Unsolved Disappearances in the Great Smoky Mountains

by Juanitta Baldwin, Ester Grubb

The stories in this book are skillfully written, well-structured, and genuine true short stories. They focus on original oral accounts from the unique people who live in the Great Smoky Mountains. They embody their distinct ideals, beliefs, values and life patterns. There is wit, surprise, and, in some cases, wisdom. You will meet real moonshiners, people who have encountered unexplained events in their everyday lives, and tales of true love. The wild isolation of the Smokies nurtured independence, and a caring spirit. Despite the rapid changes in the region, these distinguishing characteristics still flourish. This book is a reassuring read. In the face of hardships of every persuasion - econmic, fire, flood, draught and plague - they tell us that people survive and enjoy their time on earth.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, Mystery, History, Crime, Adult

212 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Danessa Violette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flawless

This is a very Interesting and intriguing book that I could not put down! The author did an amazing job with research for this book, providing many facts, documents as well as some updates which gave this book a refreshing edge. This book is also extremely well written.

[Tom Byron · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very small book but I give it 4 stars as it is well researched and concise. It covers a few older cases of vanishings of people on or near the Appalachian trail. Most of the cases I heard about on Coast To Coast AM and wanted to look into more. One case in particular regards the eerie situation of a 16 year old girl that went on a field trip with her school classmates to The smoky mountains and never got back on the bus when it was time to leave, everyone remembered seeing her on the trail at one point or another but she has not been seen since. There is extra info here that is not available on the internet.Most of the stories covered have not been solved and probably never will be [ an exception -the book is old and still lists Eric Rudolph the Atlanta bomber as missing but of course since then he was arrested and is in prison].This material is the kind of True Unsolved Mysteries that keep me up at night wondering about.

[Alexis Chateau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stories, poor formating

I really enjoyed the stories, but the book wasn't properly formatted for my Kindle. There were some pages where every other line was just one word. I also think the authors should have just rewritten the stories to include the new information they found, instead of just leaving the old writing as is and then tacking on lengthy updates to the end, but I guess that's a personal preference. The book really made me think twice about how often I go hiking by myself in the woods and the desert, but ultimately, it will not deter me.

[Isabella (Belleand_books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not really sure how to rate this. I enjoyed reading more about the disappearances that have occurred within my mountains but also, some of them were just poorly managed. You really mean to tell me that cigarette butts and beer cans were not collected as interesting evidence to be tested for DNA? Also the story of the Edward McKinley was a real headache, a lot of it didn’t make sense honestly. I mean, overall, great short read and well-researched.

[Amy Ozment · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting Cases

Pro: The cases are interesting and thought-provoking.

Con: Reads more like a report and less like a narrative. Oftentimes whole words are missing in sentences, which is annoying. I’m nitpicking, but the writer lacks knowledge of proper semicolon usage and seems to have confused “passed” with “past.”

[Emily Ma · Rating 2 out of 5]

the most unengaging literature ive ever read

[Carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Certainly not what I expected. These could have been writings from a Wiki Page or a half hour podcast. They are unsolved, but didn't seem to have any personal connections.

[Michelle Spano · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this quick little book pretty much one evening after work-- it's a fast read without much TruTV-type fanfare. I guess I was only disappointed because these disappearances weren't more, oh, say X-Files or Twin Peaks black lodge-y. Did I expect that, No, but a warped mind can only hope. In fact, most of these sad stories were probable kidnappings, natural deaths, or in one case an accidental shooting. Also the stories are mostly long-ago disappearances. One excellent thing, however, this will not scare you away from the beauty and majesty of hiking/playing in national parks/the woods which is what reading The Ritual pretty much did to me. I've never yet hiked in these mountains, but reading the stories brought back beautiful drives through the Smokies when I lived in NC & visited a bf in TN for a while. Moral of the story is basically, a neat little reminder to stay safe & use caution because you never know who or what could be behind that rock or tree.

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this collection of disappearance stories fascinating. I grew up near the smokies. And love those mountains so much.
The authors did a thorough job researching and making inquiries for each story. Even written in 1998 and updated in 2009, the writing feels fresh and I am pretty sure most mysteries written about haven't changed much since the 2009 rewrite.

I would definitely recommend this book for those who grew up in the area or love to visit the smokies. It's heartbreaking but also a look into life there in the early 1900s to 1970s. Which is when most of the stories take place. It's a quick read and worth your time.

[Amber Massengill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I purchased this book over the weekend while camping in the smokies. It is a really quick read and was very interesting. The writing is okay, but the editing in the book is terrible. Please fix your editing problems before hitting the "publish" button. Seriously, please. Aside from that, I really liked the book and loved learning something about the mystery of the smoky mountains.

[Carolina · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is well-researched and mildly interesting if you know the Great Smoky Mountain National Park well enough (many of the stories capture your attention, but lack resolution because there isn't a real-life resolution); however, the writing, editing, and even the formatting of the book are lacking in a distracting way.

[Non-Fiction Fiend · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Review and Thoughts:

A fantastic book of mystery. I live in Knoxville Tennessee and The Great Smoky Mountains is close by and is something that is of beauty and amazement.

This place is also something of legend and stories. From Folklore to as this book details, mysteries that are unsolved.

The book goes into great detail about each case, the persons, the last situations and even guesses, and speculation of what really happened. Time never stops, and the mysteries forgotten by time hide away, but there are those few mysteries that are unknown and shocking today as it was then.

Each one of these disappearances are in reality mind numbing, weird and just strange.

Sadly, some of these cases are heart wrenching because families will never know or at least as of this writing, don't know what happened to their loved ones.

A fascinating exploration of these cases of persons lost and never found in one of the most beautiful places in the world, the Great Smokey Mountains.

Also, one of my favorite parts of this book is the story of The Unknown Boy found frozen to death, it explores in great detail the town and persons involved that went through to care for this young man's body, and how it took 60 years to finally identify him, and the real mystery of why it took 60 years.

A fantastic read for any lover of history or unsolved mysteries.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

[Ursula Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Several Strange Disappearances are Profiled

This book covers the disappearances of several people who went missing in the Great Smoky Mountains area. Several main stories are about people who vanished completely, with no trace of them ever found, despite extensive search and rescue efforts. A good deal of research went into this book and the author managed to contact relatives of some of the victim's families. A few other cases of willful disappearances are also mentioned. Few theories are put forth regarding the main cases, just facts. Unfortunately, disappearances happen in the outdoors happen more frequently than many know. The Missing 411 series covers many gone missing from National Parks. This was an interesting short read.

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was written in 1998, updated in 2001. A quick Google search indicates that 4 mysterious disappearances are still unsolved.
Eric Rudolph was captured in 2003. A solution to the 2 "puzzlers" was discovered years later.

So, this is a book you can buy at the gift shop in any Visitor Center in the Smokies. Looking back, I can see why I bought it. The cover makes it seem very interesting. However, you only get 7 stories. Some are written with great detail. Chapters 2,3, & 4 have a lot of information. The last 2, which IMO are the most interesting are lacking. The print is large as well. So, you don't really get much for your money ($13.95 is what I paid). I would say skip it.

[Sherry Tourtual · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love books about disappearances.

These books present the ultimate Unknown. They cause the best shivers. If you can stand it, you see the disappearance of a child through the parents' eyes. The child is never found, or might be found in bizarre circumstances. David Paulides researches disappearances, but only those that have no explanation. A far out explanation is portals. I saw through a camera in Mexico City, three teenagers were filming each other with their cells. One of them caught a grey alien grabbing the arm of his friend to pull him into a portal (also called vortex). This is going on all over the world. The boy twisted away from the aliens grip.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up on a short weekend trip to the Great Smoky Mountains and really enjoyed reading it. It's full of short stories about mysterious disappearances over the last 100 years in the park and each one really is compelling. It had a few typos, but was well researched and made me want to find out more about some of these cases. I was fascinated that I recognized a few of the location names within the park as places I'd visited, and would love (and be terrified) to go back knowing now the history.

[Heather Corinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting and quick read. For someone who has spent a decent amount of time in the ⛰️ Great Smoky Mountains, it is a bit unsettling. Many of the disappearances and events occurred in locations I have been. I purchased this copy in the Sugarlands Visitor Center.There are seven short stories in total. Printed in 1998 and updated in 2009. A simple writing style. Some of the unexplained endings could have explainable possibilities, but they're left to reader speculation. Overall, it was a great read if you visit the Smokies. I will be looking into Juanitta Baldwin's other books 📚

[Karina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really really wanted to rate this book higher. As a someone who loves anything true crime and visted the Smoky Mountains just a month prior, I found these stories to be very interesting. That being said, as a reader I can't rate it any higher. It's clear that it could've used more editing. While some stories are drawn out unnecessairly long with unneeded details, others are cut short with little to no explanation on important topics in certain stories. All in all, it was still a good read.

[Barbara S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the Inside Out

I thought the book was fascinating, colorful and fast paced. Living in my father's family's home towns in North Carolinian via Phildelphia I could relate to the areas described. I did think the last section of the book was not germaine to the first 3/4 of the books and should have been sperate books.

[Sophia Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a interesting and quick little read. I had never given too much thought to people disappearing into the Smokey Mountains, but it’s certainly chilling to think about. The story about Edward McKinley and the discovery of his frozen body was quite fascinating and I loved the amount of detail the authors put into such a small book.

[Audree · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s honestly really interesting to look at these cases, and know that these people may never be found again. Honestly this book made me realize I need to be aware of my surroundings in the mountains (and everywhere for that matter) this isn’t usually the type of books I enjoy but I liked this book a lot. Definitely gonna have to get the ghost lore one next time I go to Tennessee!

[Miss K · Rating 2 out of 5]

It hasn't been properly formatted to be readable as a digital book. Pages end mid-sentence, captions are incomplete, paragraphs run into paragraphs that never finished on previous pages. It's a shame because I really wanted to read it. I'd love to see an updated version written (this one seems to have been published in 2009) and formatted for e-book readers.

[Janet Wilson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Repetitive and poorly written. The characters whether real or not were stereotypical and insulting and not realistic. In fact I don't believe the book was non fiction but made up fiction written by someone with a poor imagination.

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this one in the cabin where I was for the eclipse. Fitting story for a fitting place. I enjoyed learning about the history. I wish that they could solve the mysteries and find closure for these people. Interesting read.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Needs work

There are interesting cases of mysterious disappearances in this book, however the grammar, punctuation, and layout lacks a lot to be desired. In some instances, I found it hard to understand due to all the errors.

[Jessica Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It had a few editing issues that were distracting (missing periods, title breaks that weren't in the bold or italics that others were). It was an interesting and easy read, overall. I am glad I decided to purchase it at the Cades Cove visitor center this week.

[Jacob Killough · Rating 5 out of 5]

good quick read.

It’s a good quick read that you can finish in a sitting or lay down and come right back to easily if your reading gets interrupted. The chapters are divided up into each unique story as well, making it enjoyable and easy to navigate. I highly recommend it

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super short book with short stories on the missing. Writing was a little clunky sometimes. The cases she chose were a bit strange. The book is missing and she had a good chunk going over the mystery of John Doe found frozen to death.

[Jessica D Kaufman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mildly interesting info, don't waste money on it

Written as though by a middle school book report, this book is not worth spending money on. Look on the internet for the info.