Left: Bryant, circa 1949; Age-Progressed photos from 2nd - 60 years (circa 2005); 66 years (circa 2011); 75 years (circa 2020)
Left: Bryant, circa 1949; Age-Progressed photos from 2nd - 60 years (circa 2005); 66 years (circa 2011); 75 years (circa 2020)
Name: Ricky Jean Bryant
Case Classification: Lost, Injured, Missing
Missing Since: December 19, 1949
Location Last Seen: Mauston, Juneau County, Wisconsin
Date of Birth: November 9, 1945
Age: 4 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 3'4" (102 cm)
Weight: 40 lbs (18 kg)
Hair Color: Blonde/Strawberry
Eye Color: Hazel
Nickname/Alias: Jeannie
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Available
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Ricky Jean Bryant, also known as "Jeannie", disappeared while her family farm was destroyed by a fire in December 1949 in rural Mauston. She was last seen in the front yard while the fire was being put out. When the fire was extinguished, Ricky was no longer in the yard.
Jeannie and two of her siblings were home with their grandparents, who also lived on the farm.
Ricky's brother, who was 5 years old at the time, remembers leaving Jeannie and their younger sister outside, when a tall blonde lady in a new car, drove up and told him to run to a neighbor's house for help. He said the woman sent him to a home further away and told him the phone wasn't working at the nearby house. When he come back with a neighbor, Jeannie was gone, and the lady and the car were no where to be found. The neighbor said she put the children in the family car and then went inside to look for Jeannie.
She found the grandmother in the kitchen collecting canned goods, and she said that Jeannie was gone.
As the house continued to burn, the neighbor kept searching for Jeannie. Finally, the grandmother told her to stop worrying about Jeannie because she was with relatives.
After the fire, Jeannie's father had the local authorities, state police and the FBI searching the ruins of the fire for any possible human remains. No remains were found during the search and her father searched the property three additional times by himself. Each time he found nothing. He never believed that Jeannie perished in the fire.
Agency Name: Juneau County Sheriff's Department
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 608-847-5649
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 05-00483/NamUs MP# 5890
NCMEC Case Number: 1007456
NamUs Case Number: MP5890
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
NBC 15
NamUs
Added: Prior to 2011; Last Updated: 02/08/2023 - By: kc
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
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