Retracing Alden’s Steps
The mystery of Alden Lawrence’s disappearance has haunted the family for over 80 years. Robert Alden Lawrence was the son of Clifford and Callie Lawrence. He went missing at the age of 2 on August 4, 1942. He, along with his siblings and parents, had travelled down from New York to visit his grandparents, Carrie and Joe Stewart. Despite an FBI case being opened into the incident and a multi-day search involving over a hundred Franklin residents, Alden was never found.
You can learn more about his disappearance here.
Needless to say, I had been trying for quite some time to locate the area where he was last seen, but could never pinpoint the exact location.
Based on a local newspaper clipping at the time, Carrie and Joe lived “off of Murphy Road, at “the back of the Crawford farm about a mile out of town.” The 1940 Census1 shows Carrie and Joe living on “R.F.D #1.” But how was I supposed to know what that meant? Back in those days, there weren’t any street numbers for the houses. All I knew from the 1940 Census was that they lived in enumeration district 57-7.
If you take a look at the census below, you’ll notice Carrie and Joe living around some familiar people. I’ve highlighted their names in the screenshot below for emphasis. Below, Carrie and Joe are highlighted in green (lines 24 and 25) and couples who lived close to them are boxed in green. Relationships noted are based on their relation to Carrie.
Their neighbors, some of which consisted of family and friends (including the Martain, Greenwood, Chavis, Harshaw, Thomas, and Ledford families, among others), also included the Crawfords, who appear two census pages later: 2
During my visit with Emory, he verified not only where Carrie and Joe’s home was, but also where Clifford Lawrence parked his car on that fateful day. Below, I’ve tried to illustrate where those landmarks are based on the video and my recollection of the visit.
(Please note: I’ve blurred out the names of the streets to protect the privacy of those who currently live there. If you’d like to know more about where these sites are located, just let me know.)
Based on the order in which the 1940 Census was taken, I’d venture to guess that Canara Stewart and his family, as well as Aline and John Mingus and their family lived somewhere up the road from Carrie and Joe, heading towards that dead end.
You can also view a short video below, where Emory shows me these locations. He mentions where Clifford’s car was parked at the 3:44 timestamp.
- “United States Census, 1940,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9MB-YHFS?cc=2000219&wc=QZXT-RZV%3A790104901%2C795848801%2C790163701%2C795878401 : accessed 24 November 2022), North Carolina > Macon > Franklin Township > 57-7 Franklin Township outside Franklin Town N of U.S. Road 23 and U.S. Road 64, Macon County Poorhouse > image 21 of 34; citing Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 – 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012.
- “United States Census, 1940,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9MB-YHXQ?cc=2000219&wc=QZXT-RZV%3A790104901%2C795848801%2C790163701%2C795878401 : accessed 24 November 2022), North Carolina > Macon > Franklin Township > 57-7 Franklin Township outside Franklin Town N of U.S. Road 23 and U.S. Road 64, Macon County Poorhouse > image 24 of 34; citing Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 – 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012.
Olivia,
Congratulations! You have done an exceptional job in tracing and documenting the historical information about the 1942 events of Alden’s tragic disappearance that shook our family members at that time, to its very core.
The information you provided from your visit with Emory Crawford has been of great value . The illustration with the landmarks are clear to me. I can trace the steps that I took from “Carrie and Joe’s home”, down the path to where” Clifford parked his car”, and recount the details as they happened.
Even after comforting discussions with George prior to his death, the picture lives on in my mind about that morning as I looked at George and Daddy in Franklin, NC beside the Packard and asked, “Where is Alden”? I can still hear Daddy saying, “Get him and take him back to the house”. It remains clear in my mind and is still puzzling as the only thing I could say was, “He’s not here”. Being a child at that time does not seem to matter, because after 80 years, when I close my eyes, I can still picture the scene and hear my voice saying the same words.” HE’S NOT HERE!”
At Mother’s funeral in 1966, I asked Grandmother Carrie if she had any new information about Alden. Her only comment was the question, “Why haven’t you forgiven those people?” I always wondered what she meant, but maybe a clue might be in the letter that she wrote to Emory Crawford. If you could print the letter out, the information may give me some understanding of her thoughts and feelings.
Since precision and accuracy are important in your research, I would like to offer a few corrections of some specific details. How is the best way for me to do that?
Thanks for all of your work on this important project. I was on the scene when it happened, and I often wonder what if I had reached Alden before they took him, would they have taken the both of us? I will forever be grateful for your interest and concern.
Love,
Aunt Shirley
Thank you Olivia for your research and persistence in my on going struggles of what you are discovering,,. May the Lord continue to give you what is needed for ALL your projects,