Overview

Last Seen: August 21, 2009
Location: Rural St. Croix Falls, Polk County, Wisconsin
Age: 21
Status: Missing; case remains unsolved

Main Circumstances: Bly left her residence reportedly intending to travel several miles to Cushing, Wisconsin. She never arrived at the expected destination and never returned home. Five days later, her vehicle was discovered approximately 30 miles away in Grantsburg in a parking area used by truck drivers. Extensive searches, interviews and hundreds of tips have not publicly established what happened to her.

Identifying Features: Approximately 5 feet tall and 110 pounds, brown eyes, light brown/brown hair, tattoo of two red cherries on her right ankle, pierced ears and navel.

Current Investigation: The Polk County Sheriff’s Office remains the primary investigating agency. Bly remains publicly listed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice and FBI, and authorities continue requesting information that could help determine what happened to her.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Rose Marie Bly Disappearance: What Happened to the Wisconsin Mother Who Vanished in 2009?

Rose Marie Bly was 21 years old and the mother of two young daughters when she disappeared from rural St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin, on August 21, 2009. More than 17 years later, Bly has never been found, and her disappearance remains an open missing-person case.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice continues to list Bly as missing from Polk County, while the FBI maintains a Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP) listing for her case.

The Disappearance of Rose Marie Bly

On the evening of Friday, August 21, 2009, Rose Marie Bly left her home in the St. Croix Falls area of Polk County, Wisconsin.

According to official case information, Bly was believed to be traveling to nearby Cushing, Wisconsin, approximately four to five miles away, to meet a cousin. She never arrived at the expected destination.

Bly was reportedly driving a white Pontiac with Wisconsin license plate 535MAB. Later that evening, she reportedly called her husband and indicated she planned to return home around midnight.

She never came home.

Family members subsequently reported having no contact with Bly after she left her residence.

Rose Bly’s Car Found in Grantsburg

Five days after Bly disappeared, on August 26, 2009, her vehicle was discovered approximately 30 miles from her residence in Grantsburg, Wisconsin.

The car was found in a municipal parking area known to be used by tractor-trailer drivers.

The discovery significantly expanded the mystery surrounding Bly’s movements. She had reportedly been heading toward Cushing, only a few miles from home, yet her vehicle ultimately surfaced much farther away in Grantsburg.

Investigators processed the vehicle and searched the surrounding area. Public reporting about the investigation has indicated that fingerprints recovered from the vehicle were associated with Bly or members of her immediate family.

Reporting on the case has also described unidentified DNA recovered from the vehicle. As of publicly reported information in 2022, that DNA had reportedly been submitted through CODIS multiple times without producing a known match.

The existence of unidentified DNA does not by itself establish that the DNA belongs to someone responsible for Bly’s disappearance.

Searches for Rose Marie Bly

Authorities conducted extensive searches after Bly disappeared and after her vehicle was discovered.

Search efforts included the area around her rural residence and the Grantsburg area. Contemporary and later reporting described law enforcement going door-to-door, conducting aerial searches and examining areas surrounding the location where her vehicle was found.

Nearby Memory Lake was also searched during the early investigation, but the efforts did not locate Bly.

Despite searches, interviews and hundreds of tips, investigators have not publicly announced finding Bly’s remains or definitive evidence establishing what happened to her.

What Was Rose Bly Wearing?

When Bly disappeared, she was approximately 5 feet tall and weighed about 110 pounds. She had light brown or brown hair and brown eyes.

She was reportedly wearing blue jeans, a green V-neck sweater over a white tank top and flip-flop sandals.

One of her most recognizable identifying features is a tattoo depicting two red cherries on the outside of her right ankle. Her ears and navel were also pierced.

Investigation Into Rose Bly’s Disappearance

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office has investigated Bly’s disappearance since 2009.

By October 2019, the Sheriff’s Office reported that investigators had received more than 200 tips and interviewed more than 150 people. Authorities launched a renewed publicity effort around the 10th anniversary of her disappearance in hopes that renewed discussion would produce information capable of moving the investigation forward.

Sheriff Brent Waak said at the time that the case remained a priority and that investigators continued examining leads.

The FBI has also publicized Bly’s disappearance through ViCAP, which is used by law enforcement to share information about violent crimes and certain missing-person cases that may have connections across jurisdictions.

Rose Bly’s Husband and the Investigation

Bly was married to Christopher Larson when she disappeared. The couple had two young daughters.

Public reporting documented significant marital difficulties before Bly vanished, including a domestic incident and earlier divorce proceedings. Larson filed for divorce again several weeks after Bly disappeared.

Contemporary reporting stated that Larson underwent a polygraph examination and that authorities said the results indicated he answered questions truthfully. Reporting from the period also stated that police did not consider him a suspect.

Those circumstances have generated considerable online discussion over the years, but publicly available law-enforcement information has not established that Larson was responsible for Bly’s disappearance.

No person has been publicly charged with causing Bly’s disappearance.

The Horse-Riding Accident Before Her Disappearance

Another circumstance investigators considered involved an accident shortly before Bly vanished.

Approximately a week before her disappearance, Bly reportedly fell from a horse. Her mother later said Bly complained of headaches afterward and that she encouraged her daughter to seek medical treatment.

Her mother wondered whether an injury could have caused Bly to become confused or disoriented.

However, investigators said they had no evidence establishing that Bly suffered a head injury severe enough to explain her disappearance, and no evidence has publicly confirmed that this theory explains what happened.

Connection to Missing Child Summer Wells

Bly’s case received renewed national attention in 2021 after another member of her family disappeared.

Five-year-old Summer Wells disappeared from her home in Hawkins County, Tennessee, on June 15, 2021. Summer is Rose Marie Bly’s niece.

The unusual circumstance of two relatives disappearing years apart generated extensive public discussion and media coverage. Wisconsin authorities communicated with investigators handling Summer’s disappearance.

However, authorities have said there is no evidence establishing a connection between the two cases.

Latest Investigation Information

Rose Marie Bly remains listed as missing by both the Wisconsin Department of Justice and the FBI.

On the 15th anniversary of her disappearance in August 2024, the case again received media attention. Reporting from that anniversary indicated that the Polk County Sheriff’s Office continued treating the investigation as active and continued seeking credible information from the public.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice still lists Bly in its statewide missing-person database, and the FBI continues to maintain its public ViCAP entry for her.

A July 2026 review of the case reported no publicly announced arrest, identification of a perpetrator or confirmed discovery of Bly. In August 2026, the case again received public attention through new podcast coverage examining her disappearance.

As of September 2026, publicly available official records continue to classify Rose Marie Bly as missing. No confirmed explanation for her disappearance has been publicly released.

Anyone with credible information should provide it directly to law enforcement rather than treating speculation or allegations posted online as established fact.

Very Brief Case Summary

Last Seen: August 21, 2009
Location: Rural St. Croix Falls, Polk County, Wisconsin
Age: 21
Status: Missing; case remains unsolved

Main Circumstances: Bly left her residence reportedly intending to travel several miles to Cushing, Wisconsin. She never arrived at the expected destination and never returned home. Five days later, her vehicle was discovered approximately 30 miles away in Grantsburg in a parking area used by truck drivers. Extensive searches, interviews and hundreds of tips have not publicly established what happened to her.

Identifying Features: Approximately 5 feet tall and 110 pounds, brown eyes, light brown/brown hair, tattoo of two red cherries on her right ankle, pierced ears and navel.

Current Investigation: The Polk County Sheriff’s Office remains the primary investigating agency. Bly remains publicly listed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice and FBI, and authorities continue requesting information that could help determine what happened to her.