4.18.2014

35 Years Later . . .




From The Star-Telegram in 1996:

Search continues in case of Hood County woman missing since '79
Author: BILL HANNA; Star-Telegram Writer
Article Text:
Nearly 17 years ago, Helen Holladay disappeared from her weekend home along the shores of Lake Granbury after neighbors reported seeing her in a bloody struggle with her husband, Herman Holladay.

 Since she was last seen Sept. 29, 1979, Hood County residents have speculated that she could have been killed and that her remains could be at the bottom of Lake Granbury in the family's missing 1973 pickup. She was declared dead in 1986. Her husband died a year later. Now, with the help of a Department of Public Safety helicopter and a new tip, investigators hope to find the pickup that may 
be resting at the bottom of the lake. 

 "We have some information about where to look on the lake," said Hood County Sheriff Rodney Jeanis. "It's just a situation we want to take a look at and hope it leads us somewhere."That information, combined with the lake's unusually low level, gives investigators optimism that they may find the truck, Jeanis said. But the first helicopter search Wednesday was unsuccessful.

 "Wouldn't you know it, that's the one day it was too windy to see anything," Jeanis said. "With the lake being down, you can find all kinds of things down there, but you must know where to look. We'll be trying again in the next few days to see what we can see."

 Authorities said Holladay had a fight with her husband before  she vanished. Neighbors told deputies that the attack was so violent that Holladay forced her bleeding hand through a glass window on the door of the family's recreational vehicle and called for help.

 "There have been reports that the lady had fisticuffs back and forth with her husband," Jeanis said. "That could have played a part in all of this and that's something we would like to know."

 Holladay, who was 45 when she disappeared, never used her credit cards or cashed a paycheck in her purse after her disappearance, authorities said. Investigators also checked her social security number and determined that it had not been used since she was reported missing.

 The search is being focused on Whippoorwill Bay, where Holladay's weekend residence was located, Jeanis said. "We have a pretty specific area to search," he said. "Of course, currents can shift things and it could have moved over time. But that's the nature of these types of cases, you hit a lot snags and dead-ends but you keep trying."
at 9:45 AM