The Bennington Triangle: Vermont’s Mysterious Disappearances

A New England Mystery Filled With Disappearances, Folklore, and Fear

Everyone knows the Bermuda Triangle…but few know the Bennington Triangle, a stretch of rural Vermont wilderness filled with:

• Unexplained disappearances

• A cursed mountain

• Ghost towns swallowed by time

• Strange creatures

• Sudden bizarre weather

• Paranormal legends that defy belief

Between 1945 and 1950, six people vanished in and around Glastenbury Mountain — most without a trace.

This is one of America’s most bizarre and enduring unsolved mysteries.

The Cursed Land of Glastenbury Mountain

Southwestern Vermont is home to mountains, waterfalls, historic homes, and idyllic scenery… but one pocket of wilderness has a dark reputation stretching back centuries.

Glastenbury Mountain — the center of the Bennington Triangle — was long considered cursed by the Abenaki tribe. According to legend:

• It was a burial place for the dead

• The mountain was spiritually “wrong”

• The land shifted and confused travelers

• Animals avoided it

By the late 1800s, the area was beset by tragedy:

• Local industry collapsed

• Mining towns failed

• Tourism died

• A massive flood destroyed roads and homes

By 1900, the surrounding towns were nearly empty —ghost towns before the modern disappearances even began.

1943: The Strange Death of Carl Herrick

Though rarely included in official lists, the mystery truly begins in 1943, when hunter Carl Herrick went missing near Glastenbury Mountain.

He was found days later, dead with:

• No bullet discharged

• No weapon used

• His ribs crushed, puncturing his lungs

The coroner concluded he was “squeezed to death.”Locals whispered about strange creatures in the woods.

This was only the beginning.

1945: The Disappearance of Middie Rivers

On November 12, 1945, experienced woodsman Middie Rivers was leading a hunting group near Hell Hollow Brook.

He walked a few steps ahead…

…and vanished.

Over 300 people, including the U.S. Army, searched for over a month.

Nothing was ever found — except one rifle cartridge.

No body. No trace. Just gone.

It was the first of the five famous disappearances.

1946: The Vanishing of Paula Jean Weldon

One year later, on December 1, 1946, 18-year-old college student Paula Jean Weldon told her roommate she was taking a hike on the Long Trail.

Witnesses saw her wearing a red coat.

A man gave her a ride and dropped her near the trail.Hikers saw her walk toward a wooded ridge…

…and then she vanished into thin air.

• Massive search parties

• Bloodhounds

• Helicopters

• Psychics

• Offers of reward

No body was ever found.

Her father, devastated, believed she had been murdered — or eloped with a secret boyfriend.

Her disappearance still haunts Vermont to this day.

1949: The Bus Mystery of James Tedford

Exactly three years to the day after Paula vanished, 68-year-old WWII veteran James Tedford disappeared in the most baffling way of all.

He was riding a bus back to Bennington.

Witnesses confirmed:

• He boarded the bus

• He was present at the last stop before Bennington

• He was sleeping in his seat

When the bus arrived —Tedford was gone.

His luggage remained.His bus timetable sat on his empty seat.

No one saw him get off the bus. Fourteen passengers confirmed the same story.

To this day, there is no explanation.

1950: The Disappearance of Paul Jepson

On October 12, 1950, 8-year-old Paul Jepson vanished while waiting in his family’s pickup truck.

His mother left him alone for one hour.

When she returned — he was gone.

He wore a red coat, just like Paula Weldon.

Bloodhounds tracked his scent toward Glastenbury Mountain — the very place he had become obsessed with days earlier.

The trail ended abruptly at a crossroads.

No prints. No body. No evidence.

1950: The Death of Frieda Langer

Just weeks later, hiker Frieda Langer, age 53, fell into a creek while hiking with her cousin. She returned alone to the campsite to change.

She never came back.

Search crews combed the area for two weeks —

Nothing.

Six months later, her body was found in an area that had already been thoroughly searched.

The remains were so decomposed the cause of death could not be determined.

She was the only victim ever found, and even she provided no answers.

Patterns, Theories & Unsettling Consistencies

Patterns emerged:

• Two victims wore red

• Most vanished between 3–4 p.m.

• All disappeared near Glastenbury Mountain

• All incidents happened October–December

• No bodies (except one) were ever recovered

• No animals, no tracks, no evidence

Theory 1 — A Serial Killer?

Unlikely due to the varied ages and genders of victims, plus different disappearance circumstances.

Theory 2 — Deadly Weather & Disorientation

The region is infamous for:

• Sudden dense fog

• Temperature drops

• Compass malfunction

• Fierce winds

• Odd plant growth angles

• Rapid disorientation

In 2008, a man named Robert Singley got lost for a full night and barely survived — a modern reminder of how quickly the area can turn deadly.

Theory 3 — Mine Shafts

The region is riddled with abandoned mines and wells.Fall into one, and you may never be found.

Theory 4 — Wild Animals

Cougars and black bears exist in the area —but attacks that leave no trace are extraordinarily rare.

Theory 5 — Paranormal Possibilities

The Bennington Triangle is fertile ground for the supernatural:

• Voices on dead-air radio

• Red-eyed creatures

• UFO sightings

• A “man-eating rock” that swallows victims

• Abenaki curses

• Time anomalies

• Sudden magnetic disturbances

Is any of it real?Maybe. But the mystery persists because none of the disappearances have definitive explanations.

Modern-Day Tragedies: The Triangle Lives On

The disappearances didn’t end in the 1950s.

2019 — Jessica Hildebrandt (“Red”)

Her remains were discovered near Somerset Reservoir. It was ruled a homicide.

Jessica’s nickname?

Red.

2021 — Joseph Shernig

Found dead in his red truck, having taken his own life after going missing.

The color red, once coincidence, now feels like an eerie signature woven through the region’s history.

The Bennington Triangle: A Place Where Answers Go to Die

Between:

• The vanishings

• The cursed mountain lore

• The bizarre creature sightings

• The strange voices

• The impossible terrain

• The absence of bodies

• And the chilling pattern of the color red

The Bennington Triangle remains one of America’s most disturbing and unsolved wilderness mysteries.

Maybe it’s nature. Maybe it’s coincidence. Or maybe some places in the world hold onto their secrets —and the people who wander into them.