Mattie Zabel
Mattie Lou Zabel
Age at Report: 45
DOB: March 7, 1933
Weight: 118 lbs.
Height: 5′ 02″
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown
Incident Type: Disability – physical / mental
Missing From: Cedar Falls, IA
Black Hawk County
Missing Since: March 21, 1978
Mattie Zabel was reported missing to the Cedar Falls Police Department in Cedar Falls, IA, on March 21, 1978.
Zabel was last seen by her family on March 21, 1978, in her hometown of Cedar Falls, Iowa. She left behind not only her husband, Jack, and three children, but also a frozen chicken thawing in the kitchen sink that was to be the family’s dinner. No clothing was taken, and she would not have had the assets to just walk away. There was no indication that she just got frustrated and left.
The next day, one of Zabel’s sons found her car at Black Hawk Park in Cedar Falls. Mrs. Zabel, who worked as a teacher’s aide at River Hills School, liked to go out to the park and walk. The car was locked with Zabel’s purse inside.
An extensive search by Black Hawk County sheriff’s deputies, search dogs, divers and a National Guard helicopter turned up no trace of Mrs. Zabel.
Police hypothesized that Zabel either fell into the swift and swollen Cedar River while taking a walk or committed suicide. She had undergone treatment for depression, but her psychiatrist told investigators Zabel had shown marked improvement in the months leading up to her disappearance.
Her credit cards were monitored for years afterwards, but they were never used. Seven years after Mattie Zabel vanished, a Black Hawk County judge declared her legally dead.
If you have any information concerning Zabel’s case, please contact the Cedar Falls Police Department at 319-273-8617.
Iowa Dept. of Public Safety
The Doe Network
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