Missing 37 Years: Mary, Jessie and Fannie Stuart
Mary Stuart (L), Jessie Stuart (M) and Fannie Stuart (R). (Photo Credit Jenniferjslate.com)
ON December 10, 1977, 32 year-old Mary Elizabeth Stuart left her home at 10:00 AM in Honeydew, California with her two daughters, 2 year-old Jessie Flo and 1 year-old Fannie Fawn Stuart to run errands. Mary was headed to a television repair shop in Eureka or Fortuna, California, along with errands to the grocery store and possibly the optometrist. She was driving a red Opel Station Wagon with license plate number 456-AII, and was supposed to be home before dark. Mary and her two daughters were never seen or heard from again.
On January 19, 1978, the family's station wagon was found a few miles from their home on an old logging road.
FROM: Mary Jessie and Fannie :
ON December 10, 1977, 32 year-old Mary Elizabeth Stuart left her home at 10:00 AM in Honeydew, California with her two daughters, 2 year-old Jessie Flo and 1 year-old Fannie Fawn Stuart to run errands. Mary was headed to a television repair shop in Eureka or Fortuna, California, along with errands to the grocery store and possibly the optometrist. She was driving a red Opel Station Wagon with license plate number 456-AII, and was supposed to be home before dark. Mary and her two daughters were never seen or heard from again.
On January 19, 1978, the family's station wagon was found a few miles from their home on an old logging road. Groceries were still in the car, and upon examination it was discovered that the car's gas line had been broken. According to investigators, there was no sign of a struggle or foul play near the vehicle. The discovery of the vehicle did not give many clues as to the trio's whereabouts, but the idea of Mary leaving of her own free will with her daughters seemed even more certain then ever before.
In 1977, Mary weighed 135 pounds and was 5'5" in height. She has brown hair and blue eyes, and may possibly go by the last name of Danckert. Jessie Flo was 2 years-old when she went missing, and had blond hair and hazel eyes. She was 2'8" in height and 26 pounds in 1977. Fannie Fawn was 1 year-old when she vanished, and had red hair and hazel eyes. In 1977, she weighed 20 pounds and was 2'4" in height.
At the time of their disappearances, Mary was living in Honeydew, California with Byron McCray Stuart, who was her husband and the father of Jessie and Fannie. However, he would not be the one to report the girls and Mary missing, even though he should have noticed that they never returned home for the evening. Instead, one of Mary's friends reported that the three were nowhere to be found, and filed a missing persons report the following Tuesday. On the following Friday, 25 volunteers would comb through Windy Nipn Panther Gap, Bull Creek, Honeydew and up by Ferndale. The four-wheel drive club, mounted posse and Marine posse would also join the search that would turn up nothing. It would be a month later until the next clue, Mary's red Station Wagon, would turn up off of an old logging road close to her home.
From the start, Mary's husband, Byron Stuart, would be the prime suspect in the investigation. He had a history of violence and was described as having no problem starting fights due to his very hot temper. His failure to report his daughters and his wife missing was also a red flag. However, back in 1977, authorities did not have enough evidence to prosecute him in the presumed murders of Mary, Jessie and Fannie. Sadly, they would never get the chance to bring him to justice. In 1991, Byron was diagnosed with AIDS. In 1996, he would succumb to Hepatitis, taking with him to the grave the answers to what really happened that day to his beautiful family.
In 2009, the case was reopened, and police mentioned they believed Mary, Jessie and Fannie are deceased. Their prime suspect was still Byron Stuart. This time, they were able to interview people with information that they did not get to decades back. Despite not being able to bring Byron to justice, they believe there are other individuals who were involved with the disappearances of Mary, Jessie and Fannie. They made a plea to the public for anyone with even the smallest shred of information to come forward. Their main focus is to find the burial site, which they believe is in the Honeydew, Panther Gap or Petrolia areas. They also want to find closure for Mary's daughter from a previous marriage, who wants to know what happened to her mother and sisters that day.
This is a case that seems pretty cut and dry. Given Byron's history of violence, he seems capable of committing this crime. Byron also knew Mary's destinations for the day, so it would have not been to difficult to cut the gas line to the station wagon in the parking lot while she was grocery shopping. Also, why did he not report his wife and daughters missing when they failed to be home by that evening? Wouldn't he have been worried about them? My question is, was Mary thinking of leaving him? Did the violence and fighting escalate to the point she was fearful for her safety and that of her children? Byron did not seem like the type of guy who would be too happy about having to split his assets, not have custody of his children and possibly the responsibility to pay child support. If this was the case, it would be a great motive. Other questions I wondered about are where was he that day? Since he is the prime suspect as of 2009, it's doubtful he has a dependable alibi. If others were involved, who would have helped him commit such a horrific crime? Were his closest friends and family interviewed? Was Byron into drugs or the world of crime that drugs bring? Was he an alcoholic? If he committed this crime, there has to have been someone out there he mentioned it to. Perhaps they are too scared to come forward because they think they will get in trouble for having information all along, but it is the right thing to do!
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This is one of many cold cases I found online that have few facts, if any. In fact, the media coverage on these cases was very limited in the 1970s and since they have gone stone cold, the coverage in recent years is scant. No new information on these cases because there was no DNA testing at the time and in some cases there were no witnesses. This is one case where there were no witnesses and the victims have never been found. In this case, most people believe her husband did it and got away with it. Will the charts tell the same story?
The first thing I do is check the charts for viability. For some reason unknown to me, some of them aren't. Of course, I can't even think about doing a chart without a timeline. I questioned this timeline from the very beginning because it was given by her husband, who was their prime suspect. Let's say she was dead already and he just told them this story? It has happened before, think of Susan Powell. So I ran the first chart and studied it to figure out if it was viable and the timeline was correct. I think it is and I'll tell you why. They say she had a red Opal Station Wagon, right? Well, looking at the third house ruler, it is Mars and this points to the color red. They also report that she left to do errands and brought the kids. Well, the first house ruler, Saturn, is disposed of by Mercury, showing her to be with her kids. Also, Mercury rules little things like errands, especially things like getting your appliances serviced and going to the eye doctor. And although this is not the strongest indicators I've ever seen, I went with viability and finished the analysis.
The thing about this first chart is that Mercury is in the twelfth. Also looking at the car, the red car mentioned in the report, I see that there are no planets in the third so I am not sure she is actually in it. But Mars is in the seventh, disposed of by the Sun in the eleventh and I do believe she was headed to a friends house, regardless of what she told her husband. Errands may have been for later. Noticing that Saturn and Mercury are in mutual reception, I do believe that this came to pass. Her purpose was to hide the children. She left that house with those kids to leave them with a friend. Notice that the Moon is in the eleventh house, showing us a friend. Also there is the Sun, which disposes of Mars and Mars is the marker for the car. So she drove that car to a friends house. That's how I see it. And since Mercury is in the twelfth, she was doing this to hide the kids. Perhaps she was afraid her husband would harm them. Reports claim that he was capable of that and she could have been afraid. Or this could have been her usual babysitter. Just leaving the kids so she can get her errands done.
There is no death pattern in this chart so I would assume she was still alive. Also, the fourth house ruler is in the tenth, showing her current location to be away from her home, most likely someone else's home. Moon as the ruler of this other person may indicate a family member. So the kids may have been spirited off by a family member and kept safe all these years. This would be a lovely thought. In this next chart, the planets support that theory.
An hour later the charts show us Mary on the road. At the same time, Mercury is settled in the eleventh, showing us the children in the hands of her friend. The first house ruler is now Uranus and you can see it placed in the ninth house. The ninth house can be many things and among them is a highway. Also, the woods or a wooded area. Now, we know her car was found much later on in the woods near a logging road. But we also know that if she went about running errands as she said was going to, then she would be on a highway or in a public parking lot. The ninth house is often a parking lot (or a car lot on the other hand). Notice that the Moon is in the tenth with the seventh house ruler, the Sun. The Sun and Moon are closely conjoined by less than a degree. Both planets are disposed of by Jupiter in the fifth. Did someone go with her while she shopped or did she run into someone there? The fifth house rules pleasure so she was in a public place shopping for something she wanted and this could be clothes, perfume, toys for the kids or a treat like cake or cookies. She could have been in the grocery store or it could have been a toy store. The Moon in the tenth makes a case for groceries. So it looks like she made it to the store. But it also looks like someone ran into her there and it may have been in the parking lot.
Uranus is disposed of by Pluto in the eighth. Pluto is conjoined the node, which indicates planning. She may have been shopping with a credit card, which was planned because she did not have cash (the second house is empty). But this could also be something more sinister so we need to keep our eye on this position.
The first house ruler is now Neptune and we can see it there in the ninth house. She is still on a highway, in the woods or in a parking lot. Neptune is with Venus and Venus rules both the third and eighth houses. It looks like she might already have a problem with the car. Mercury rules the seventh and it is in the eleventh, cusping into the tenth, so it looks like someone is coming to help her. The charts do not show her calling anyone but it just seems someone comes along and tries to help her. Mercury indicates this is a young person, most likely younger than Mary, but one with handy skills. Mercury is disposed of by Saturn and also in mutual reception with Saturn so this person will arrive with good intentions. The Moon, along with the first house ruler, in the ninth house does show her still in the parking lot. This is where she meets this other person, this younger person, who tries to help her. It looks like this person may have been successful. Notice that Mercury is disposed of by Saturn in the sixth house so this younger person has mechanical skills and may actually work at a job as a mechanic or someone who does mechanical work. I say this because Mercury also rules the third house, a house that describes vehicles.
I do not see her children in this chart or in any other at this point or later. Does this mean the children are safe? They were left with a friend who has hidden them since? Perhaps this friend or babysitter feared the father would get custody of the kids and hurt them in some way? It seems that everybody believed he was violent and dangerous and the idea that the children have been kept from him is not unrealistic. Anyways, the kids are not present in this chart; Mercury is describing somebody else. And then looking at the fifth house and it's ruler, we see that it is the Moon, which is often a marker for the mother. The Moon is right at the midheaven in the ninth house, showing her children to be in someone else's home. The Moon is disposed of by Jupiter in the fourth house so this other person's home is very near Mary's own home, in the same neighborhood, in fact.
Mary had a lot of good luck this day, including this young person with mechanical handy skills that helped her with the car. In fact, this person fixed it well enough for her to get back in it and drive. This is shown by the Moon in the tenth disposed of by Jupiter with Jupiter entering the third house. The Moon and Jupiter are in mutual reception so this in fact did happen and she was able to drive it away. But if you are astute and study the chart as a whole you will readily see the problem with the seventh house. The seventh house ruler is now Venus and this planet is sliding into the eighth. What does this mean? This means that the next person Mary will meet will be a violent criminal. This is supported by the presence of Pluto and the node in the seventh house. This is a violent person who lives a seedy, criminal lifestyle and has been violent in the past (the node with Pluto). The first house ruler at this time is Mars and it is in the fifth, showing us that Mary was trying to get back to her kids. She was trying to go get them or check on them.
The charts are moving swiftly in this case, it seems that sidereal time was fast at that time of year as the first house cusp changes the ruler almost every hour. This has something to do with the vernal equinox and I think everything is shorter and faster in the dark of winter. I have to keep posting more charts to show how the picture keeps changing. Every little event in this case has a bearing on the outcome.
It looks like her car has another problem at this point. You can see that the third house ruler is Mercury (showing us her car) and it is in the ninth house. In turn, it is disposed of by Saturn. To me, this looks like the car is parked again, either in another parking lot or in the woods or along a major highway. I am not sure which at this point and I am not sure it matters because the car wasn't found for over a month and for all we know the killer was using it. Mercury in Capricorn doesn't help us figure out where she parked it because Capricorn can indicate businesses and government buildings, which would point to a public parking lot but it can also rule wood and other earth materials because it is an earth sign. It is disposed of by Saturn in Virgo, another earth sign, but also a sign ruled by Mercury, which can indicate cars again. Mercury can mean another parking lot. So I just cannot tear this one apart. All I know for sure is that after the young person fixed her car, it broke down again and was parked somewhere at 2 pm.
And then here comes a brazen criminal and somehow she gets involved with him. Venus is not only in the eighth but so is the twelfth house ruler, Neptune, and the Moon, Mary's secondary marker. With Pluto in the seventh, this does not look good for Mary. But I am still not able to tell you whether this was her husband or a stranger. Her husband had a violent temper and could easily have been in trouble before, even though I have no proof of that. Also, it would be important if he had a physical job that required a degree of violence, such as being a boxer, a police officer, a soldier, a security guard, a bouncer, a bodyguard, etc.. This chart shows that some degree of violence was involved in the job her murderer had. This is shown clearly by Pluto, which disposes of the seventh house ruler in the sixth. Mars, a secondary ruler of the seventh house, is in the fourth house. This is a serious placement that indicates either that her killer lived in the same house with her (which would be her husband) or went to her home after killing her for some reason. If there wasn't a break in or other appearance of an unwanted third party, then indicators point at the husband.
Perhaps he was angry when he realized she had put the kids somewhere? I still do not see the children dead or in danger in these charts. What I believe is the husband went back home to look for the kids, as shown by Mars disposed of by the Sun while the Sun rules the fifth.
I believe he shot Mary during an argument, maybe about the kids. She had hidden them somewhere, handed them off to a friend, and he was irate. Pluto shows a level of anger that is dangerous and is a marker for violence. Pluto disposed of by Venus and Venus rules the first, it certainly looks like a violent death for Mary. I say he shot her because Mars rules him and Mars shows guns but also all the planets in the eighth house in Sagittarius while Sagittarius describes ammunition. It also shows bows and arrows but who uses a bow and arrow for killing people? Some hunters use them hunt deer but I have hardly ever heard of a murder with a bow and arrow. Because Sagittarius describes ammunition clearly and mostly bullets in any case, I am pretty sure he shot her. Mars in Leo disposed of by the Sun in Sagittarius in the eighth, I think he shot her in the chest area and probably hit her heart.
After accepting a death pattern as an indicator of death (Mars in the fourth, Venus and the Moon in the eighth, the twelfth house ruler in the eighth and the fourth house ruler in the eighth) the chart then changes. Saturn takes over rulership of the body, which is no longer alive and will eventually be nothing but bones. So we follow Saturn and try to connect it to the seventh house ruler to discover the movements of the killer with the body after death. And we want to locate that body if we can.
I realize there are a lot of fire sign markers in this chart and at first blush it seems that the body must have been burned. But I do not believe he did burn the body at all. Saturn is in the sign Virgo, disposed of by Mercury in Capricorn in the eighth house, which shows us again that the body is dead. But these are earth signs that show burial and Capricorn is a descriptor for a grave, even in traditional Astrology. At the same time, the seventh house ruler, Mars, is in the fourth house along with Saturn, which marks the body. I think he took her back home, maybe hid her for awhile and then buried her. This may be why he did not report her missing; he needed time to dig the hole. Notice that Saturn is right at the cusp of the fourth and fifth houses. This cusp shows the bedroom, the bedroom window, an area near to the back door in the backyard, or a door from the bedroom to the back yard. I believe he buried her right there on the home property, not far from the back door of the house. Nobody ever searched there from what I understand and he has since died of AIDs. Her body appears to right there, buried fairly deeply, behind the house.
Also, I still do not see the kids or a death pattern involving the kids. It would seem they were left with the friend who has since hidden them from their father. There is a good chance they are still alive and possibly living with different names and different parents.
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