Paula Jean Welden, the eldest of four daughters born to renowned engineer, architect, and designer William Archibald Welden, vanished while hiking on Vermont’s Long Trail. It was December 1st, 1946, and a sophomore at Bennington College in North Bennington mysteriously disappeared. Her dormitory, Dewey House, one of the older dormitories on site, still stands today. Imagine, she left that door probably…
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Read most articles about Paula Welden Vanished, and you will see sensational remarks like “She turned a corner and vanished”.
Paula Jean Welden Vanished From The Long Trail
Paula Welden vanished, but not in the way we’ve been led to believe. It’s all a sham, a twisted tale. There’s no proof to back up the story of her vanishing into thin air. I must confess, I was left feeling let down. Delving into the archives of the time, there’s no mention of witnesses seeing Paula mysteriously disappear around a corner. So what really happened?
On that fateful Sunday, December 1st, around 2:45 PM, Louis Knapp, a local contractor from Bennington, gave a ride to a girl who matched Paula Welden’s description near Bennington College. The girl slipped while getting into his truck, but she remained silent. Knapp asked where she wanted to go, and she inquired if he was heading towards Route 9. He confirmed he was, as he lived in that direction. She mentioned she was headed to the Long Trail, and that was the last time Knapp saw her, walking towards the trail.
It wasn’t until Tuesday, December 3rd, 1946, that Knapp realised the girl he dropped off was missing, after reading about Paula’s disappearance in the newspaper. Knapp was never considered a suspect and made it back home for his Sunday lunch by 3:15 PM. Weeks later, Paula’s father confirmed that the person Knapp had given a ride to was wearing the same hood as his missing daughter.
Sightings of Paula Welden
There are reports of someone who looks like Paula taking a bus out of Bennington at 8:30 PM on a Sunday night. It’s not confirmed, but it lines up with the next reports. The next possible sighting of Paula would be on a Monday, but it’s unclear if it’s December 2nd or December 9th, 1946. I’m leaning towards December 9th. At 9:30 PM, Ora Telletier, a waitress at the Modern Restaurant, said she served a girl who looked like Paula. Telletier was certain it was Paula because her face had been in the paper all week. Telletier called the Bennington Evening Banner (The Banner) to report this, and they showed her a picture of Paula.
She confirmed it was the same girl she had served. The girl was with a heavyset, drunk, and abusive man. When the man went to pay the bill, the girl asked the waitress where she was. She said Fall River. The girl replied that she had arrived in Fall River on Monday, probably December 2nd, with £1000, but now she had none left. She needed to get back to Bennington. The waitress suggested that she go to the bus depot.
Police issue a description of a man
After interviewing the waitress, the Fall River police released a description of a man who was seen with two others, possibly going hiking. John Proud, the manager of Adams Clothes Store, mentioned selling clothes to a man fitting the description. The man claimed to be a student at a photography school in New Haven, Connecticut. Interestingly, Paula’s dad mentioned a student living next door who wanted to visit Paula at college, but no name or description was provided in the article.
If this information is accurate, the last known sighting before Paula Welden vanished was on December 9th at the restaurant. However, the last confirmed sighting was not when she was dropped off by Knapp. Ernie Whitman reported seeing Paula at 4 PM on Sunday, asking for directions to the Long Trail. He mentioned that three friends also saw her walking towards the trail. These sightings were supported by a group of hikers who saw her at Fuller Camp, a Long Trail shelter, on Sunday afternoon.
Why did Paula Welden vanish?
What went down with Paula Welden? The case of her disappearance is quite bizarre. It seems she did go hiking on the trail and might have caught a bus out of the area on Sunday night. Could she have been the girl at the restaurant with the drunk guy, who then possibly killed her upon discovering her money was missing? One thing’s certain: it’s nothing like the nonsense you’d find on fakeapedia.
