Kenneth Michael Plaisted, 48, an attorney from New Holstein, Wisconsin, vanished on November 16, 1971, after traveling to Milwaukee with his wife for business and family visits. He was last seen leaving a meeting in the Plankinton Building and said he was heading to his daughter’s apartment near North 14th Street and West State Street; he never arrived. His car was later found parked beneath her window, unlocked, windows rolled down, keys missing, glove box open and rifled through, gifts undisturbed in the backseat, and his hat crushed in a gutter — but Kenneth himself was nowhere to be found.

Investigators discovered a $65,000 shortage in a trust he managed; the funds had been moved into his account to cover debts and reportedly spent before his disappearance, a fact that weakened any theory he fled with the money. Family members, including six children, maintain he would not have abandoned them.

A Calumet County court declared him legally dead in 1979, but the New Holstein Police Department continues to list the case as unsolved and the family seeks closure. If anyone has information about Kenneth’s movements on November 16, 1971, or the location of his vehicle that day, contact the New Holstein Police Department.