Overview

Full name: Sherrye Lee Bethel

Other names: Sherrye Lee Dean; possibly Sherrye Lee Taylor

Age when missing: 21

Date of birth: March 23, 1955

Date last seen: July 15, 1976

Last known location: 4200 block of Poinsetta Drive

City: Fort Worth

County: Tarrant County

State: Texas

Case classification: Missing person

Current status: Unresolved; still publicly listed as missing

Investigating agency: Fort Worth Police Department

Police report number: 89397520

Detailed Case Breakdown

Sherrye Lee Bethel: The Unsolved 1976 Disappearance of a Young Mother in Fort Worth, Texas

More than 50 years after 21-year-old Sherrye Lee Bethel disappeared from Fort Worth, Texas, her whereabouts remain unknown. The young mother vanished in July 1976, leaving behind a one-year-old child and a marriage that was reportedly in the process of ending.

According to the Fort Worth Police Department, Sherrye was last seen at her residence in the 4200 block of Poinsetta Drive. Her husband stated that she had left him and their child, but Sherrye has never been heard from again.

Her disappearance remains an unresolved missing-person case. Publicly available information provides few answers about what happened to her, whether she left voluntarily, or why no confirmed contact with her has been documented in the decades since.

Case Summary

• Full name: Sherrye Lee Bethel
• Other names: Sherrye Lee Dean; possibly Sherrye Lee Taylor
• Age when missing: 21
• Date of birth: March 23, 1955
• Date last seen: July 15, 1976
• Last known location: 4200 block of Poinsetta Drive
• City: Fort Worth
• County: Tarrant County
• State: Texas
• Case classification: Missing person
• Current status: Unresolved; still publicly listed as missing
• Investigating agency: Fort Worth Police Department
• Police report number: 89397520

Main circumstances: Sherrye reportedly disappeared from her Fort Worth home while separated or in the process of divorcing her second husband. He stated that she left him and their one-year-old child. No publicly confirmed account establishes where she went afterward or what happened to her.

Sources: Fort Worth Police Department – Missing Persons and The Charley Project – Sherrye Lee Bethel.

Sherrye Lee Bethel’s Background and Life Before Her Disappearance

Sherrye Lee Bethel was born on March 23, 1955. By the summer of 1976, she was a 21-year-old mother living in Fort Worth, a major North Texas city.

Records summarized by The Charley Project indicate that Sherrye had been married twice. Her first marriage began in July 1972, when she was 17 years old, and ended in divorce in February 1974.

Approximately three months later, she married her second husband. By 1976, the couple had a one-year-old child.

The second marriage was experiencing difficulties. According to The Charley Project, her husband filed for divorce in March 1976, several months before she disappeared. The divorce would not become final until July 1977, approximately one year after her last reported sighting.

These details provide important context, but they do not establish what caused Sherrye’s disappearance. Marital separation alone is not evidence of criminal activity, nor does it establish that someone voluntarily abandoned their family.

Publicly available case profiles contain little additional information about Sherrye’s employment, education, friendships, daily routine, or plans immediately before she went missing.

Physical Description and Identifying Information

At the time of her disappearance, Sherrye was described as:

• Height: 5 feet, 6 inches
• Weight: Approximately 130 pounds
• Hair: Brown
• Eyes: Brown
• Race: White

She may have used her maiden surname, Dean, or the surname Taylor from her second marriage. These alternative names could be important when reviewing historical records or information about possible sightings.

Source: The Charley Project.

July 15, 1976: The Disappearance from Fort Worth

The established date of Sherrye’s disappearance is July 15, 1976.

The Fort Worth Police Department identifies her last known location as her home in the 4200 block of Poinsetta Drive.

According to the department’s public missing-person listing, Sherrye left her one-year-old child at home with her husband. The Charley Project provides additional context, stating that her husband, described as the last person to see her, said she simply left him and their child.

This is the account attributed to her husband, rather than an independently verified reconstruction of her departure.

There is no sufficiently documented public account establishing what Sherrye was wearing, whether she took personal belongings, what transportation she used, or whether anyone outside the household saw her leave.

The available sources also do not establish whether she told relatives or friends that she intended to relocate.

What is known is that Sherrye was never heard from again, according to her published missing-person profile.

The absence of a confirmed later sighting or communication is one of the central mysteries surrounding the case.

Sources: Fort Worth Police Department and The Charley Project.

Investigation History and Available Evidence

Fort Worth Police Department Case

Sherrye’s disappearance is documented in the Fort Worth Police Department’s publicly accessible missing-person listings.

The department identifies her as Sherrye, also spelled Sherrie, Lee Bethel and records that she has been missing since July 1976.

Its listing provides police report number 89397520.

The continued presence of her name in the department’s missing-person records is significant because it confirms that her disappearance remains publicly documented by the investigating agency.

However, the publicly available summary is brief and does not provide a complete investigative chronology.

It does not disclose the full contents of interviews, police reports, investigative leads, or any private information investigators may have collected.

The Husband’s Account

The most important publicly described account of Sherrye’s disappearance came from her husband.

According to The Charley Project, he was the last person known to have seen her and stated that she had left their marriage and their young child.

Because the couple was already involved in divorce proceedings, the circumstances have prompted questions in public discussions of the case.

Nevertheless, there is no verified public evidence establishing that Sherrye’s husband committed a crime or was officially named a suspect.

His account should therefore be treated as a reported witness statement, not as proof of either voluntary disappearance or foul play.

Physical and Forensic Evidence

No publicly verified inventory of physical evidence was located in the reviewed sources.

In particular, the available official and case-specific information does not confirm the recovery of Sherrye’s personal belongings, an abandoned vehicle, biological evidence, or human remains associated with her disappearance.

There is also no verified public announcement of DNA evidence identifying her whereabouts or establishing what happened to her.

These limitations do not necessarily mean that investigators possess no evidence. They mean that the details have not been publicly established in the sources reviewed.

DNA Testing and Genetic Genealogy

Modern missing-person investigations can involve DNA comparisons, unidentified-remains databases, and forensic genetic genealogy.

For Sherrye’s case, however, no publicly confirmed announcement was located establishing that genetic genealogy produced a lead, that a DNA comparison identified her remains, or that forensic testing resolved any part of her disappearance.

It would be inaccurate to describe these techniques as confirmed investigative breakthroughs in her case.

Missing-Person Records and Public Awareness

The Charley Project maintains a case profile documenting Sherrye’s identifying information and circumstances.

Its case history identifies November 15, 2020, as the date of its recorded profile update. This was a database publication activity, not a verified investigative breakthrough.

Her case has also been discussed in online missing-person communities, including Websleuths. Such discussions can help keep a disappearance visible, but speculation posted by members of the public is not equivalent to verified investigative evidence.

Sources: Fort Worth Police Department, The Charley Project, and Websleuths Missing-Person Discussions.

Theories and Unresolved Questions

Several possibilities may be considered when reviewing Sherrye’s disappearance, but none has been publicly established as the explanation.

Did Sherrye Leave Voluntarily?

Her husband’s reported account suggests that she chose to leave the household.

Given the pending divorce, voluntary departure is one possibility.

However, a voluntary departure from a marriage does not necessarily explain a permanent loss of contact with family or the absence of confirmed information about someone’s whereabouts for decades.

No independently verified evidence has been publicly identified showing that Sherrye established a new life elsewhere.

Could She Have Encountered Foul Play?

Foul play cannot be ruled out simply because someone was reported to have left voluntarily.

Nevertheless, no publicly verified evidence establishes that Sherrye was murdered, abducted, or assaulted.

There is no substantiated public identification of a perpetrator, crime scene, or motive.

Her case must therefore remain described as a missing-person investigation, not a confirmed homicide.

Could Her Disappearance Be Connected to Another Case?

Online discussions have raised speculative comparisons between Sherrye’s disappearance and other unresolved missing-person cases.

These comparisons should not be mistaken for official investigative findings.

No verified announcement from law enforcement was located connecting Sherrye to a serial offender, another disappearance, or a particular unidentified person.

Geographic proximity, similarities between cases, and internet theories are not sufficient to establish a criminal connection.

Questions That Remain Unanswered

Among the most important unresolved questions are whether anyone outside the household saw Sherrye on July 15, 1976; whether she had arranged transportation or somewhere to stay; whether she communicated with friends or relatives about her plans; and whether investigators obtained information that has never been publicly released.

The answers could substantially change how her disappearance is understood. At present, the reviewed public sources do not provide them.

Latest Publicly Available Investigative Updates

Research reviewed through October 18, 2026

As of October 18, 2026, Sherrye Lee Bethel remains listed among the missing persons on the Fort Worth Police Department’s official website.

No publicly confirmed recent investigative breakthroughs were located in the sources reviewed.

Specifically, no verified announcement was found concerning an arrest, criminal charge, identified suspect, recovery of remains, successful DNA identification, or resolution of her disappearance.

November 15, 2020: Charley Project Case Update

The Charley Project records November 15, 2020, as its most recent case-profile update.

The profile includes Sherrye’s physical description, marital history, disappearance circumstances, and investigating agency.

This update does not document a new police finding or discovery of evidence.

Source: The Charley Project

2026: Continued Public Discussion

Websleuths continues to index a discussion dedicated to Sherrye’s disappearance, with activity listed as recently as June 18, 2026.

This represents continued community interest, not confirmation of a new lead or investigative development.

Online discussion can generate questions and encourage public awareness, but any new claims require independent verification before being treated as established facts.

Source: Websleuths – 1970s Missing Persons

Official Case Status in October 2026

The Fort Worth Police Department continues to publish Sherrye’s case in its historical missing-person records.

Her police report number remains listed as 89397520.

The publicly accessible police listing does not provide a dated announcement of a new search, cold-case review, or investigative breakthrough involving Sherrye.

The absence of a public announcement should not be interpreted as proof that investigators have stopped working on the case.

Source: Fort Worth Police Department – Missing Persons

Conclusion: A Fort Worth Disappearance Still Awaiting Answers

Sherrye Lee Bethel was only 21 years old when she disappeared from Fort Worth in July 1976.

She was a young mother whose marriage was ending, and the last publicly documented account of her movements came from her husband, who said she had left the household.

More than five decades later, the fundamental questions remain unanswered.

Did Sherrye deliberately leave Fort Worth? Did she encounter danger after leaving home? Was there information known to someone in 1976 that was never passed to investigators?

The available evidence does not establish the answers.

Her disappearance illustrates the difficulties of investigating cases that began decades before modern digital records, widespread surveillance systems, and contemporary forensic technology.

Although much of Sherrye’s life and disappearance remains undocumented publicly, her name continues to appear in official missing-person records.

How to Provide Information

Anyone with firsthand knowledge of Sherrye’s whereabouts, movements, relationships, or circumstances surrounding July 15, 1976, is encouraged to contact the Fort Worth Police Department.

Fort Worth Police Department – Missing Persons Unit

817-392-4442

Police report number: 89397520

Information may also be provided through the Texas Department of Public Safety Missing Persons Clearinghouse at 800-346-3243.

Even information that appears insignificant could provide useful historical context when evaluated by investigators.

Sherrye Lee Bethel remains missing. Until credible evidence establishes what happened to her, her story should be remembered as an unresolved disappearance rather than a confirmed homicide.