Gone Missing
Some of the most famous historical figures' bodies have never been found, lending mystery to their legacies forever.
Jimmy Hoffa
In the 1960s, Jimmy Hoffa was America's infamous labor union leader. He was also the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. However, behind the scenes, he was a downright crook involved in organized crime.
He ended up behind bars—but his ultimate fate was the most mysterious part of his story.
Jimmy Hoffa
Jimmy Hoffa went missing after being released from behind bars. Hoffa had been visiting a restaurant in Detroit the last time he was ever spotted. On that fateful day, he allegedly had a planned meeting with two organized crime bosses. He was never seen again.
Jimmy Hoffa
Many agree that Jimmy Hoffa became one of the Mafia's many victims. However, his remains have never been discovered.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a genius composer from Austria. He composed over 800 pieces, despite dying at the very young age of 35 years old.
Johann Nepomuk della Croce, Wikimedia Commons
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
In September 1791, Mozart's health began to fade, and by the end of November, he found himself confined to his bed. His disturbing symptoms included pain, swelling, and vomiting. At the time, he was working on his Requiem, but sadly, he died in December before he could complete it.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Following his demise, Mozart's body came to rest in St. Marx Cemetary in a common grave. Though many sources have referred to the composer's final resting place as a "mass grave" or a "pauper's grave," this just isn't true.
Invisigoth67, CC BY-SA 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
A "common grave" simply meant that Mozart had a grave intended for people who weren't from the aristocracy. After a decade, these common graves were usually excavated. So, after ten years, Mozart's body was likely moved and reburied to make room for more bodies.
This means that the exact location of remains has been lost to time.
Barbara Krafft, Wikimedia Commons
Harold Holt
Harold Hold was the Australian prime minister in 1967. However, on December 17, he went swimming close to Portsea, Victoria, and never returned to shore. Quite eerily, he'd left all his clothes behind.
NAA, CC BY 3.0 , Wikimedia Commons
Harold Holt
An extensive search operation came up with nothing—the prime minister had disappeared. Many came to the tragic assumption that Holt had drowned during his swim, but not everyone believed this.
William James Cunneen, Wikimedia Commons
Harold Holt
The disappearance of such an important figure like Holt fired up the conspiracy theorists, who suggested that the prime minister was actually a spy, who'd been taken by a Chinese submarine.
Ronald Hall - DoD, Wikimedia Commons
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci is one of history's most renowned painters. He's even been called the founder of the High Renaissance. Spending his final three years in France, the artist passed there in 1519.
F. Bartolozzi, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Leonardo da Vinci
Following his death, da Vinci's remains came to rest in the church of Saint Florentin at the Château d'Amboise. However, the French Revolution caused some serious damage to the massive residence. This eventually resulted in the demolition of the church in 1802, which seriously affected the graves.
Leonardo da Vinci, Wikimedia Commons
Leonardo da Vinci
60 years after the demolition, an excavation of the site led to the discovery of a body that could potentially be Leonardo da Vinci. There were a number of promising clues, including some inscribed stones that featured letters of the artist's name.
However, as confirmation is still required, the correct location of Davinici's body continues to be a prevailing mystery.
Leonardo da Vinci, Wikimedia Commons
Alexander the Great
There are many hazy details when it comes to Alexander the Great, one of the most famous kings from Ancient Greece—but perhaps the location of his remains is the biggest head-scratcher of all.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Alexander the Great
Alexander had a coffin made of "hammered gold," but he didn't exactly have a burial fit for a king. You see, though the deceased king wished to be laid to rest in Siwa, this did not happen.
Gruppe 5, Alexander the Great (2014)
Alexander the Great
Ptolemy I Soter, one of Alexander's generals, hijacked the king's funerary cart and took his body to Egypt for a short time. Though Alexander's remains were eventually moved to Alexandria, his tomb wasn't respected.
Alexander the Great
For instance, Cleopatra took gold from Alexander's tomb to help fund her military operations, while Caligula is said to have looted it. Though the location of Alexander's tomb has surfaced in a number of historical accounts, the true site remains a mystery.
Glenn Miller
During the 1930s and 1940s, Glenn Miller wowed audiences as one of the most prolific big-band leaders and musicians. However, WWII changed his occupation in a big way.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Glenn Miller
Miller joined the army, becoming a source of entertainment for the American soldiers. But sadly, he came to a rather shocking end.
US Army photographer, Wikimedia Commons
Glenn Miller
On December 15, 1944, Glenn Miller boarded a plane traveling from England to France. However, somewhere over the English Channel, his plane went missing. The beloved musician was never found.
Unknown author, Wikimedia Commons
Vlad The Impaler
Vlad the Impaler—or Vlad III—is one of the most terrifying historical figures. He has a brutal reputation that revolves around how he treated his enemies. It's no wonder that he became the inspiration for Dracula by Bram Stoker.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Vlad The Impaler
Vlad has been described as a "demented psychopath" and "gruesome murderer." His exact cause of death is unknown, as well as his final resting place.
Theodor Aman, Wikimedia Commons
Vlad The Impaler
Though Vlad the Impaler was said to be interred in the Monastery of Snagov, excavations disproved these claims. In 1933, Dinu V. Rosetti reported on these excavations: "Under the tombstone attributed to Vlad, there was no tomb. Only many bones and jaws of horses."
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
Genghis Khan
As the founder of the Mongol Empire, Genghis Khan is a towering presence in history. However, scholars haven't been able to confirm the exact location of his body.
National Palace Museum, Wikimedia Commons
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan died in 1227, and based on available information, he was likely buried close to Burkhan Khaldun—a sacred mountain in the Khentii Mountains. Though you can find the Mausoleum of Genghis Khan in China, this is not where he is buried.
GenuineMongol, Wikimedia Commons
Jean Spangler
Jean Spangler was an Old Hollywood actress—but her legacy has been defined by her mysterious disappearance. On October 7, 1949, Spangler had some very distinct plans: First, she had a meeting with her ex-husband and then she would go to work... She never came home.
Jean Spangler
In a puzzling twist, authorities later discovered that Spangler didn't have work on that fateful night, while her ex-husband claimed he hadn't seen her for many weeks. But that wasn't the strangest part.
Jean Spangler
Two days after she went missing, Spangler's purse surfaced in a Los Angeles park. One side of the purse had torn straps—but it was the note inside the purse that caused even more confusion.
Jean Spangler
The note found inside Spangler's purse read, "Kirk: Can't wait any longer, Going to see Dr. Scott. It will work best this way while mother is away."
Jean Spangler
Though neither men named in Spangler's note were ever identified, rumors swirled that the "Kirk" in the note referred to famous actor, Kirk Douglas as they'd worked together briefly in a film—but he denied any claims of knowing Spangler in a close capacity.
Amelia Earhart
As a pioneer of American aviation, Amelia Earhart's legacy has mostly been defined by her tragic disappearance in 1937. She'd been attempting to become the very first woman to fly around the world when something went horribly wrong.
Underwood & Underwood, Wikimedia Commons
Amelia Earhart
Piloting a Lockheed Model 10-E Electra, Earhart went missing over the Pacific Ocean, somewhere close to Howland Island. She also had navigator Fred Noonan with her.
Amelia Earhart, Wikimedia Commons
Amelia Earhart
The general assumption is that the plane ran out of fuel, causing it to crash—Earheart's and Noonan's bodies lost to the ocean. A year and a half later, the two of them were declared dead.
Harris & Ewing, Wikimedia Commons
Amelia Earhart
Because Earhart's airplane remains missing, her demise has sparked countless conspiracy theories. For instance, some claim that she was a spy, while others claim that Japanese Forces captured her. Some even think that she survived and assumed a new identity.
But whatever speculation has swirled around her, the truth about Amelia Earhart's final resting place is still unknown.
Smithsonian Institution, Wikimedia Commons
Solomon Northup
Solomon Northup was the famous abolitionist responsible for the memoir, Twelve Years a Slave. His parents were a free woman of color and a freed slave, and Northup himself was born free. However, in 1841, he traveled to Washington D.C., where he was kidnapped and sold into slavery.
Frederick M. Coffin, Wikimedia Commons
Solomon Northup
Northup was enslaved for 12 years, working under a planter in Louisiana, until he eventually saw freedom again in 1853. Though so much is known about Northup's incredible life, his death and burial location remain a mystery that puzzles scholars to this day.
Regency Enterprises, 12 Years a Slave (2013)
Oscar Zeta Acosta
Oscar Zeta Acosta was an attorney and author, as well as an activist in the Chicano Movement. As a friend of the famous author Hunter S. Thompson, Acosta found himself immortalized in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Dr. Gonzo—a character he inspired. However, Acosta is also known for his mysterious disappearance.
Cashman Photo Enterprises, Inc, Wikimedia Commons
Oscar Zeta Acosta
In 1974, Acosta traveled to Mexico and was never seen again. The last person he spoke to was his son, who later commented on his father's unknown fate: "The body was never found, but we surmise that probably, knowing the people he was involved with, he ended up mouthing off, getting into a fight, and getting killed."
Universal, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
Oscar Zeta Acosta
The speculation behind Acosta's vanishing has birthed many different theories, ranging from murder to a fatal overdose. However, the truth has never been uncovered.
City Projects, The Rise and Fall of the Brown Buffalo (2017)
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