Jan Andre Cotta was 19 when she vanished from her family’s farm in Wall Township, New Jersey, on the night of June 26, 1973. She was last seen between 11:30 p.m. and midnight in the barn’s tack house by a brother and a friend. Shortly after, a vehicle was heard leaving the property and Jan was gone; she left all personal belongings behind and was reported missing the next day by her mother.

An accomplished equestrian and the oldest of eight children, Jan was five feet four inches and about 118 pounds with brown hair, blue eyes and a mole near the left side of her mouth. A letter she left behind revealed she had been five to seven months pregnant and mentioned the baby’s father only obliquely, plus a wish to give three favorite horses to a friend. In August 1973 an abandoned newborn was found at that friend’s farm, prompting speculation the infant might be connected, but later DNA testing showed the baby was not Jan’s.

Local, county, state and federal agencies have conducted extensive interviews and the Wall Township Police Department keeps the case open.