MISSING PERSON
CASE #: 1965-2
Mary Jean Mclaughlin
Status:
Open
Date of Last Contact:
Date of Last Contact:
Jurisdiction:
Missing From:
Lake Odessa, Michigan
Summary:
Mary Jean McLaughlin was a 26-year-old mother of five who disappeared from Lake Odessa, Michigan in 1965. She visited her children at school and told her oldest son she was going away for a while but would return. She then traveled to her sister's home in Muskegon where she left a photograph and vanished. Her disappearance was not officially reported until August 2002, 37 years later. No record of her existence has been found since the mid-1960s, and there has been no activity on her social security number.
Vital Statistics
Circumstances of Disappearance:
Mary Jean McLaughlin, a mother of five, was last seen by her 8-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter when she visited them at their school in Lake Odessa, Michigan sometime in the second half of 1965. She told her son she was going away for a while but would eventually return. According to her sister, Mary Jean then traveled to her sister's home in Muskegon, Michigan, where she left a photograph and subsequently disappeared. She was possibly driving a dark blue Mercury Comet or Ford Falcon at the time of her disappearance.
Additional Details:
For 37 years, Mary Jean's family and extended relatives believed she had voluntarily abandoned them. Her oldest son, Donald McLaughlin, did not file a missing persons report until August 2002. When investigators finally reviewed the case, they discovered no public or private record of Mary Jean since the mid-1960s, and there has been no activity on her social security number since that time. Mary's marriage to her husband Carlon Arden McLaughlin was troubled, as noted by neighbors and family members. Mary Jean had lived with several foster families after her mother died in 1947, including the Blair family, which is why she sometimes used the surname Blair. She was a 1957 graduate of Lake Odessa High School (formerly known as Lakewood High School). Her husband Carlon McLaughlin died in January 2013. Family members posted messages on genealogy forums indicating a possible lead that she may have been living in Oregon under the name Hazel Shaw and possibly married to a Grant Shaw, though this was never confirmed.
Case Last Updated:
Timeline of Events
Mary Jean's son, Donald McLaughlin, filed a missing persons report for his mother, 37 years after her disappearance
Mary Jean McLaughlin visited her children at school in Lake Odessa and told her son she was going away for a while but would return
Mary Jean traveled to her sister's home in Muskegon and left a photograph, then disappeared
Associated Persons
Kathleen L. (Sibling) - Unknown
Donald M. (Child) - Living
Carlon Arden M. (Spouse) - Deceased
Family Tree
Why is this important?Missing person
Father
Mother
Paternal Grandfather
Paternal Grandmother
Maternal Grandfather
Maternal Grandmother
Paternal Grandfather's Mother
Paternal Grandfather's Father
Paternal Grandmother's Mother
Paternal Grandmother's Father
Maternal Grandfather's Mother
Maternal Grandfather's Father
Maternal Grandmother's Mother
Maternal Grandmother's Father
Paternal Grandfather's Mother
Paternal Grandfather's Father
Paternal Grandmother's Mother
Paternal Grandmother's Father
Maternal Grandfather's Mother
Maternal Grandfather's Father
Maternal Grandmother's Mother
Maternal Grandmother's Father
Paternal Grandfather
Paternal Grandmother
Maternal Grandfather
Maternal Grandmother
Father
Mother
Missing Person
Missing Person
Case Content Disclaimer: The details on this case page are sourced from numerous locations to include family, friends, news postings and government public releases. Solve the Case, Inc. does not guarantee the accuracy of any content as case pages are living documents that frequently update as case details expand.
