On May 10, 1967, thirteen-year-old Joel Joey Hoag left the south side of Hannibal, Missouri, with his eleven-year-old brother William Billy Hoag and their fourteen-year-old friend Edwin Craig Dowell. The boys were last seen in the late afternoon, with sightings placed between about 4:20 and 5:15 p.m., reportedly heading toward Murphy’s Cave near a Highway 79 construction project. They carried shovels, a flashlight and in some accounts a homemade lantern, details that match the image of a childhood exploration rather than a planned disappearance.

Joel had a strong interest in snakes, geology and exploration; the night before he vanished he and Billy had been punished for going to Murphy’s Cave without permission, and that day they were not supposed to leave their yard while their parents were out. Searchers concentrated on Murphy’s Cave and nearby cave systems and reportedly searched in the caves for nearly a month without finding the boys or any definitive evidence explaining what happened. The three became known locally as the Lost Boys of Hannibal; a memorial and a historical marker commemorate them.

No trace of Joel, Billy or Craig was found that conclusively explains their fate. If anyone knew the boys, their movements that afternoon, or the area around Murphy’s Cave in 1967, can you share what you remember?