Lost in the Confusion: The Haunting Disappearance of Joan Croft | SERIOUSLY STRANGE #136

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Woodward, Olin Croft, Texas Panhandle
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Geraldine Croft, Oklahoma City, Joan Croft, Woodward
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Woodward, Joan Croft, Olin Croft, CODIS

Notable quotes from "Lost in the Confusion: The Haunting Disappearance of Joan Croft | SERIOUSLY STRANGE #136"

• Of storm swept through Woodward estimated to have been a staggering 1.8 miles wide it traveled over 100 miles in total completely destroying 100 city blocks in Woodward alone…

  about Woodward · at 2:02

• Broomstick through her right calf neither girl needed Immediate life-saving Care they were made as comfortable as possible on cots in the hospital basement which was pressed…

  about Oklahoma City · at 3:38

• Because they bluffed their way through the situation the two men left with little Joan Croft and she has never been seen since in all the confusion of the hospital that night…

  about Joan Croft · at 4:50

• Had been transported to Oklahoma City he would not know Joan was missing for two days Geraldine was transported to Oklahoma City for treatment of her injuries and would not be…

  about Geraldine Croft · at 5:48

• Time stretched on reports of possible sightings came in less and less frequently Olin took Geraldine and moved out of town needing to move forward with life somehow certain…

  about Olin Croft · at 7:44

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Joan Croft — Person · Missing child / central subject of the case · 2 mentions · first at 4:54
  Her disappearance from the Woodward hospital after the 1947 tornado is the core mystery driving the episode narrative and investigation.
• Olin Croft — Person · Father of the missing child / injured survivor · 2 mentions · first at 2:56
  He is the parent searching for Joan, injured in the tornado, and later provides characterization of Joan in newspaper interviews; his delayed awareness (2 days) shapes the timeline.
• Geraldine Croft — Person · Sister / key witness child · 2 mentions · first at 5:22
  She was with Joan in the hospital basement and is one of the few confirmed witnesses placing Joan there; her limited description of the abductors constrains leads.

Companies & orgs

• FBI — Company · Referenced organization · 2 mentions
  Federal agency mentioned in the context of jurisdictional limitations in the search for Joan Croft.
  Been notified and were doing all they could to find her to make the situation even worse the FBI was unable to assist because they would not have jurisdiction unless there was positive proof of kidnapping.
• Red Cross — Company · Referenced organization · 1 mention · first at 6:06
  Humanitarian organization involved in the search efforts for Joan Croft after the tornado.
  To her father for almost a week later's family began looking for little Joan the day after the storm with no luck the Red Cross in the Oklahoma Highway Patrol had been notified…

Concepts & topics

• CODIS — Concept · Key argument · 1 mention · first at 8:26
  DNA database system used in recent years to try and find Joan Croft through familial DNA matching.
  Due to the fact that they have similar scars that her storm injuries could have produced Ruth's daughter has submitted DNA into the CODIS system as have two of Joan and…

Places & events

• Woodward — Place · Setting · 6 mentions · first at 0:59
  Primary location where the 1947 tornado caused significant destruction and where the Croft family tragedy occurred.
• Oklahoma City — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at 3:54
  Major city where injured victims, including the Croft family, were transported for medical treatment.
• Texas Panhandle — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 1:35
  Region where the tornado system began to form before causing destruction in Woodward.
  Panhandle and before the destruction had wound down at least six tornadoes would form and each travel at least part of a 220 mile distance between Amarillo Texas and Wichita…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 tornadoes are annual even monthly occurrences for residents of America's Tornado Alley a swath of the Southern Great Plains and Midwestern states characterized largely by their location in the center of a land mass weather fronts Collide here above the spring and summer sun-baked Earth spawning tornadoes as terrifying in their destructive power as they are unpredictable in the path they'll take throughout the country today's residents are well familiar with the sound of the formerly named civil defense Sirens put into use during World War II in case of attacks on American soil since 1970 Nationwide these sirens sound to alert the presence or imminent formation of a tornado in the area warning residents in the projected path of the storm to take immediate shelter until the danger has passed Woodward Oklahoma as well as many other parts of Tornado Alley would have undoubtedly benefited from this warning

1:08 system on April 9 1947. foreign system began to form in the Texas Panhandle and before the destruction had wound down at least six tornadoes would form and each travel at least part of a 220 mile distance between Amarillo Texas and Wichita Kansas at 8 42 PM local time what is now classified as an F5 tornado the largest and most destructive grade of storm swept through Woodward estimated to have been a staggering 1.8 miles wide it traveled over 100 miles in total completely destroying 100 city blocks in Woodward alone before losing strength outside the eastern part of the county it would prove to be the deadliest tornado to date in Oklahoma's history killing 116 and wounding over a thousand people the destruction would spur authorities to create an Implement a warning system to benefit the citizens in the future unfortunately for the Croft family of Woodward the aftermath of the tornado would be remembered a

2:48 little differently the Croft household was directly in the path of the storm father Olin Croft and daughters Geraldine 7 and Joan gay four were injured by the damage Olin was trapped underneath debris and took longer to remove from the rubble while both girls though injured were transported to the local hospital by a neighbor who was able to help the girl's mother cladicroft succumbed to her injuries while still trapped in the ruins of the family home the hospital was a buzzing Hub of activity and panic the girl's injuries were assessed though little Joan had what was described as a 10-inch Splinter perhaps as thick as a broomstick through her right calf neither girl needed Immediate life-saving Care they were made as comfortable as possible on cots in the hospital basement which was pressed into Service as an overflow waiting area for patients to be either treated or transported to Oklahoma City's Hospital

3:57 what transpired sometime in the next two hours is any parents worst nightmare from what few witness statements there were two men entered the hospital wearing work uniform clothing with what was described as a type of company logo on the shirt they asked a nurse where the Croft girls were upon locating them in the basement one picked up Little Joan and they walked out of the hospital with her telling the nurse that questioned them that they were taking her quote out of this mess to Washington for care a small town 60 miles away perhaps because the small Woodward hospital was overwhelmed or perhaps because they bluffed their way through the situation the two men left with little Joan Croft and she has never been seen since in all the confusion of the hospital that night only three people could definitively say they had seen Joan with her sister Geraldine in the the basement area the neighbor who

5:11 brought them to the hospital another neighbor who came through looking for her own family and the nurse who made the girls comfortable specifically remembered giving Joan a drink of water Geraldine was understandably confused and upset and was unable to give more than a passing description of the men who took her sister Joan for her part did protest that she wanted to stay with her sister though her father would later describe her in newspaper interviews as a bashful child around strangers olin's injuries were more substantial and he had been transported to Oklahoma City he would not know Joan was missing for two days Geraldine was transported to Oklahoma City for treatment of her injuries and would not be able to speak to her father for almost a week later's family began looking for little Joan the day after the storm with no luck the Red Cross in the Oklahoma Highway Patrol had been notified and were doing all they

6:13 could to find her to make the situation even worse the FBI was unable to assist because they would not have jurisdiction unless there was positive proof of kidnapping foreign newspapers Across the Nation carried the story of the storm and the missing girl in the following two months the search would widen out to include neighboring states New Mexico Colorado Kansas and Texas Highway patrols were notified of Jones disappearance complicating any search at the time was the nature of Transportation according to maps of the time only one major paved thoroughfare was constructed through Woodward other state roads may not have been paved three railroad lines branched out from the town as well Northeast to Missouri Northwest to Kansas and Southwest to Texas reports of children who could be shown came from both Kansas and Texas but came to nothing City officials began to fear she had died of her wounds and

7:20 was buried with an incorrect grave marker remarkably only three unidentified persons were buried After the Storm an adult an eight-year-old and a two-year-old Cletus sister Ruth viewed at least one deceased girl who was close in age and coloring to Joan but was sure the children were not her niece time stretched on reports of possible sightings came in less and less frequently Olin took Geraldine and moved out of town needing to move forward with life somehow certain that wherever Joan was she wasn't in Woodward newspapers in the region ran retrospective articles on the tornado's anniversary revisiting Jones Disappearance in the hope of drumming up new leads or at least keeping the lost little girl in the public Consciousness in recent years DNA testing has ruled out some women who suspect that they may be Joan partially due to the fact that they have similar scars that her storm injuries could have

8:26 produced Ruth's daughter has submitted DNA into the CODIS system as have two of Joan and geraldine's half-siblings in hope that one day familial DNA may give them answers Joan will turn 81 this October 28th perhaps she's still with us maybe there's still time who were the men who came to the hospital in the storm's wake looking for one little girl by name why did they take her where did they take her did she receive any medical treatment for her injuries did she grow up far from Oklahoma with a new name and a new family and perhaps a nagging suspicion and a dark corner of her mind that there was something she can't quite remember one thing is for certain no one will blame you for checking on your children just once more thank you for watching Remember You may not believe it but anything is possible in a world so seriously strange if you're into dark mysterious content you might really enjoy my series Greylock

9:37 the channel is linked in the description below but I also have plenty more content here for you that will have you on the edge of your seat or up making sure all your doors and windows are locked so be sure to subscribe to my channel now because you won't want to miss what's next and I'll see you next time

10:04 back to normal for residents of Berkshire County foreign

Questions about this episode

What is discussed in "Lost in the Confusion: The Haunting Disappearance of Joan Croft | SERIOUSLY STRANGE #136"?

In order: 0:00 Woodward, Olin Croft, Texas Panhandle; 3:00 Geraldine Croft, Oklahoma City, Joan Croft, Woodward; 6:00 Woodward, Joan Croft, Olin Croft, CODIS.

What is mentioned in this Rob Gavagan episode?

9 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Joan Croft, Woodward, Olin Croft, Geraldine Croft, Oklahoma City, Texas Panhandle. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Lost in the Confusion: The Haunting Disappearance of Joan Croft | SERIOUSLY STRANGE #136"?

The episode runs 10 min; the transcript is about 1,345 words in 10 timestamped sections.

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