《(Real) Unsolved Mysteries》the sodder children
Advertisement
The official explanation of the disappearance of the Sodder children—Maurice, Martha, Louis, Jennie, and Betty, aged 5 to 14—is that they died in a fire that consumed the Sodder family house on Christmas Eve 1945. The alternative explanation entertained by the Sodder parents, the Sodder children who survived the blaze, and an active network of amateur sleuths, is that the children were kidnapped from the burning home as retribution against the family.
George and Jennie Sodder were both Italian immigrants, although only George, who immigrated when he was 13, spent an appreciable amount of time in his home country. The couple was a shining example of the American dream; George went from working railroads in Pennsylvania to owning a small trucking company in West Virginia. He and his wife had 10 children and lived in a two-story home just north of Fayetteville, where many Italian immigrants and their descendants had settled.
George was many things—a hard worker, a dedicated family man—but he never shied away from sharing his beliefs. He frequently discussed his disapproval of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, who was seen by some pre-world war II Italian Americans as a model of strength who had made Italy great again. Arguments with other Italian Americans were common, and the family claimed that during the war years, George was the subject of threats.
On Christmas Eve 1945, the family was celebrating with nine of their 10 children. War was over, which meant that eldest son Joe would soon return from the army. Daughter Marion had bought presents for the youngest Sodder siblings with income from a new job. At night, five of the Sodder children retired to the upstairs attic for bed.
In the middle of night, around 1 a.m., Jennie Sodder awoke to a bang on the roof followed by a rolling noise. She drifted back to sleep, but awoke 30 minutes later to the smell of smoke. It wasn't long before she discovered a fire burning from a fuse box in George's office. The Christmas lights still twinkled in the living room downstairs, and the children were still asleep in the attic.
Advertisement
George, Jennie, Marion, two-year-old Sylvia, and two of the older Sodder boys escaped the house; one of these boys, John Sodder, initially claimed that he went upstairs to wake his siblings. He later changed his account, saying he had only called up to them.
The fire could not have occurred at a more disastrous time. It was Christmas and the middle of the night; the town of Fayetteville was shut down. Many local men were still in the military, and the fire department was barely staffed.
In addition, a series of mysterious misfortunes made rescue impossible. A high ladder, usually stored against an external wall, had vanished. The water in the water barrel was frozen and the phone line was down. George Sodder tried to start his trucks, so he could park below the attic window, climb upon the roof and rescue the children. But the engines wouldn't start, despite working fine earlier that week. Desperately, George climbed the walls and broke open an attic window, cutting his arm in the process. Even still, he could not reach the upstairs bedroom. Heartbroken, the Sodder family watched as their house and, they assumed, their five children burned through the night.
The fire department didn't arrive until eight o'clock the following morning. one reason for the lateness? Fayetteville's fire chief F.J. Morris, who could not drive his own department's fire truck. A cursory two-hour examination ensued, even though fire investigations often lasted days, or even weeks. No bones were found, and the Sodders were told their children must have burned away completely. Later, George Sodder, unable to endure the sight of his ruined home, used a bulldozer to bury what remained under five feet of dirt.
In the coming weeks, the Sodders came to believe their children had, in fact, been kidnapped—perhaps by mafia members, who resented George's anti-mussolini rants. The missing house ladder was found tossed into a nearby ravine. Investigators concluded the fire was the result of faulty wiring, even though George recently had an electrician rewire the house and the Christmas lights remained on as the fire burned. A nearby hotel owner claimed to have hosted strange lodgers traveling with a set of children. After chatting with a local crematorium employee, Jennie Sodder determined there was no way the children's bones could have been incinerated.
Advertisement
The Sodders hired a private investigator, who soon unearthed a shocking lead. Fayetteville's fire chief F.J. Morris had apparently found a heart among the ashes of the house. he secretly packed the heart into a box and then buried it. The tip was initially confessed to a minister, who confirmed the account to George Sodder.
Many point to this bizarre twist as evidence that Morris was indeed trying to convince the Sodders that their children had died in the fire, throwing them off of the youngsters' true fate. In a sense, the theory may be true—Morris may have been trying to convince the Sodders that their children died that night. But it wasn't because he was covering up a kidnapping. Rather, he was covering up his own incompetence.
By the chief's own admission, he could not drive his department's fire truck. The short two-hour investigation on Christmas morning was hardly adequate. And George Sodder may well have buried the Sodder children's remains too deeply when he bulldozed dirt over the smoldering ruins of the house.
When confronted with the accusation, Morris admitted to the story. He took Sodder to the spot where he buried the remains. Indeed, a box was buried in the ground with some flesh inside, but a local funeral director declared it was fresh beef liver that had never been exposed to extreme heat.
The Sodders themselves never abandoned the theory that their children had been kidnapped. Billboards and advertisements asked after their fates. In 1967, a photo was sent to the Sodders, claiming to portray a now grown little Louis, although this may have been a cruel trick played on a family whose tragic story had by then become national news. Although multiple follow-ups on various tips have yielded little to no substantive developments, the kidnapping theory lingers to this day.
Advertisement
Sunflower : [A sunflower based litRPG]
Hello. I am a sunflower. Are you a sunflower too? Well, it doesn't really matter. Today is a calm day. The wind is warm. I do not know why I am alive, but do you want to look at the sun together with me? - I am a sunflower. [Updates Sundays]
8 225Hero's Call
A young man gets a second chance after a life altering injury. A chance to be more than he was. A chance to answer the Hero's Call *I'm scheduling initial releases Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday at 6:00 pm PST; this will continue until I run out of chapters already written but will try and write far enough forward to keep up until the story is complete.
8 142Liber Nominum Universalia
In this world there are things and beings who roam freely in the corners of our visions and places where the light of the sun and moon do not reach. There are things that raindrops have never touched, lands where humans may rarely set foot. And there are those whose names have been forgotten. Maeno Ayumu wanted to be one of the majority who lived without the knowledge of such things. But one summer, a pocketbook and a black cat opened the doors to the Other Side- doors he could no longer keep locked. And thus begins his journey towards learning forgotten names and forging unlikely bonds, so that those who live in darkness may never fade forgotten. Cover picture taken by Julissa Helmuth
8 73W.E. WORLD EVOLOVERS
God? Big bang? World Evolvers? Where do we come from? How did earth come to be? Humans are the most aware and unaware animal known to exist. Do we lack chemicals from the periodic table to complete our genetics to the point of no disease? The origin of all life becomes unveiled as a troubled young telepathic student finds his true identity.
8 699I Need You (Min Yoongi X Depressed Reader)
*Trigger Warning*"I think I love you. I know you think everything in life is pointless and unfair but I want to change your mind. I want to show you what it's like to be happy."
8 78SimpleMinded
"You can't do nothing for yourself?" She shakes her head while looking at her feet, "Look at me and answer me with your words."She slowly looks up, "N-No S-Sir." I walk pass her and she keeps her head down, "Don't just stand there, follow me. I'm taking you back, I didn't sign up for this. I was told to watch over a woman, but I wasn't told that the woman couldn't do anything for herself. Your basically a kid in a grown woman body." I look back at her from the corner of my eye and see a tear sliding down her face. "Are you crying? Why? You couldn't have gotten attached that quick." She keeps her head down and I groan, "Ugh, please stop crying." She wipes her face and sniffle, "Why are you crying?" "Because the old man promised me that you would take care of me. He lied to me, you're taking me back to that place." I throw my head back and close my eyes shut. By old man she means my father. "Okay, okay, okay. Stop crying, I'm not taking you back." ££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££Niall Andrews is the son of a man who saves people that have been kidnapped. These people go missing from days to years. Niall is building up his own company to compete against his dad. As soon as Niall company starts growing, his father pushes a woman on him to take care of. Haven Posh has been in a basement since she was a baby. She was kidnapped months after she was born. Niall's dad is the person to find Haven and save her, but none of Haven family are around for her to go back to. Not only that, Haven can't do anything for herself. The only thing she can do is clean herself and read, but don't know what any of the words mean or what she's reading.What happens when Haven ends up in Niall's care?Cover By: @ihavenocluesoo
8 77