In the early autumn of 1973, a sense of unease settled over those who knew Marguerite Elizabeth Cardwell Peterson. The 31-year-old woman, also known as Margaret Elizabeth Petersen, was last seen in Canmore, Alberta, on September 16, 1973. A few days prior, on September 10, she had purchased a.303 rifle. This detail, combined with a history of personal struggles that included a previous suicide attempt, cast a somber light on her sudden absence. The initial belief by investigators was that she may have intended to harm herself. This theory gained traction when her vehicle was discovered abandoned on September 18, 1973. The car was found on a desolate road along the No. 1 Highway, about 12 miles east of Canmore, near a place ominously named Dead Man's Flats.
Inside the vehicle were her keys, purse, and other personal belongings, but Marguerite and the recently purchased rifle were nowhere to be found.
An intensive two-day search of the rugged surrounding area was launched by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Officers meticulously combed the landscape, searching for any sign of Marguerite or the firearm, but their efforts were in vain; no trace of her was uncovered. For years, her case grew cold, leaving her family with a painful void and a litany of unanswered questions. The prevailing theory remained that she had taken her own life, yet the absence of any remains left a sliver of uncertainty that would persist for decades. The silence surrounding her disappearance was a heavy burden for her loved ones to bear.
Decades later, the cold case was given a new breath of life. Marguerite's daughter, Shelley Sawatzky, who was a child at the time of her mother's disappearance, never gave up hope for answers. In 2010, the Canmore RCMP reopened the investigation, and Sawatzky provided a DNA sample in the hopes that it could be matched against unidentified remains. This renewed effort brought to light other details that complicated the initial suicide theory. A former roommate of Marguerite's recalled a man yelling at her in the hallway outside her suite on the night she vanished. This information raised new questions about the circumstances leading up to her disappearance. Sawatzky also authored a book about her mother's case, titled "Missing from Dead Man's Flats," which explored the discrepancies and unknowns surrounding the events of September 1973. The case of Marguerite Peterson is a poignant story of a woman who vanished under troubling circumstances, leaving behind a legacy of unanswered questions. While the initial investigation pointed towards a probable suicide, the lack of evidence and the emergence of new information have kept other possibilities alive. Her daughter's tireless search for the truth has ensured that her mother's story is not forgotten.Last Seen: Sep 16, 1973
