Richard Howard Missing Person Case

Mar 25, 2011

May 09, 2021

Richard

Howard

84

32

67 inches

130 lbs

White / Caucasian

Male

In the summer of 1974, a quiet day of fishing at the Pepacton Reservoir in Delaware County, New York, marked the last known moments of Richard Allen Howard's life as it was then known. On July 28, the 32-year-old man, a resident of Downsville, vanished without a trace, leaving behind an enduring mystery that has now spanned decades. Howard, described as a white male with brown hair and blue eyes, stood approximately 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighed around 130 pounds. The New York State Police from the Margaretville barracks opened an investigation into his disappearance, a case that has remained open and unsolved, filled with few leads and unanswered questions for his family and community. The circumstances surrounding Richard Howard's disappearance are sparse, with the only known detail being that he was fishing at the reservoir on the day he went missing. The Pepacton Reservoir, a vast and deep body of water, became the focal point of the initial search, but no sign of Howard or his belongings was ever recovered. Over the years, the investigation has yielded no significant developments, and the official narrative has been limited to the scant information available from the day he was last seen. His case has been entered into national missing persons databases, including NamUs, under the case number MP9866, in the hope that new information or evidence might one day surface. Decades have passed since Richard Howard was last seen, and his case has grown cold, yet it remains an active investigation with the New York State Police. For his family, the lack of resolution has meant a prolonged period of uncertainty and grief. The case is a somber reminder of the many individuals who disappear under perplexing circumstances, leaving behind a legacy of unanswered questions. The overview of this case is one of sudden and unexplained absence; a man engaged in a common pastime, who simply vanished from the edge of a reservoir, initiating a search that has yet to find its conclusion and a story that has yet to find its ending.

Jul 28, 1974

Downsville

New York

Delaware County

Downsville

9835

New York State Police - Margaretville

Margaretville

New York

Delaware County

12455

Craig Starr

Investigator

450 County Road 3, New York

6075617100

State

Law Enforcement

CMAR649

New York State Police - Margaretville

Brown

Blue

Blue

08/30/2026