Nancy Lynn Kirkpatrick was 16 and living with her grandmother in Columbia Falls, Montana, when she disappeared on April 21, 1976. She had just returned from a brief stay in juvenile lockup after running away and was last seen walking home from a babysitting job in her neighborhood; she never reached her grandmother’s house.

Known as a chronic runaway who had been found in places such as Seattle and Los Angeles before returning home, Nancy’s disappearance raised particular concern and foul play has been suspected. A reported sighting by a teacher in Anchorage, Alaska, seven years later was never confirmed. Another nearby teenager, Robyn Pettinato, vanished less than a year earlier, but no definitive link has been established.

The case remains unsolved and occasional unconfirmed tips have surfaced. If anyone has information about Nancy’s whereabouts in 1976 or afterward, please share what is known with investigators.