Darleen May Fitchett, a 28-year-old mother of three, vanished from her Des Moines home on East Pleasant View Drive on January 19, 1960. She was last seen ironing clothes in the basement while her children, then 9, 6, and 1, later reported hearing their parents argue that night and strange basement noises described as sawing or digging.

Darleen left behind all her belongings, including essential medication for her thyroid cancer. Her husband, Lance Fitchett, told the children she had gone to California and did not report her missing; neighbors and friends alerted authorities instead. Lance traded in his truck the day after the disappearance, and his girlfriend Colleen Seiberling soon moved into the family home. Investigators uncovered evidence suggesting foul play and the case is treated as a presumed homicide, but no body has been found and Lance was never charged. A 2014 basement excavation after ground-penetrating radar produced no results; Lance died in 2005.

Does anyone have memories of the Fitchett family or information about Darleen’s last days that could help reopen leads?