December 19, 1949. Juneau County, Wisconsin. A fire breaks out at the residence of four-year old Ricky Jean “Jeannie” Bryant, which burns her family’s farmhouse to the ground. While Jeannie’s remains cannot be found in the rubble, the authorities conclude that she died in the fire. As the years go by and Jeannie’s surviving siblings discuss what happened, they become troubled by a number of suspicious discrepancies, including the presence of an unidentified blonde woman who had stopped by the house while the fire was taking place. They begin to believe their mother and grandmother may have orchestrated Jeannie’s disappearance and that she could still be alive somewhere, so they manage to convince the authorities to open a new investigation. Did Ricky Jean Bryant actually die in the fire, or was the whole thing an elaborate set-up to fake her death? On this year’s final holiday-themed episode, “The Trail Went Child” tackles a truly unusual missing children’s case.
Additional Reading:
https://charleyproject.org/case/ricky-jean-bryant
https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/ricky-jean-bryant-taken-or-trapped
https://madison.com/news/local/siblings-hold-out-for-long-lost-sister-first-edition-mystery-of-long-lost-sister-may/article_2ab0f9e9-17ff-50c7-be36-446231e4934e.html
https://madison.com/mobile/article_565e45b1-c765-5869-a130-f911017c2e04.html
https://www.wiscnews.com/news/local/search-continues-for-ricky-jean-bryant/article_cb9c12bc-bd7c-530d-a558-80a143fb32e5.html
https://wi-homicide.com/content/area-cold-case-mysteries-keep-investigators-searching
https://www.newspapers.com/image/407566158/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/404441037/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/404442939/
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is doing a weekly livestream show on Vokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 377 – John Glasgow
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 376 – Monika Rizzo
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 375 – Vernon Shipman, Charles Glass, and Louise Davis Shumate
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 374 – Malakia Logan
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 373 – Tommy Gibson
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 372 – Anne Barber Dunlap
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 371 – Ginni Wood, Kelly Gaskins, and Ervin Williams
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 370 – Jeffrey Digman, Billy Ray Hargrove, and Mike Carmichael
The Trail Went Cold – Bonus Episode – Mysteries on the True Crime Express
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 369 – Update, Part 5
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 368 – Lynne Harper, Part 2
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 367 – Lynne Harper, Part 1
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 366 – Patricia Viola
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 365 – Phylicia Thomas and Jennifer Barziloski
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 364 – The Lane Bryant Shooting
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 363 – Heidi Seeman and Erica Botello
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 362 – Margaret Dash, Retha Hiers, and Donyelle Johnson
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 361 – Jack Brown
The Trail Went Cold – Episode 360 – Patrick Mullins
The Trail Went Cold – Bonus Episode – New Year New Binge
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