenting the experience on YouTube in hopes of spreading the word of her mission to learn what happened to Brenda.

If she makes it as far as the Shenandoah Valley, her sister JB, of Maurertown, has agreed to hike a short part of the trail with her.

[...]
 
Sethannah said:
I lived in Dale City Virginia. Which is part of Woodbridge. When I was 10 years old. I was walking in my subdivision.. It was 1974.. Two men pulled up to the corner where I was standing. One older man with gray hair was driving. A younger guy in the passenger seat. It was a dark blue or black late 60s early 70s model two door Chevy or Ford... The younger man was holding out Smarties candy out the window... And it was like slow motion I stood there and watched as the older guy .The driver came around to approach me from the back.. While the younger guy tried to entrance me with the candy...I snapped out of it quick and turned around and ran screaming back to my house. I never told my parents because I was afraid they'd never let me out by myself again...it's very possible Brenda was abducted. And it's possible these two guys were never caught. Til this day I worry about my kids. Always.
Click to expand...


This is enlightening, and it is my hope you have contacted law enforcement.

I have been researching missing persons cases in the area between 1970 and 1991, and have reason to believe there was a SK operating in the Fairfax & Prince William areas, possibly even Loudoun & Fauquier, but had given some thought that it might actually be a duo of suspects.

Do you remember on what street in Dale City this happened? That would be incredibly helpful.
 
I just listened to the episode on Brenda from The Vanished podcast. It's a few years old now but the FB page her sister Lisa created is still active. Sounds like Lisa believes Brenda's father may have had a hand in the disappearance, but it also seems there is a chance that Brenda genuinely ran away. Her social security number hasn't been used since, but is there a way she could have got a new one and started a new life? Not an American so not sure how that works...
 
Brenda's NamUs profile was modified on 7/26/22
She currently has 6 rule outs/exclusions listed

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
www.namus.gov

UP14919
07/20/1990
Madison
IL

UP9302
12/23/1975
Broward
FL

UP7514
09/04/1979
Miami-Dade
FL

UP16314
06/16/1974
Palm Beach
FL

UP2128
08/14/1977
Snohomish
WA

UP8056
10/31/1979
Williamson
TX
 
I wonder if Lloyd Welch, Raymond Mileski, or others might have been involved in Brenda's disappearance.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Staff online

Members online

... and 233 more.
Total: 5,007 (members: 234, guests: 4,773)

Online statistics

Members online
234
Guests online
4,775
Total visitors
5,009
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
592,330
Messages
17,967,557
Members
228,748
Latest member
renenoelle
Back
Top