Vanished into Thin Air: The Chilling Enigma of the Jamison Family
The wilderness of the Sans Bois Mountains in Oklahoma is a place of rugged beauty and isolation. But in October 2009, it became the stage for one of the most baffling and unsettling disappearances in American history. When Bobby Jamison, his wife Sherilynn, and their 6-year-old daughter Madyson vanished, they left behind a trail of evidence so bizarre that it continues to haunt investigators and amateur sleuths alike.
This isn't just a story of a family getting lost; it is a dark puzzle involving strange behavior, alleged witchcraft, and a mystery that even the discovery of their remains could not solve.
1. The Day the World Stopped
On October 8, 2009, the Jamison family set out on a short trip. They were looking to buy a 40-acre plot of land near Red Oak, Oklahoma. They weren't planning a long vacation; they were supposed to be back shortly.
A few days later, hunters found their abandoned pickup truck on a remote dirt road. What they found inside was the first sign that something was terribly wrong:
The Family Dog: Maisie, the family's small dog, was still inside the truck, malnourished but alive.
The Cash: Under the seat, police found an envelope containing $32,000 in cash.
Personal Belongings: Their cell phones, GPS, wallets, and jackets were all left behind.
In the world of disappearances, people usually take their money and phones if they are running away. If they are kidnapped, the kidnappers usually take the money. Here, the money was untouched, but the humans were gone.
2. The Surveillance Footage: A Descent into Madness
The most disturbing piece of evidence came from the Jamison’s own home security system. Police recovered footage of the family packing their truck on the day they left.
The video shows Bobby and Sherilynn moving in a "trance-like" state. They walked back and forth from the house to the truck over 20 times, sometimes without carrying anything at all. They didn't speak to each other. Their movements were robotic, vacant, and deeply unsettling. It looked less like a family going on a trip and more like people under a spell or a severe psychological breakdown.
3. The "Ghostly" Diary and Witchcraft
As investigators dug deeper into the family's life, things got even weirder. Sherilynn Jamison’s mother claimed the family believed their house was haunted. Bobby had reportedly asked a local priest about "special bullets" to kill spirits he believed were living on their roof.
In the truck, police found a 11-page "hate letter" written by Sherilynn to Bobby. It was a rambling, angry manifesto. Even more chilling were reports that Sherilynn possessed a "Witch’s Bible" and had left strange markings around the property to ward off evil spirits. Was the family running from demons, or were the "demons" inside their own minds?
4. The Discovery: Four Years of Silence
For four years, the mountains kept their secret. Then, in November 2013, hunters discovered the skeletal remains of two adults and a child, just three miles from where the truck had been abandoned.
They were lying face down, side-by-side. Because of the extreme decomposition and damage from forest animals, the medical examiner could not determine the cause of death. There were no bullet holes (though Sherilynn’s father later claimed there was a hole in Bobby’s skull, which was never officially confirmed). The forest had reclaimed them, leaving the "why" and "how" buried in the dirt.
5. The Theories: What Really Happened?
A. The Drug Connection
The Sans Bois Mountains are notorious for illegal "meth labs." One theory suggests the Jamisons stumbled upon a drug operation. This would explain the abandoned truck—perhaps they were forced out at gunpoint. However, it doesn't explain why the $32,000 cash wasn't stolen. Drug dealers rarely leave that much money behind.
B. Murder-Suicide
Given the erratic behavior in the video and the "hate letter," many believe Bobby or Sherilynn snapped. Did one parent kill the other and the child before taking their own life? The "side-by-side" position of the bodies makes this theory difficult to prove, as a suicide usually leaves a messier trail.
C. The "White Supremacist" Encounter
Before the trip, Bobby had reported a man to the police, claiming he was a dangerous white supremacist who had threatened his family. Some believe this man followed them into the mountains to seek revenge.
D. Psychological Breakdown
The family was under immense stress. They were struggling with health issues, financial weirdness (where did the $32,000 come from?), and deep-seated paranoia. Some experts believe they suffered a "folie à deux"—a shared delusion—that led them to wander into the woods to escape imaginary threats, eventually dying of hypothermia.
6. The Mystery of the $32,000
Perhaps the biggest question remains: Where did the money come from? The Jamisons were on disability and weren't known to have that kind of cash. Some suspect it was related to a drug deal, while others think it was their life savings they were using to "disappear" from society. The fact that it stayed in the truck while they died just three miles away is the ultimate irony of this case.
7. A Child’s Forgotten Face
The most heartbreaking part of the story is Madyson Jamison. In the photos found on her parents' phones from that day, she looks unhappy. In one specific photo, she is standing on the mountain, looking at the camera with an expression that some describe as "terrified." It was the last photo ever taken of her.
Conclusion: The Mountain Never Tells
The Jamison Family Case is a haunting cocktail of the supernatural, the criminal, and the psychological. It reminds us that the human mind is a fragile thing, and when it breaks in the middle of a vast, indifferent wilderness, the results are catastrophic.
Whether they were running from cults, drugs, ghosts, or themselves, the Jamisons took the truth to their forest grave. All that remains is a dusty truck, a malnourished dog, and a pile of cash that couldn't save them.
