Frances Blanche Groves, 39, was last seen on January 1, 1955, in Palm Springs, California. A Nebraska native, she had married at 14 and was mother to seven children. After her only son died in an accidental incident in 1950 her marriage broke down; she separated from her husband and later entered a relationship with James Franklin Phye while working at the Pueblo Ordnance Depot.

Frances and Phye moved to Palm Springs and were employed by a wealthy family. On the day she vanished the two went on a picnic; only Phye returned. No trace of Frances has been found since and the case remains unsolved. Phye later moved to Las Vegas, used an alias, and died by suicide in 1996 leaving a note whose contents were not made public. Authorities never developed enough evidence to link anyone to Frances’ disappearance.

Did anyone who knew Frances or the household where she and Phye worked have memories or information about that picnic or about her life in Palm Springs?