At the time, it was occupied by george sodder, his wife jennie, and nine of their ten children. The bodies of the other five children have never been found. The most sodders families were found in the usa in 1920. The sodder children mystery hints at foul play historic. Jun 14, 2016 mystery tuesday week 2 the sodder family. The family was told to leave the site untouched and that because it was christmas, the site would be inspected at a later date. Pennsylvania had the highest population of sodders families in 1840. Recently, a documentary filmmaker presented a theory involving a terrifying. On christmas eve, december 24, 1945, a fire broke out in the fayetteville, west virginia home of george and jennie sodder. The alternative explanation entertained by the sodder parents, the sodder children who survived the blaze, and an active network. Oct 11, 2017 time is running out for us, but we only want to know. Ilil boys a902 or 905 the family members immediately linked the image to the missing children and hired the services of detective c.
The local mafia had tried to hire him and he declined. The sodder children disappear up in smoke christmas time is usually a time to spend with family and celebrate. Billboard about the sodder children, who went missing on christmas eve, 1945. I did my family history starting at age 14 early 1990s. Welcome to the sitcoms online message boards forums. Apr 18, 2016 on christmas eve, 1945, the home of the sodder family of fayetteville, west virginia, burned to the ground. Dec 25, 2012 george sodder was born giorgio soddu in tula, sardinia in 1895, and immigrated to the united states in 1908, when he was.
Yes, the sodder family did face repercussions about the billboard. Strange events that night and afterward fueled speculation, which continues to this day, that the. See more ideas about mystery, true crime and strange events. The sodder children were excited on christmas eve 1945. The book is caled sourcebook because the authors hope readers will use this volume as a companion while they develop their own studies. Ive written six nonfiction books, the most recent is damnation island. Dorothy miles author of the missing sodder children. Today, sylvia sodder praxton is the only member of the family still alive. Case of the month for february 2015 comes from fayetteville, west virginia. George sodder, one week later, bulldozed five feet of dirt onto what remained of his property and the family members planted flowers as a memorial. On march 19, 2004, brianna maitland closed out her shift at the black lantern inn around 11.
Michael newton, the encyclopedia of unsolved crimes. Not one person witnessed seeing dorothy on the day of her disappearance and her family noted nothing unusual about her behavior. In 1910, aged 25yearsold, dorothy vanished from the busy streets of new york city and was never seen again. This was 100% of all the recorded sodderss in the usa. Im not sure how long the sodders had lived there, but according to census information, they were first listed in fayetteville, wv in 1940. On christmas eve, december 24, 1945, a fire destroyed the sodder home in fayetteville, west virginia, united states. Mystery of the missing sodder children strange unexplained mysteries paranormal, true crime books. May 12, 2020 a woman, somewhat familiar with the sodder family, stated to have clearly seen the five children go by in a strange car while the fire was blazing. The case of the missing sodder children is such an inexplicable puzzle in great part because of the uncharacteristic actions of the authorities. The children who went up in smoke history smithsonian. The following are a few theories from the children and grandchildren of george and jennie sodder. Tinsley was hired to investigate the photo and where it came from, but he vanished and was never seen again. Dec 20, 2018 the official explanation of the disappearance of the sodder childrenmaurice, martha, louis, jennie, and betty, aged 5 to 14is that they died in a fire that consumed the sodder family house on christmas eve 1945. But the sodder family didnt make a lot of noise about janutolo, and since they.
One of the prominent theories is that sodder was a staunch critic of benito mussolini, the infamous italian dictator. Dorothy miles is the author of the missing sodder children 3. The sodder children disappearance is quite an interesting case. Again, the sodder s claim about this artifact werent taken seriously. Cursory policing, planted evidence, italian politics, and small town crime all play into the picture. Aug 06, 20 mama sodder did her own experiments with pork and chicken bones in the familys stove and could never incinerate them. It was one of the most haunting mysteries to ever occur in america. The citizens of fayetteville, west virginia awoke to tragedy on christmas day, 1945. He came to the us when he was alongside an older brother, who returned to italy as soon as he and george had cleared customs at ellis island. Their theories on the sodder case range from a fire caused by an.
Authorities thought the children died, but surviving family members werent so sure. The mysterious disappearance of these children will keep you. The billboard maintained by the sodder family with pictures of the five children believed to be missing. On christmas eve, 1945, the sodder family home burned down. On christmas eve 1945, five of the sodder children maurice, 14. His authored and coauthored book chapters include a chapter with r. The sodder family mystery an article by douglas macgowan 3rd august 2019 5 min read. The fbi was called in, but no records remain of their investigation.
It is in many ways a model which many of us would be well advised to follow. Oct 05, 2016 one christmas eve in 1945, the sodder family goes to sleep, the kids dreaming of santa. Jan 19, 2016 explore jewieandfuzzs board sodder family mystery, followed by. Beneath the facade of the image of the american dream, some small towns harbor secrets that alter the dream into a nightmare. Dec 23, 2017 an earlymorning fire erupted in the sodder household on christmas day 1945, and the fate of five children inside has been disputed ever since. O n christmas eve, 1945 in fayetteville, west virginia, the sodder family went to bed for the last time together. The fire department initially blamed the blaze on faulty wiring. But for the sodder family with their home located in fayetteville, west virginia, u.
Every theory that was brought forth that could be investigated was. On christmas eve, 1945, the sodder family of fayetteville, w. An older brother who had accompanied him to ellis island immediately. In 1945, a christmas eve fire gutted the sodder house with five children inside. Posted on june 14, 2016 june 14, 2016 by richterkat9. Her parents hoped that the story and memory of the sodder children could remain alive, and sylvia has faithfully organized a memorial meeting in fayetteville every year. The enduring mystery of the sodder childrens christmas. In fact, it seems to border on becoming a legend, due to its bizarre twists and turns. In 1968, a photo, supposedly from louis sodder, was mailed to the surviving family. Dec 07, 2017 the chilling story of the sodder children, who vanished after their home went up in flames, leaves more questions than answers. Internet sleuths awaken 61yearold christmas mystery archives. The oldest two sons and daughter and the youngest daughter survived, but the five middle children were missing and no trace of their remains were found. Jul 24, 2019 on christmas eve in 1945, a terrible fire engulfed the sodder familys home in fayetteville, west virginia.
In 1840 there was 1 sodders family living in pennsylvania. You can check out his book on the mysterious disappearance of the sodder. On christmas eve 1945, a fire erupted around 1 am destroying the sodder home to the ground. George and jennie sodder and their 9 kids went to bed that night and a fire supposedly claimed the live of 5 of the 9 sodder children but mystery has surrounded their deaths and suggestions of illegal and suspicious activity plague this case to this day. Their father george tried valiantly to save them, but he couldnt reenter the house. While the majority of the family members were able to flee the burning home, five of the 10 children disappeared into a cloud of smoke and ashes. The sodder house burned to the ground less than fortyfive minutes after the fire started. What happened to the sodder children after the fire. Douglas macgowan is the author of four published books on historic true crime as well as many articles for magazines and newspapers around the world. During the fire, george, jennie, and four of the nine children escaped. Mystery tuesday week 2 the sodder family historical junk. The cause was traced to defective wiring despite the fact that christmas tree lights were still on after the fire started. George, jennie, and four of their nine children escaped.
Theories floated include kgbinterference, drug overdose, ufo, gravity anomalies, and the russian version of the yeti. Does anybody have any information or theories on the sodder. It is the story of what began as a simple christmas that turned into a neverending nightmare for a family of italian immigrants. One christmas eve in 1945, the sodder family goes to sleep, the kids dreaming of santa. The unexplained, tragic disappearance of the five sodder children. He has published eight books in the genre of historic true crime. They went missing on dec 24, 1945 after a fire destroyed their familys house. Some reports stated that officials could not find any trace of the missing childrens remains in the ashes, but other reports maintain that some bone fragments and possible human organs were. He and his wife suspected arson, leading to theories that the children had been taken by the sicilian mafia, perhaps in. Home mysteries unsolved disappearances the sodder family mystery. May 16, 2018 on christmas eve, 1945, the sodder family home burned down. The sodder children photograph appalachian history.
On christmas eve, december 24, 1945, a fire destroyed the sodder home in fayetteville, west. The mysterious disappearance of these children will keep. How believable is it that the fire department was called somewhere around 1. On christmas eve 1945, a fire consumed a twostory hous. I also want to get the early bird books newsletter featuring great deals. Louis sodder, 9 years old on december 25, 1945 his birthday was in 5 days. This is a book about the process of research about families. Dec 09, 2016 in 1968 the surviving members of the sodder family received a strange photograph with a message printed on its back. Martha lee sodder, 12 years old on december 25, 1945. Technology has changed greatly in the last couple years. This is the billboard the family put up starting in 1952. George sodder, the family patriarch, was an italian immigrant who was born under the name giorgio soddu in tula, sardinia, italy in 1895.
This case is so bizarre that it sounds like it was right up unsolved mysteries alley, but theres one comment here from someone claiming to be a friend of the sodder family who says that um actually did try to get in touch with the surviving members of the family at some point in order to do the story, but that they turned them down. And so, as father george sodder and his two elder sons, john, 23, and george jr, 16, slept soundly upstairs, wiped out from a day of hard labour on the family farm, the younger kids stayed up and. Again, the sodders claim about this artifact werent taken seriously. Dorothy was born into a wealthy family, she was a highly regarded heiress and socialite and an aspiring writer. George, jennie, and four of their children escaped, but five remained.
George and jennie were both home along with nine out of their ten children. The sodders family name was found in the usa, the uk, and scotland between 1840 and 1920. The same insurance salesman who threatened the sodder family. By morning, their house is in ashes and five young children have vanished. You can find more about this case below in the resource section. Taking a look at the arson case of the missing sodder children.
Its focus is on epistemology in family studies the origin, nature, and limits of knowledge about families an on how we can develop more effective theories and methods to advance that knowledge. The family was never told that anything remains were found. It remains one of vermonts most enduring mysteries. To this day, one prevailing theory involves the italian mafia. Mystery of the missing sodder children cool interesting news. A fire had consumed the home of george and jennie sodder, leaving five of the couples 10 children. British journal of developmental psychology this revision of a bestseller remains the only singlevolume book to. Around the same time, another man tried to sell the family life insurance. Jan, 2019 the story of the sodder family is one that has drawn massive scrutiny yet has bamboozled investigators and researchers for almost 70 years now. In a sense, the theory may be truemorris may have been trying to. Dec 23, 2005 on christmas eve, 1945, the sodder family of fayetteville, w. At a diner fifty miles west of fayetteville, a waitress would later say that she had served breakfast to the five children on christmas morning but she couldnt recall how many adults were with them. The chilling story of the sodder children who went up in smoke. Strangest unsolved mysteries of all time readers digest.
She also read a report of another local house that burnt to the ground and seven full skeletons were found in the remains a fact that bothered her greatly and fueled her suspicions of foul play further. The iconic small town in america symbolizes the perfect american dream. He has served as referee for numerous journals in family relations and public health and is an associate editor for the canadian journal of public health, journal of comparative family. On december, 24, 1945, a fire destroyed the sodder family s home in fayetteville, west virginia, united states.
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