Missing
Walter Springer Lawton
Lawton, approximately 1971
Date and time person was reported missing : 06/07/1971
Missing location (approx) :
White Haven, Pennsylvania
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
White
Age at the time of disappearance: 64 years old
Height / Weight : 5'3, 115 - 130 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A white mesh t-shirt, dark-colored plaid shorts, and brown leather slippers or sandals with rubber soles, and a watch. Possibly carrying a small zippered coin purse and a handkerchief.
Medical conditions : Lawton suffers from Parkinson's Disease.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian male. White hair, blue eyes. Lawton has previously broken his left wrist. He wears wire-rimmed eyeglasses.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Lawton was last seen in White Haven, Pennsylvania on June 7, 1971. He and his wife were visiting the area of Nescopeck Creek; they were planning to buy a cabin. Lawton went for a walk at 3:00 p.m. that day and has never been heard from again. Dogs later tracked his scent to the railroad bridge overpass area on the road to Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, but in spite of an extensive search, he was never located.
Lawton previously worked as a professor and chairman of the mathematics department at Temple University, before his Parkinson's Disease forced him into early retirement. He was declared legally dead on June 7, 1978, the seventh anniversary of his disappearance. His case remains unsolved.
Other information and links : ncy
Pennsylvania State Police
570-387-4261
September 2021 updates and sources
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are not known. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2�5% of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
Several organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and imAge at the time of disappearance: s of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader
October 12, 2004. March 11, 2019; .
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
