Sharon Gallegos "Little Miss Nobody"

On July 21, 1960, 4-year-old Sharon Gallegos was with her cousins in the alley behind her home in Alamogordo, New Mexico. An old dark green 1950s Sedan  was pulled up to them. The woman who was described as obese with dirty blonde hair would ask Sharon to come with them so that they would "buy her candy and clothes". Sharon would refuse them and this angered the woman grabbing Sharon by the arm and dragged her to the car. They would take off quickly and be last seen turning west onto Fifth Street at high speed.

Police were notified and started working fast to find the girl. There was a search and roadblocks at the New Mexico-Texas border. Many cars were searched, but Sharron was never found.

Reportedly the woman had been harassing Sharon the following days to maybe weeks before her disappearance. On July 17th, the same woman was seen in her dark green sedan with two children inside a freckled-faced boy and a small girl. After church, she approached other attendees about Sharon and her mother.  On the 19th the woman knocked on the neighbor's doors and would ask the same questions giving the reason as she wanted to give the mother a job. 

Days prior to her disappearance Sharon's attitude changed. The girl who loved to do errands to the grocery store didn't want to do them anymore. She was more wary and skittish. When she would see the green sedan she would ask family members to pick her up if they were to walk past it. 

On July 31, 1960, the body of a young girl was found in a shallow grave in Congress, Arizona 7 hours away. She was partially buried in a creekbed of a sand wash on Alamo Rd. 1.5 miles away from Highway 93. It was estimated she died 1 to 2 weeks earlier likely around the time she was kidnapped. Her cause of death is unknown, but it's believed to be murder. There was a bloody pocket knife nearby and evidence of burning.

At the time she was termed "Little Miss Nobody" as she was unidentified. Sharon was considered as a possible match in the beginning, but they believed the "jane doe" was older than her and so she was excluded. It wasn't until March of 2022 that Sharon was given back her name. 

At the time of her death, she was wearing a sun suit consisting of white shorts and a contrasting blouse with a distinctive chain design or checkered design, and a pair of men's adult-size flip-flops that had been cut down to the victim's size. She was last seen wearing pink shorts and white shoes.

The suspects of the case were driving a 1951 or 1952 Dodge or Plymouth Sedan. The woman was short, overweight, blonde, wore glasses, and was in her 30's. The man was white, thin, with a long nose and straight, sandy-colored hair.


SOURCES:
Find a Grave
Doe Network

Wikipedia
Prescott News

Alamogordo Daily News July 22, 1960

Alamogordo Daily News July 24, 1960

Alamogordo Daily News August 3, 1960

Murder of Ronald Eugene Keith

 On October 16, 1969, Ronald Keith was last seen by his family around 11 p.m. His body would be found months later on Jan. 24, 1970, in a field on the 3000 block of South Lynnhaven Rd across from Plaza Middle School in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He had been shot to death. Ronald was known to travel to Tidewater cities, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake.

The spot he was found is not a field anymore and buildings occupy it.

SOURCES:

City of Virginia Beach

Disappearance of Alexander "Chicano" Walter Roberts

On July 29, 1960, 12-year-old Alexander Roberts was last seen at his uncles home on the 1300 block of Brill in Pheonix, Arizona. It's unknown where he was heading when he left his uncles home. At this time he was living with his aunt on the 6400 block of West Cavalier in Pheonix. His mother was living in San Francisco, California and his father lived in Glendale, Arizona. He also had family members in Texas he may have tried to visit. Alexander may have met foul play as he was never seen again.

Alexander is a Hispanic male and was 12-years-old at the time. He may go by Alex and Chicano. He was 4'11" to 5'1" at the time and 100 lbs. He has sandy brown hair and brown eyes. He has a scar under his left eye. He was wearing a white cotton short-sleeved t-shirt, blue levis, brown leather hightop shoes, a watch with a brown leather band, and carrying a brown wallet.

SOURCES:
NamUs
Charley Project

Murder of Alva Jean Parris

On June 10, 1960 9-year-old Alva Jean Parris left her home in Baltimore County, Maryland around 9 a.m. Her aunt only lived a few blocks away from her. An 11-year-old girl playing in her front yard was the last one to see her playing at a play yard around 4:30 pm. Alva never arrived or went to her aunt's house.

Five days later Alva's body was found in a shallow grave near Essex and on the border of Baltimore. Her body had been covered with linoleum, tree branches a bit of dirt and lye had been used on her body. She was found in some dense woods near an abandoned farm. Her cause of death is unknown, it didn't seem she died to stabbing or shooting. She seemed to have died at the time she went missing.

SOURCES:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17235968/alva_jean/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17235535/alva_jean_autopsy_1/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17235968/alva_jean/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17235153/alva_jean/
https://coldcasesmaps.com/coldcase/alva-jean-parris/
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27188304/alva-jean-parris

Disappearance of Iva Mildred Foss

59-year-old Iva Foss was reported missing on November 20, 1960, by her husband. She was last seen in Johnstown, New York driving her green 1952 or 1953 Ford Sedan with New Hamshire license plates. It was later found dumped on the side of a street in Johnstown.

It's believed that Iva was shot during an altercation in a wools/goods manufacturing shop with a former boyfriend's wife. The body was supposedly driven to Groton, New Hampshire and disposed of in the Inactive Palermo Mica Mines. This seems unlikely to investigators though.

Iva is a white female and was 59 at the time of her disappearance. She's  5'2" and 130 lbs. She has brown shoulder length hair. She was carrying a blue train case, wearing a long grey coat, and prescription glasses.

OTHER IMAGES:

Vehicle Iva was last seen driving. 

SOURCES:
https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/2711/details
http://charleyproject.org/case/iva-mildred-foss
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1794dfny.html

Disappearance of Henrietta Geck Cruz Avila

Photo on right is age progression of her to 75 years old. 

In the spring of 1960 17 year old Henrietta Geck Cruz Avila met 24 year old Merle Avila. A month later they married and three months after that she decided to leave. The two had been living in Santa Ana, California together.

Merle stated that one day she had packed up all her stuff and had left him. She did not get in contact with her family though so by August 10, 1960 first her father reported her missing. Merle had claimed to have  spotted Henrietta on a bench in Long Beach, California on August 20. On the 27th her mother got a collect call by someone who identified themselves as Henrietta, but they had hung up. Later that day her parents got a telegram from "Henrietta" saying she had found a job and wouldn't return to her husband. It confirmed to have been a woman who called, but she had given a false address.

In 1961 a week before Christmas mysteriously Henrietta's underclothing and belt was found on the trunk of her fathers car. There was no sign of her and there was no more attempts of her trying to contact her parents. It's possible that foul play may be involved in this case.

Henrietta is a Hispanic female and was 17 years old at the time of her disappearance. She was 5" and 100 lbs. She has brown hair and brown eyes. She has a measles scar between her eyebrows. She would have had a gold chain and wedding bands with her.

SOURCES:
http://charleyproject.org/case/henrietta-geck-cruz-avila
https://oag.ca.gov/missing/person/henrietta-geck-cruz-avila
https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/34024

Murder of Alice Louise Lee

On August 29, 7 year old Alice Louise Lee was with her family in Swans bean field near Pleasant Hill, Oregon.  The family was picking green beans, but like most little kids Alice wanted to play instead. Around 10 a.m. Alice told her mother she was going to put her dolls by their lunch boxes located next to a dirt road that was next to the field.

Alice was familiar with the bean field. her family had been going there since she was born and she knew the area well. The Lees only lived a mile and a half away and was well known to the pickers and neighbors.

Her dolls were later found where the pickers had their lunch boxes, but Alice was no where in sight. A land, air and water search ensued for the girl. For eighteen days there was no sight of the girl. The owner of Swans Bean Field reported a odor and buzzards were circling an area.

A hallow hand dug grave was found and inside was the body of Alice. She had was nude and faced down, her corduroy jacket was tied tightly around her neck and the rest of her clothes were folded next to her. It was undetermined if she was sexually assaulted, but it is assumed she was.

It was assumed she may have been ambushed at the men's out house. That he carried her to the Slough where she was found. It's assumed that the suspect may have been someone familiar with the area maybe even one of the young Pickers that was hired. Transients were not hired by the Swans to pick the fields and only families and teenagers were hired.

Reading the articles in listed the crime scene being near Trent, Dexter, Pleasant Hills, and Eugene. I was not sure which area the bean field was closer to or if it was in any of these towns. The newest article though lists that it was near Pleasant Hill.

SOURCES:
http://projects.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/sevendays/25150290-35/wolfe-alice-veteto-murder-child.csp
http://projects.registerguard.com/rg/opinion/33470821-78/girls-murder-in-1960-still-being-investigated.html.csp
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/12171101/alice_lee_0/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19762559/alice_lee_murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19765260/alice_lee_murder/