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SYSK's Fall True Crime Playlist: The Unsolved Indiana Dunes Disappearances

Published September 26, 2025
View Show Notes

About This Episode

Hosts Josh Clark and Charles "Chuck" Bryant examine the unsolved 1966 disappearance of three young women-Patricia Blau, Ann Miller, and Renee Brule-from Indiana Dunes State Park on Lake Michigan. They reconstruct the women's last known movements, the delayed but extensive search, and eyewitness reports involving mysterious boats. The hosts then explore multiple theories ranging from accidental drowning to links with an illegal abortion clinic and a violent Chicago crime figure, emphasizing how little hard evidence exists and how haunting the lack of resolution is for the families.

Topics Covered

True crime Missing persons cases Crime history Police work and detective work Media coverage of crime Paranormal investigation National parks Urban legends

Disclaimer: We provide independent summaries of podcasts and are not affiliated with or endorsed in any way by any podcast or creator. All podcast names and content are the property of their respective owners. The views and opinions expressed within the podcasts belong solely to the original hosts and guests and do not reflect the views or positions of Summapod.

Quick Takeaways

  • Three young women vanished from Indiana Dunes State Park on July 2, 1966, and no confirmed physical evidence of their fate has ever been found.
  • Their belongings and car were left behind on a crowded holiday weekend beach, indicating they likely expected to return shortly from the water.
  • A tri-hull runabout speedboat and possibly a larger cabin cruiser were seen with women matching their description, but the boats and their operator were never definitively identified.
  • The search started roughly two days after they were last seen, losing the critical "first 48" hours when most solvable cases are cracked.
  • Investigators uncovered potentially relevant context, including marital problems, an unplanned pregnancy, and connections to a violent Chicago-area horse stable crime figure.
  • A decades-later psychic tip eerily matched a real cabin near the site but produced no physical evidence after days of digging.
  • Theories range from accidental drowning and unreported boat wrecks to botched illegal abortions and targeted murders ordered by a crime boss.
  • Despite plausible scenarios, the total absence of bodies, wreckage, or definitive witnesses keeps the case firmly in the realm of mystery.
  • The case illustrates how media attention, family persistence, and amateur sleuths keep cold cases alive even when official leads have long run dry.

Podcast Notes

Introduction and overview of the Indiana Dunes disappearance case

Brief narrative setup of the 1966 disappearance

Three women went to the beach at Indiana Dunes in July 1966 and vanished[1:23]
• The narrator explains that on a July day in 1966, three women went for a day at the beach on Lake Michigan in northwest Indiana, not far from Chicago
• They disappeared that day and no trace of them has surfaced since
Tone of the case: sad and unresolved[1:18]
• The episode is described as one of the sadder true crime stories because the women are presumed dead and their families never got any resolution

Show intro and banter before diving into the case

Hosts introduce themselves and frame this as a mystery episode[1:34]
• Josh welcomes listeners to the podcast and introduces himself and co-host Charles W. "Chuck" Bryant
• They label this a "super-duper mysterious mystery edition" of the show
Host reactions to the case[1:18]
• Both Josh and Chuck say they had never heard of this case before researching it
• They express that it is a "good one" in terms of being a compelling mystery

Banter about TV spin-offs and preamble tangent

Discussion of television spin-offs unrelated to the case[2:21]
• They mention The Cleveland Show as a spin-off of Family Guy, and Laverne & Shirley and Mork & Mindy as spin-offs from Happy Days
• They discuss the sitcom Too Close for Comfort, actor Ted Knight, and the Monroe character (Jim J. Bullock), focusing on Chuck's nostalgic memories of the show
• Chuck recalls being excited seeing a Georgia Bulldogs sweatshirt on the show, feeling represented on TV
Hosts clarify that this tangent is a preamble before the main story[4:45]
• They joke about whether this counts as a tangent or a preface, finally labeling it a preamble

Setting the scene: Indiana Dunes, the date, and the case description

Clarification on the boat type and research sources

Correction about the type of boat involved[6:06]
• Josh notes that some articles called the suspect boat a "trimaran" (a type of sailboat) and that this was incorrect
• He explains that the boat was actually a tri-hull runabout, a popular fiberglass speedboat style in the 1950s and 1960s
• Josh says he had to go back and replace "TriCat" (a mistaken term he had used) in many places in his notes
Mention of primary written sources used for the episode[7:30]
• Josh says he mainly wrote the episode himself but did copy and paste one section from a 1987 Chicago Tribune article because it was easier
• Both hosts remark that there is not a lot of information available about the case, making research challenging

Basic description of the disappearance and location

Overview of the disappearance of three young women[6:22]
• Josh describes the case as the disappearance of three young women from suburban Chicago in the mid-1960s at Indiana Dunes State Park on Lake Michigan
• Chuck notes that the area is now Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, but at the time it was a state park
Date and setting details[7:22]
• The disappearance happened on Saturday, July 2, 1966, during the July 4th holiday weekend
• Indiana Dunes State Park is on the shore of Lake Michigan, with about 26 miles of shoreline mentioned for the broader park area

Background on the three women and their day at the beach

Identities, ages, and home lives of the women

Names and approximate ages[7:01]
• The three women were named Patricia (Patty) Blau, Ann Miller, and Renee Brule
• One was 21 (Patricia), and the others were in their late teens or early twenties; the hosts mention conflicting reports of 19, 20, and 21, and note that the exact ages vary slightly by source
Where they lived and their friendship[7:49]
• They all lived around Chicago and had been friends for a few years, not since grade school but in more recent years
• Ann and Patricia were friends through horseback riding at local stables and shared that social circle
Morning of the trip and transportation details[7:22]
• Patricia drove her 1955 Buick sedan (described as an 11-year-old Buick at that point) to pick up Ann, who lived with her parents, and then Renee, who was married
• They then drove from the Chicago area to Indiana Dunes State Park, a distance given in various sources as about 60-80 miles

Arrival at the beach and initial setup

Time and conditions at the beach[8:21]
• They arrived by about 10 a.m., parked the Buick, and walked over the dunes via a rickety boardwalk to the beach
• The beach and park were extremely crowded because it was July 4th weekend, with estimates of 9,000-10,000 people present
• Chuck mentions there were 4,000 cars in the parking lots and 4,000-6,000 boats on the water that day
Location of their blanket relative to others[9:09]
• Renee and Patty set up their blanket fairly close to a teenage couple who became their "beach neighbors" for the day
• The hosts note that with that many people, everyone was likely very close together on the sand

Last known movements and immediate disappearance

The women wade into the water and fail to return

Teenage couple's observation of the women entering the water[9:10]
• Around noon, the teenage couple observed the three women wade into the lake; this is the last confirmed sighting from that couple
Teen couple reports abandoned belongings to ranger[9:34]
• Later in the day, as the teenage couple prepared to leave, they noticed the women's belongings still unattended on the beach
• Concerned that the items could be stolen, they went to a park ranger and reported that three young women had left their things behind
• The ranger assumed the women were off partying somewhere and collected the belongings to safeguard them
No one sees the women again[9:37]
• From that point on, no one is known to have definitively seen the three women; they effectively vanished without a trace

Discovery of the disappearance and initial law enforcement response

Parents report and connection to the found belongings

Father's call to the park and identification of the car[14:40]
• About 18 hours after the ranger collected the belongings, around dusk, a call came into the park from Harold Blau, Patricia's father
• He asked if rangers had seen his daughter, who had been reported missing by her family earlier that day in Chicago
• Rangers searched the collected belongings and found car keys with a miniature Illinois license plate that matched a license plate on a Buick in the lot
• They located Patricia's Buick still in the parking lot, reinforcing that the women had not left in the car
Indiana State Police take over[15:30]
• Indiana State Police assumed control of the case once it was clear it involved missing persons rather than lost items
• The fact that their car was still present and their belongings were abandoned made the idea that they were just out partying look increasingly unlikely

Details of the items left behind on the beach

Nature of the abandoned belongings[15:59]
• The women left behind money in their wallets, a transistor radio, magazines that were still open, and suntan lotion
• The scene suggested they had simply stepped away for a swim, expecting to return shortly, rather than intentionally abandoning their possessions
• The fact that the car remained in the lot by the next day made it very suspicious that they had not returned

Large-scale search operation and its limitations

Scope and participants of the search

Multi-agency search effort[16:53]
• A large search party was organized, including soldiers from a nearby missile base, the county sheriff, the Civil Air Patrol, the Coast Guard, dive teams, airplanes, and helicopters
• A sheriff's posse on horseback and volunteers searched dunes and wooded areas, demonstrating a land-sea-air effort
• Searchers checked about 250 cabins in the area and used a dune buggy to patrol the lakeshore at night to look for bodies washing ashore

Timing of the search and missed opportunities

Two-day delay before full search was launched[18:03]
• The intensive search did not begin until July 5, roughly two full days after the women were last seen on July 2
• Josh notes that modern investigative wisdom, such as that shown in "The First 48", emphasizes that the first 48 hours are critical to solving cases
• The delay has been criticized as a major flaw in the response, as the trail grows colder with every passing hour
Search results: no evidence found[18:34]
• Despite the extensive search on land, in the water, and from the air, nothing related to the fate of the three women was discovered
• No bodies, no personal items beyond what had been collected, and no wreckage clearly tied to them were found during this initial operation

Early investigative leads: personal lives and potential criminal connections

Letter in Renee's purse and marital context

Discovery of an unsent letter criticizing Renee's husband[19:09]
• In Renee Brule's purse, police found a letter she had written to her husband complaining that all he did was work on his hot rods and party with friends
• The letter expressed that she was fed up and hinted at wanting to leave the marriage
Police interview with Renee's husband and family reaction[19:03]
• Police questioned Renee's husband and her family about the state of the marriage
• Both husband and family acknowledged normal marital tensions but insisted the marriage was generally fine and that the letter likely was written in a moment of anger and never delivered
• Police cleared the husband of suspicion, but the letter fueled a theory that Renee, and possibly the others, might have run off to start anew

Ann Miller's pregnancy and relationships

Reports of Ann being pregnant and fearing stigma[20:05]
• Friends of Ann Miller told investigators she was about three months pregnant, based on what she had told them, although there was no physical test cited
• She had reportedly said she might have to go live in a home for unwed mothers, reflecting 1960s social stigma around unmarried pregnancy
Relationships with married men[20:50]
• Ann was said to be dating a married man and the baby might have been his, which would have added further complications
• Patricia was also reportedly dating a married man, and both Ann and Patricia were connected through their shared horse stable community

Connection to Chicago-area horse stables and crime figure Silas Jane

Description of the stable environment[21:32]
• Ann and Patty rode at a particular horse stable where Ann even worked as a horse exerciser
• The stable was connected to organized crime activity in the Chicago area
Profile of crime boss Silas (Cy) Jane[21:36]
• The hosts describe Silas Jane as a violent criminal: a rapist, linked to the murder of three boys, tied to the murders of the Grimes sisters, and suspected in the disappearance of an heiress
• He was also involved in putting a hit on his own brother and associated with a firebomb planted in a woman's car
• He and his associates operated out of or were connected to the horse stable where the women rode, putting Ann and Patty in proximity to dangerous people
Emerging theory that they may have witnessed a car bombing[22:11]
• A later theory suggests the women might have witnessed the rigging of a car bomb for a woman named Cheryl Lynn Rood, creating a motive for Silas Jane to "take care of" them
• The hosts flag this as one of multiple theories that connect the disappearance to Jane's violent criminal enterprises

Eyewitness reports of boats and supporting photographic evidence

Leads generated through media outreach

Police and media solicit public tips[22:46]
• Police involved the media early, leading to various tips about possible sightings of the women
• Some tips were vague or implausible, such as claims they were seen alive in Michigan or in a drugstore weeks later, but a few leads stood out

Tri-hull runabout sighting by a couple from Indianapolis

Description of the boat and its operator[23:41]
• A couple from Indianapolis, likely the same teenage couple who had been nearby on the beach, reported seeing a young man in his early twenties with dark wavy hair and a tan approaching in a white tri-hull runabout with turquoise interior
• The tri-hull runabout is described as a stylish 1960s fiberglass speedboat, the kind of boat a young man might use to pick up women on a lake
Reported boarding of the tri-hull by three women[24:54]
• The Indianapolis couple reported seeing the three women get onto this tri-hull runabout with the young man and ride off
• The hosts emphasize that this is a huge lead, as it directly connects the women to a specific boat and operator shortly after they were seen wading into the water

Additional reports: return to shore, food, and possible cabin cruiser

Claim that they returned to shore and ate[25:09]
• Another set of witnesses reported that the women later came back to shore, got something to eat, and hung out on the beach again
Report of boarding a larger cabin cruiser with three men[25:19]
• A third lead described the women boarding a larger cabin cruiser around 3 p.m. with three men
• The cabin cruiser reportedly had its name sanded off; sandpaper and red paint scrapings were found on the beach, signaling that someone had removed identifying marks

Mysterious wreckage and unclaimed boat remains

Boat debris washing ashore[25:56]
• Within the first week, pieces of boat wreckage washed ashore, including Styrofoam, seats, and an oil can, suggesting a wrecked boat
• Police decided the debris did not match the boats they were looking for, particularly the tri-hull runabout or the specific cabin cruiser of interest
No reported boat wreck despite debris[25:56]
• Strangely, no boat was officially reported wrecked in that area of Lake Michigan that weekend, despite the presence of debris

Home movie footage offering partial corroboration

Amateur film shot on the crowded beach[27:28]
• An individual on the beach was filming home movies that day, panning across the crowded shoreline
• When the film was later reviewed, investigators saw what appeared to be the three women on the small runabout boat, consistent with witness accounts
Ambiguity regarding the cabin cruiser[28:10]
• Footage of a cabin cruiser showed three women aboard, but it was unclear whether they were the missing women, and police seemed less convinced by this link
Police focus on the tri-hull runabout as last confirmed sighting[28:28]
• Based on witnesses and the film, police focused on the scenario where the women waded into the water near noon, got on the tri-hull runabout, and were not definitively seen again after that
• Culturally, it would not have been unusual in 1966 for young women to accept an invitation for a boat ride from a stranger at a busy holiday beach

Later developments: passing years, family persistence, and psychic lead

Efforts by Patricia's father over the years

Gradual decline of official search and ongoing parental efforts[33:11]
• As weeks and months passed, official searches tapered off and fewer people actively looked for the women
• Patricia's father, Harold Blau, continued to pursue leads for the rest of his life, maintaining contact with police and reporters and even traveling to follow up on information
• He chartered planes to conduct his own aerial reconnaissance flights over the lake and surrounding areas, looking for signs of the women or a wreck
• Blau believed his daughter and the others were either dead or being held against their will, and said she had no need to run away because her parents were not overbearing

Psychic tip about a cabin and subsequent excavation

Description of the psychic vision[34:00]
• A psychic contacted authorities saying she visualized a cabin on Lake Michigan with dark-colored sand, rickety wooden stairs up from the beach, situated on a bluff, and featuring a lawn chair with the bottom rotted out
Police verification of physical details and excavation[34:17]
• Nine years after the disappearance, a cop followed up, driving as far as possible and then hiking to locate a cabin that matched the psychic's description almost exactly, including the rotted-out lawn chair
• They dug at the site for three days looking for bodies but found nothing
• The hosts note that, unless it was an intentional prank, the accuracy of the description is eerie, though it did not produce any evidence

Status of the case: open but evidentially barren

Continuing mystery and lack of physical clues[34:36]
• The case remains officially open, but no hint, trace, or physical evidence has ever surfaced that clarifies what happened to the three women
• The absence of evidence has allowed multiple competing theories to coexist, none decisively supported over the others

Survey and evaluation of major theories about what happened

Accidental drowning and unreported boat wreck theory

Drowning as a seemingly simple explanation[35:52]
• One common, more mundane theory is that the women drowned, possibly in an accident involving the boat, and their bodies never washed up where they would be found
Counterpoints: swimming ability and body recovery norms[36:10]
• Miller and Blau were said to be very strong swimmers, which makes simple drowning from shore-based swimming less likely
• Lake Michigan is the deadliest of the Great Lakes and has 1,640 miles of shoreline, so it is possible bodies could have washed up elsewhere without being connected to the case
• However, Josh notes that most drowning victims on Lake Michigan are eventually recovered, so the total absence of any of the three women raises doubts about this explanation

Dick Wiley's illegal abortion on a boat theory

Wiley's background and core claim[37:05]
• Crime reporter Dick Wiley followed the case for years and proposed that Ann went to the dunes to obtain an illegal abortion, with her friends along for support
• His theory claimed that a man in the runabout took them to a houseboat where the abortion would be performed
Alleged botched procedure and triple murder[38:00]
• According to Wiley's scenario, the abortion was botched, killing Ann, and the abortionist then murdered the other two women to cover up the crime and disposed of all three bodies
Hosts' critique of the abortion-on-a-boat scenario[38:21]
• Josh and Chuck find the idea of performing a delicate medical procedure like an abortion on a houseboat on a busy holiday lake implausible and "bonkers"
• They question why such an operation would be arranged in front of thousands of witnesses at a crowded beach, and why the women would leave their belongings casually if they knew they were heading to a serious medical appointment
Evidence partially supporting Wiley's broader suspicions[39:31]
• Frank and Helen Largo ran an underground abortion clinic in Gary, Indiana, not far from the dunes in 1966
• Their nephew, Ralph, bore a strong resemblance to the young man described as operating the tri-hull runabout and was reportedly at the beach that day and lived with the Largos
• These facts lend some weight to the idea of a connection to abortion providers but do not make the specific boat-houseboat scenario convincing to the hosts

Theories involving crime boss Silas Jane and his associates

Direct murder to silence witnesses[39:51]
• One theory holds that the women witnessed the rigging of a car bomb for Cheryl Lynn Rood, giving Silas Jane motive to have them killed
• Jane had an associate who reportedly resembled the tanned, dark-haired young man described as operating the tri-hull runabout
• There are unverified claims that this associate filed an insurance claim for a boat that went down around that time, potentially explaining why no boat wreck was reported yet debris appeared
Insurance and missing boat implications[40:59]
• If a boat used in a triple murder was intentionally sunk, its owner would have strong incentive not to report the loss truthfully, which could align with an insurance claim rather than a wreck report
• The absence of any missing persons reports for a matching boat owner and the lack of an abandoned car and trailer further deepen the mystery of the unidentified boat
Staged disappearance theory endorsed by Patty's brother[42:06]
• A commenter on the WebSleuths forum, verified as Patricia's brother, proposed that the women tried to stage their own disappearance to escape danger from Jane
• In his view, someone who pretended to help them vanish was actually working for Jane, leading to their murder and disposal of their bodies instead of successful escape
• Josh and Chuck find parts of this theory thin-especially motivation for the third woman-but note that it seems to fit the brother's view of his sister's situation

Random murderer or opportunistic killer on a boat

Hypothesis of a lone killer using the boat[43:57]
• Another theory is that the women encountered "the wrong person"-a man who lured them onto a boat and then killed them once out on the open lake
• Josh notes that one person could theoretically maintain control over three people in the confined environment of a boat far from shore
Consideration of serial killer Richard Speck[44:31]
• Some have speculated about Richard Speck, who murdered eight women in a nursing college on July 13, 1966, and had been dropped off near a dock about 20 miles from the dunes on July 2
• Josh explains that Speck is more accurately a mass murderer than a serial killer, operated very sloppily and opportunistically, and did not match the description of the tan, wavy-haired young man
• Given Speck's appearance, personality, and known modus operandi, the hosts consider it unlikely that he charmed three women onto a boat in this way

Relative plausibility and enduring uncertainty

Occam's Razor versus contradictory details[45:34]
• Chuck suggests that Occam's Razor might point toward a simple drowning, but Josh counters with the statistical expectation that at least one body would have been recovered
• They emphasize that every theory-whether drowning, abortion-related, crime-boss hit, or random killer-faces significant unanswered questions and evidentiary gaps
Conclusion that the case remains a true mystery[45:43]
• The hosts end their analysis by stating that it is a "true mystery" with no theory clearly outweighing the others, making it both tragic and fascinating as a cold case

Conclusion, suggested resources, and listener mail

Recommended resources for further case research

Sources cited by the hosts[46:00]
• Josh recommends several resources for those who want to know more: a Chicago Tribune article, a Northwest Indiana Times article, the WebSleuths forum, and the Charlie Project entry on the case

Listener mail from Catherine in Chicago

Catherine's experience with the show during an empty nest transition[47:13]
• A listener named Catherine from Chicago writes that her youngest child left for college, leaving a quieter house that took some getting used to
• She finds herself playing old episodes, such as "Bizarre Ways to Die", because they make her feel like she is in the company of friends
• She says the show cheers her up, makes her feel less lonely, and that she appreciates what the hosts and their team do
Hosts' response and closing contact info[47:13]
• Josh and Chuck thank Catherine for her kind words and encouragement
• They invite listeners to visit their website for social links and to email the show at their podcast address

Lessons Learned

Actionable insights and wisdom you can apply to your business, career, and personal life.

1

Delays in responding to crises can permanently reduce the chances of resolution, as critical evidence and leads often emerge in the earliest hours.

Reflection Questions:

  • • When have you waited too long to respond to an emerging problem, and what concrete signs could have told you to act sooner?
  • • How might you design your own processes at work or at home to ensure that the "first 48 hours" of any major issue are used effectively rather than lost to indecision?
  • • What is one current situation in your life where taking decisive action in the next 24-48 hours could materially change the outcome?
2

In the absence of clear facts, people naturally fill gaps with intricate theories, but without evidence those narratives can distract from more probable explanations.

Reflection Questions:

  • • Where in your life are you building elaborate stories about others' motives or events without enough hard evidence?
  • • How could you create a simple checklist to distinguish between what you know, what you suspect, and what you are merely guessing about in a current challenge?
  • • What is one decision you're facing where stripping away unproven assumptions might lead you to a clearer, more grounded course of action?
3

Eyewitness testimony and memories, while valuable, are inherently limited and often ambiguous, so important decisions should be cross-checked with multiple, independent sources where possible.

Reflection Questions:

  • • In what situations do you tend to rely heavily on a single person's account or your own memory without seeking corroboration?
  • • How might you build the habit of asking, "What other sources can confirm or challenge this?" before committing to a major decision?
  • • What is one current belief you hold that you could test by deliberately seeking an additional, independent perspective this week?
4

Persistent advocacy from loved ones can keep cold issues alive-whether a legal case, a workplace problem, or a personal goal-even when formal systems lose interest.

Reflection Questions:

  • • What long-term issue in your life or community might benefit from steady, patient attention instead of being written off as "unsolvable"?
  • • How could you structure your efforts (small regular actions, check-ins, or documentation) so that your persistence is sustainable over years rather than weeks?
  • • Who in your network could you support more consistently, the way a dedicated family member keeps following up on a cold case?
5

Recognizing the limits of what can be known is a form of intellectual humility that helps prevent overconfidence in any single explanation when evidence is scarce.

Reflection Questions:

  • • Where are you most tempted to act as if you are certain, even though the available information is fragmentary or conflicting?
  • • How might explicitly listing alternative hypotheses before you decide on a plan change the way you approach complex, uncertain problems?
  • • What is one area of your personal or professional life where adopting a "this is my best current guess, not absolute truth" mindset could reduce stress and improve decisions?

Episode Summary - Notes by Logan

SYSK's Fall True Crime Playlist: The Unsolved Indiana Dunes Disappearances
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