Melissa Highsmith Part 1: The Woman with White Gloves
The Vanished Podcast14 Marras 2022

Melissa Highsmith Part 1: The Woman with White Gloves

On August 18, 1971, a classified ad was published for a single day in the Fort Worth, Texas newspaper, the "Fort Worth Star-Telegram." The ad read, "Babysitter wanted from 8 to 3:30 days, Spanish Gate apartments, call after 3 pm" with a phone number listed. On August 23, 1971, a woman who said her name was Ruth Johnson came to the door of Alta Highsmith, who had placed the ad, and said she was there to pick up Alta's 21-month-old daughter, Melissa Highsmith. Alta's roommate gave the baby to the woman named Ruth, who promised to return her that afternoon. Melissa Highsmith has never been seen again. The story of Melissa's abduction is a tale we will unfold for you with exclusive interviews, new information, and questions that seem as though they should be easy to answer.

UPDATE: In September, the Highsmith family contacted us about covering Melissa Highsmith’s story. We interviewed multiple family members for a two-episode series. We were already aware of possible DNA connections when the episodes aired, but we held that information in confidence at the family’s request. When the Highsmith family notified us of the DNA matches found on a commercial DNA testing website in late October, we connected them with a family member of another missing person we covered this year, Lisa Jo Schiele. You may remember her from the Barb Cotton series. Lisa Jo Schiele is a clinical laboratory scientist and amateur genealogist. We felt that Lisa’s expertise in the area could possibly assist the Highsmith family in finding Melissa. We also notified law enforcement before the episodes aired that one family member had impersonated law enforcement by their own admission to us and that we had a professional due diligence to notify law enforcement in the event this family member attempted to contact any of the then-unknown DNA matches.

Days after our series aired, the news broke that the family believed they had located Melissa. We are always very grateful and happy to learn that a missing person has been found alive and safe, so we were thrilled to see the news that Lisa Jo Schiele had helped the Highsmith family find a woman they believe to be Melissa. The Fort Worth Police Department released the following statement: “The Fort Worth Police Department (FWPD) is overjoyed to hear about how the Highsmith’s use of 23andme led them to Melissa. The Fort Worth Police Department will be conducting official DNA testing to confirm Melissa’s identity, and the department will provide an update once the official results have come in. The FWPD Major Case Unit will be working with the Highsmith family to continue the investigation into Melissa’s disappearance. Even though the criminal statute of limitations expired 20 years after Melissa’s 18th birthday, the Fort Worth Police Department is committed to completing this investigation to uncover all of the available information concerning Melissa’s abduction that occurred 51 years ago.” We hope this decades-old cold case will be solved and look forward to what the police investigation reveals about the many questions that remain unanswered. We will wait for confirmation from law enforcement before commenting any further. We will always uphold the confidence of the families who entrust us with information, just as we did in Melissa’s case. We thank you all for continuing to share your treasured and much-loved missing family members with us. We are eternally grateful.

In May of 2023, the Fort Worth Police Department announced that DNA testing confirmed Melissa's identity. Despite the fact that the statute of limitations has expired, they asked that anyone with information please come forward.

If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.

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See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Mitchel Weiser and Bonnie Bickwit

Mitchel Weiser and Bonnie Bickwit

Mitchel and Bonnie left Narrowsburg, NY on July 27, 1973. They had planned to hitchhike to Watkins Glen, NY to see Summer Jam. Summer Jam was a concert that featured The Allman Brothers Band, The Grateful Dead and The Band. It is estimated that between 600,000 and 800,000 people attended the show. The two teens never made it back home to Brooklyn. Did they even make it to the concert? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Edward "John" Abeyta

Edward "John" Abeyta

John Abeyta disappeared on June 29, 2016 just 12 hours after he had gotten into a serious automobile accident just outside of Rocky Ford, Colorado. I interviewed his wife, Martha, and cousin, Leora to gain more insight into John's actions leading up to and after the accident. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Delano Wilson

Delano Wilson

On August 27, 2014, six-week old Delano Wilson vanished from Indianapolis, Indiana. His father called 911 and told a story of how he was robbed at gun-point and the perpetrators took off with Delano. Extensive searches were conducted but no trace of Delano has ever been found. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Adam Kellner

Adam Kellner

Adam Kellner was last seen on November 8, 2007 in his home in Stevenson Ranch, California. Adam had been diagnosed with schizophrenia years earlier when he was in college. At the time of his disappearance, he was living with his mother, Sherrill Britton, and his stepfather. He lived a very isolated life and rarely left home. He simply vanished and no trace of Adam has ever been found. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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26 Heinä 20161h 9min

Noah Brandon Davis Part 1

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Twenty-four year old, Noah Davis, vanished from Ringgold, Georgia in July of 2014. The truck that he was driving was found across state lines in East Ridge, Tennessee. I interviewed his brother, Joshua Wright, for the show. He has gone to great lengths to find Noah despite a strained relationship with the Catoosa County Sheriff's Department.July 2021 Update- On July 28, 2021, the Catoosa County Sheriff's Office announced that remains found in a remote area of the county have been identified as Noah Davis. The cause and manner of death are undetermined.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Paul Baker Part 2

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Paul Baker Part 1

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Paul Baker disappeared from his home in Beaufort, South Carolina on March 5, 1987. I interviewed his sister, Nina Hernandez, for the show. She was just 6 years old when Paul went missing. She was removed from the home after Paul disappeared because she was a victim of abuse at the hands of her stepmother, Susan Baker. Susan Baker is currently serving a 25 year sentence in Florida for the abduction of 7 month old Shannon Dedrick. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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