Her husband, Irving Conklin, reported he had taken a nap that afternoon and woke to find Gladys gone; he said she suffered from Alzheimer’s and tended to wander and that he usually padlocked the front gate but forgot that day. He believed she left between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. and said the money he withdrew from the joint account — $20,000 — was to pay for nursing-home placement.

Investigators noted a few unsettling details: the yard had been recently tilled when police arrived, and no one other than Irving had reportedly seen Gladys for roughly 24 hours before she was reported missing. Family and friends later speculated about Irving’s possible involvement, with his son suggesting a mercy killing to end Gladys’s suffering; Irving was never charged and died in 1988. Gladys had been Hayward’s first children’s librarian in 1950 and authored about 25 children’s books on insects and nature.

The disappearance remains unsolved and Gladys has not been seen since that January day. Did anyone know where Gladys spent her time or recall seeing her on January 9?