SIOUX FALLS 鈥� It鈥檚 been five decades since Ellabeth Mae Lodermeier was last seen, and the Sioux Falls Police Department is seeking any new information that could help find her.
Ellabeth was last seen at her home in the 300 block of North Indiana Avenue in Sioux Falls on March 6, 1974. When she didn鈥檛 show up to work the following day, coworkers joined her estranged husband, Gene, in conducting a welfare check at Ellabeth鈥檚 home.
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Police records say that when the group arrived, Ellabeth鈥檚 home was locked and her car remained in the driveway. A partially eaten pizza was located inside, and flour was found to have been spilled on the floor.
Her purse and jacket, however, were missing.
Ellabeth and Gene were known to have traveled often in the immediate area, but it wasn鈥檛 until Sept. 20, 1974, that credit cards belonging to Ellabeth had been located in a train station bathroom in Dauphin, Manitoba, Canada, roughly 650 miles away from Sioux Falls.
Despite the discovery, investigators say no evidence points toward Ellabeth being in Manitoba.
More evidence wouldn鈥檛 be found for nearly two decades, when in April 1992, Ellabeth鈥檚 wallet, checkbook and more credit cards were found in a hole along the Big Sioux River to the east of Sioux Falls.
Authorities say Gene was the last person known to see Ellabeth, and that he is considered as a person of interest in Ellabeth鈥檚 disappearance.
Though Gene died in 2013, the Sioux Falls Police Department says it continues to search for any details related to Ellabeth鈥檚 disappearance or unusual behavior from Gene.
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Ellabeth was last seen wearing a blue pea coat, blue shirt, and blue jeans. Ellabeth was 5-foot-1, 105 pounds with light brown hair and green eyes.
Anyone with any information on the disappearance of Ellabeth is asked to contact Detective Pat Mertes by phone at 605-978-6797, by email or by mail at 320 West Fourth Street, Sioux Falls, SD 57104. Anonymous reports can be filed through Crime Stoppers Sioux Empire at 1-877-367-7007.
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