Bonnie Elzora Brashers, a 50-year-old woman, was last seen at her home in Freedom, California, on the morning of September 16, 1963. One of her daughters spoke with her at 9:30 a.m., but when the children returned from school that afternoon, she was gone. Her husband, 61-year-old Nathaniel "Nathan" Brashers, informed their children that Bonnie had simply walked down the road and had not come back. At the time of her disappearance, four of their nine children were still living at home.
Investigators found that Brashers had left all of her personal belongings behind, including her reading glasses and all three of the family's vehicles. The day after his wife's disappearance, Nathan Brashers also vanished. He left behind $77 in cash and a note addressed to his children that read, "This is all I can give you, I won't need it, so don't look for me." Like his wife, Nathan left all of his possessions, including his dentures, and did not take a vehicle. This led authorities to initially theorize a murder-suicide, prompting an extensive search of the area. The investigation into the family home yielded little evidence, as one of the children had washed all the family's clothes before the police could examine them. A search with a bloodhound was also unsuccessful as there was no adequate scent article for the dog to follow.
Nathan Brashers was located on October 5, 1963, in Freedom, California, and taken into custody. He maintained that his wife had just walked away and that he had traveled to Oregon to work in the apple orchards because he felt "left without a home." He was charged with deserting his two minor daughters, to which he pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Nathan had a known history of a violent temper and had previously threatened his wife. In 1958, he had been arrested for the murder of a neighbor after slitting the man's throat during an argument, but a grand jury failed to indict him, ruling it as self-defense. Years later, in 1980, he was charged with shooting a man at a mall, claiming self-defense in that incident as well.
At the time of her disappearance, Bonnie Brashers was 5'7" tall, weighed 170 pounds, and had brown hair and blue eyes. She had a mole between her breasts and a healed fracture on her lower right arm near the wrist. She was also recovering from a hernia operation and was scheduled to return to work within a week. Her case remains unsolved and is classified as an endangered missing person. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Department is the investigating agency.
Last Seen: Sep 16, 1963
