TN THELMA PAULINE MELTON: Missing from The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN - 25 Sep 1981 - Age 58

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483DFTN - Thelma Pauline Melton​

Name: Thelma Pauline Melton
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: September 25, 1981
Location Last Seen: the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee.

Physical Description​

Date of Birth: February 26, 1923
Age: 58 years old
Race: Unknown
Gender: Female
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 170-180 lbs.
Hair Color: Auburn
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: Polly, Pauline McAllister
Distinguishing Marks/Features: She wears eyeglasses. Medical Conditions: Melton was overweight, suffered from high blood pressure and nausea, and took medication for these ailments.

Identifiers​

Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Melton was last seen wearing a white and pink sleeveless striped blouse, tan polyester pants and tan, low cut, size 8 1/2 shoes with crepe soles. The left soul had a crack across the ball of the foot, which would have given distinctive footprints. She also had with her Virginia Slims cigarettes, a diamond studded white gold wristwatch and a wedding bank.
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance​

On September 25, 1981 Polly Melton was hiking Deep Creek Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park together with two friends. On the hike back she walked ahead of the others and disappeared. She had hiked this trail for almost 20 years.

Prior to hiking, Polly had prepared sauce for the spaghetti she intended to cook for supper and had taken a short nap. If she took money, identification, or medicine with her, these items had been concealed from her friends. Polly was barred from driving that summer, so she had no car keys.

No one in Polly's family could believe she would leave of her own free will and fear she met with foul play.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: National Park Service
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 828-497-1940
Agency E-Mail: nps_isb@nps.gov
Agency Case Number: 81-3356

Information Source(s)​

Smoky Mountain Disappearances
NamUs MP #14284
NPS
Find a Grave
"Unsolved Disappearances in the Great Smoky Mountains", by Juanitta Baldwin. 2001

483DFTN - Thelma Pauline Melton

www.doenetwork.org

THELMA PAULINE MELTON: Missing from The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN - 25 Sep 1981 - Age 58

On September 25, 1981 Polly Melton was hiking Deep Creek Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park together with two friends. On the hike back she walked ahead of the others and disappeared. She had hiked this trail for almost 20 years.

www.crimewatchers.net

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[Summer_Breeze]

https://www.wjhl.com/news/regional/tennessee/florida-woman-still-missing-in-smokies-after-being-last-seen-in-1981/

Florida woman still missing in Smokies after being last seen in 1981​

by: Hope McAlee
Posted: May 30, 2024 / 12:02 PM EDT
Updated: May 30, 2024 / 12:02 PM EDT

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WATE) — A Florida woman who was visiting the Smokies in 1981 is still missing more than 42 years after her disappearance.

Thelma Pauline Melton, 58, of Jacksonville, Florida, disappeared while hiking with two friends on September 25, 1981, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.

The group was hiking in the Deep Creek area around 4 p.m. when Melton sped up and walked ahead, according to her friends, who reported that she walked over a hill and out of view. Around 6 p.m., they reported her missing to a park ranger.

According to the Charley Project, which works to create profiles for missing persons whose cases have gone cold, Melton was familiar with the trail and there was no indication that anyone had ventured off the trail’s path.

When she went missing, Melton was wearing a sleeveless pink and white striped blouse, tan slacks, size 8 1/2 tan shoes, and eyeglasses. She was around 5’11” tall, 180 pounds with brown eyes and red hair. NamUs also stated that she was wearing a diamond-studded white gold wristwatch and a wedding band.

Not much is known of where Melton could have gone; however, the Charley Project reports Melton was grieving the death of her mother, but she was not considered to be suicidal.

If Melton were found alive today, she would be 101 years old.