Pages

▼

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Rachael Elizabeth Garden-Missing 33 Years


Photo Credit: CharleyProject.org
ON March 22, 1980 in Newton, New Hampshire, 15 year old Rachel Garden went to Rowe's Corner Market on Route 108, and purchased chewing gum and a pack of cigarettes. She paid and left between 9-9:30 PM. and began walking to a friends house located on North Main Street. It was Saturday night, and she planned to spend the night there. She never arrived and hasn't been seen since.
All of her personal belongings were left behind, including all of her clothes and her dental retainer. Her family also just purchased a horse, and they say Rachel would have never left the him unattended.

Rachel was 5'1" and 100 lbs. at the time of her disappearance. She had light brown hair and hazel eyes, wore a dental retainer and had pierced ears. She was last seen wearing a blue two tone ski parka, jeans, a plaid shirt with silver threads and brown lace up shoes, along with a dark blue tote bag with the word "Things" on it.
 
Rachael's disappearance was first treated as a runaway case, and as a result her story was in the shadows during the most critical time frame: the first 48 hours. Months and months later, her classmates didn't even realize she was gone, they thought she simply dropped out of school. No announcements were made, no friends interviewed for months-not even any fliers were put up. People in her small town didn't even know she was missing! With Rachel being a typical teenager, feeling squashed by her parents' rules, having to baby sit, hanging out with the rebellious cool kids at school, police felt she left to start a new life.
I believe this is the reason she still is not found-they wasted a year of this investigation sweeping her under the rug as a runaway.
Some years later, two witnesses reported seeing Rachael with three young males in a dark car by Rowe's Market, the place where she was last sighted at. She was known to associate with these men before, despite their dishonorable reputation. These three young men are not unknown to residents, and are referred to as "bad news". Police have followed leads and searched for her body in certain areas in New Hampshire, but have found nothing.
Rowe's Corner Market, where Rachel was last seen, is still open to this day. (Photo Credits: "New Hampshire" Flickr.com/groups).
 
Now, I would like to think that Rachel did runaway to start a new life elsewhere, but that theory does not add up with her story. I think it was amateur of the police department back then to assume that she was a runaway just because she was a teenager being rebellious. Most teens are at 15. It is my belief that Rachel went off with the three young men that night. Her friends, family and even the store clerk describe Rachael as outgoing, friendly and a sister who adored her siblings. She also didn't take anything with her,and you would think a young girl who is planning to runaway would. It seems that Rachael may have left with these boys, perhaps to one of the local high school hang outs, like the pond or woods near Maple Ave to smoke, drink or party. At her age, the rebellious lifestyle may have seemed alluring, and besides, most kids will do anything to fit in with the cool crowd. Most likely, something went wrong after that, whether accidental or on purpose, we may never know unless someone comes forward who was with her on the night of March 22, 1980.

As of August 2013, Newton Police Department confirmed that they received a tip in August that may or may not shed more light into what happened to Rachel that March night in 1980. Although police believe Rachel is deceased, the search still pushes on. They are following every tip, from premonitions to a search with dogs at a local pond. They have searched by air and water, in hopes of recovering possible skeletal remains. However, they have never charged anyone with her disappearance. They have developed a strong person of interest, but without Rachel, investigators do not have enough information to put it all together. They are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to Rachel's whereabouts, as well as "Do You Remember Me?" signs showing Rachel's picture and information.

Thirty-three years later, Rachael's file still sits and her family still waits for answers. As of 2013, she would be 49 years-old in December. Her father has passed away, but the rest of her family searches on for the girl they loved.  It is very probable that Rachael is somewhere out there in the area, or that someone from this small town knows where she is. I doubt Rachael is far from her hometown, as she was so young. I think that may have been her downfall in the end-she may have put her trust in the wrong people who let her down in the end.
This is an age progression made of Rachel in 2013.

If you know ANYTHING about the disappearance of Rachel Elizabeth Garden, please contact:
 
Rockingham County Sheriff's Office:
603-679-2225
or
The Newton Police Deptartment
603-382-6774
Sources:
Charley Project:



at

2 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 11, 2017 at 1:23 PM

    Does anyone know who the three men were? That seems to be the key to this case and it seems convenient that no where on the internet can I find their names or anything about them. The only information is that they were seen talking to her and that they were trouble. One of them was arrested and the others had run ins with the law, but of what sort? Which man claimed to have killed her? Did they do it together? What are the details of his confession? All of this is skimmed over in every article that I have read and has me very distraught. I live in Newton and the fact that there isn't information on them is baffling.

    ReplyDelete
  2. lvgJuly 27, 2018 at 5:48 PM

    Right? Why are there no names?

    ReplyDelete