Two decades before the Lindbergh baby became America’s most famous missing child, four-year-old Bobby Dunbar, went missing in Opelousas, Louisiana, setting in motion one of the strangest kidnapping stories in the nation’s history.In the summer of 1912, the Dunbar family took a trip to Swayze Lake in St. Landry Parish, where Bobby wandered off and disappeared. The boy’s disappearance was followed by an eight-month search across the American south, until Bobby was ostensibly found in the company of William Walters, a handyman traveling through the Mississippi. Bobby’s parents were elated to have their son back after such a long absence, but the problem was, very few people seem convinced that the boy was in fact Bobby Dunbar.After extensive news coverage of the search, Walters’ trial for kidnapping, and the joyful return of Bobby to his family, interest in the case began to fade, but for the Dunbar family, questions remained about Bobby’s identity. Had the Dunbars, in their desperation to find their son, unintentionally kidnapped someone else’s child? Thank you to the Incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research and Writing support!ReferencesCrowley Post-Signal. 1913. "Charges fell to ground." Crowley Post-Signal , April 11: 5.Daily Advertiser. 1914. "Walters' trial at Opelousas." Daild Advertiser (Lafayette, LA), April 21: 1.—. 1914. "Supreme court frees Walters." Daily Advertiser (Lafayette, LA), June 30: 1.McThenia, Tal, and Ira Glass. 2008. "The Ghost of Bobby Dunbar." This American Life. Chicago, IL: Chicago Public Media, March 14.New York Times. 1912. "$6,000 for missing boy." New York Times, November 10: 1.—. 1912. "Kidnapped boy murdered." New York Times, December 15: 14.Ray, S.W. 1914. "Opelousas jury hears life story of other mother." Times-Picayune, April 23: 8.St. Landry Clarion. 1912. "No trace of lost Bob Dunbar." St. Landry Clarion , September 7: 1.—. 1912. "Robert Dunbar, 4 years old, mysteriously disappears." St. Landry Clarion , August 31: 4.—. 1914. "Asks that fair play be given to the accused." St. Landry Clarion, April 18: 1.—. 1914. "Fair play for Walters." St. Landry Clarion, April 18: 1.Times-Democrat. 1913. "Recognizes playmates." Times- Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 26: 1.—. 1913. "Does not identify boy." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 22: 1.—. 1913. "Dunbar boy talking." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), May 20: 4.—. 1913. "Hunting for kidnappers." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 27: 1.—. 1913. "Is not Bruce Anderson." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 26: 1.—. 1913. "Now believes boy hers." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), May 3: 1.—. 1912. "Scores search for missing lad." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), August 25: 1.—. 1912. "Suspicion turns toward negroes." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), September 2: 1.—. 1913. "Movements of Tinker." Times-Democrat, May 23: 1.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
What is the story of Bobby Dunbar's disappearance?
I love that. Yeah.
It's manifesting more good things.
I think we talked about it on a recent episode that we were just saying like, you know, like one of our resolutions. I almost said revolution. Funny. Yeah.
both um one of our resolutions is to be kinder to ourselves and we wanted you guys to make sure you are also practicing that because it's important and i think that's another good one to add to the list is like try and i think honestly with the bombardment of shit and news that is happening right now and how overwhelmed everyone feels because i feel very overwhelmed insanely um
In fact, I think both of us have kind of like pulled back from social media a lot just because it's like... Oh, baby, I'm gone. And I'm pulling off really because I'm just like, it's too much all at once. It is. Like I can't keep intaking it all. Yeah. And you know what? We're not fucking meant to. No, we're not.
There's a very good balance that everybody needs to strike between being informed and being inundated. And it's a hard balance to get. So like you're doing fine. Yeah. If you're listening, you're doing fine. Killing it.
But I think it's like thinking, like changing your mindset to be like, okay, what is one good thing that happened to me today or one thing that I'm grateful or can celebrate today will at least give you a little bright spot in all the darkness that it feels like is everywhere.
Yeah, even on like a bad day. Like I had a day last week where I was just – in bitch mode. You know, you were here. Poor Mikey was here. I was in, no, I was in bitch mode. Like it was bad. We're all entitled to those days. But you get so wrapped up in a day like that. And it's like, at the end of that day, I hadn't started my note yet.
But at the end now, like if another bitch mode day comes, I can look back and be like, all right, but what's one good thing that happened that day? Instead of like focusing on all the shitty things that happened or the negativity wrapped up in all of it.
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