Trenny Gibson – Missing in the Smokies

Fall in the Smoky Mountains is beautiful. The hills and valleys are bright with flaming red, orange, and gold leaves. The mountain air is crisp. Streams and rivers are already chilly. Tourists are flocking to Cades Cove in Tennessee and Kuwohi (formerly Clingman’s Dome) in North Carolina. Kuwohi is the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains.

Tourists from other states and other countries aren’t the only visitors to the Smokies. Of course there are the local hikers and campers who enjoy navigating the trails and exploring the nooks and enne crannies of the Park. Sometimes schools will arrange field trips for classes, giving students the opportunity to learn local history. Trenny Gibson, a sixteen year old from Bearden High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, was one of those students.

On October 8, 1976, about forty students from Bearden High School visited Andrew’s Bald and Kuhwohi (formerly Clingman’s Dome). Trenny was known as a good student who didn’t cause problems. A small girl at just five feet three inches and a hundred and fifteen pounds, she little knowledge about outdoor life. But, she was in the Horticulture Class taught by Wayne Dunlap, so this field trip was a treat. She was hoping to study landscape architecture and that led to her interest in plants and trees.

The students weren’t told their destination until the morning of the trip. Despite the poor weather conditions, the trip was not canceled. Trenny left her purse, coat, and books in the car, but she did take her lunch. She sat beside a senior, Robert Simpson, who was a friend of her brother Bob. They were both excited when they learned their destination, Kuwohi (formerly Clingman’s Dome) in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Kuwohi is the highest point in the park. There are several trails that start at Kuwohi. The Appalachian Trail crosses Kuwohi. In addition Forney Ridge Trail leads to Andrews Bald. The distance from the Kuwohi is 1.8 miles.

Before setting off on the hike along the Forney Ridge Trail to Andrew’s Bald, the teacher, Wayne Dunlap, instructed the students to stay on the trail to the bald but not any further. They were to return to the bus by 3:30 PM. After receiving maps, the students broke into groups and set off on the trail. Trenny and Robert began walking together. Although there were 38 students hiking, Dunlap was the only supervising adult. The only other adult was the bus driver who stayed with the bus.

The weather was damp and chilly and Trenny left her coat in Knoxville. She was poorly dressed for the hike, only wearing a blue blouse, a blue and white striped sweater, jeans, and blue and white Addidas tennis shoes. She also wore a star sapphire pendant. On her finger was a star sapphire ring. Robert loaned her his brown and orange wool jacket as they walked the trail. Both teens had their lunch, so when they arrived at Andrew’s Bald they stopped to eat. After lunch, around 1:30 PM Trenny decided to return to the bus, according to Robert. He claimed he started tracking a bear and she wanted to get back to the gathering area in the parking lot.

As she walked the trail she encountered a group of girls also returning to the parking lot, Angela Beckner, Lisa Mikel’s, and Bobbie Coghill. Trenny was walking quickly and Bobbie joined her for a short distance. A little further along the path another group met Trenny and Bobbie. Scott Troy and Anita Rounds decided to sit and take a break. They invited Trenny to join them, but she wanted to continue walking. They were approximately halfway to bus. The students watched Trenny walk a little further, then stop, bend down, then go off the trail to the right by herself.

Bobbie Coghill, one of the last to see Trenny

Lisa Mikels, one of the last to see Trenny

Angela Beckner, one of the last to see Trenny

This was about 2:50 PM. One of the group said, “Trenny … seemed to be in a hurry to get back.” Another member of the group speculated, “…she may have tried to go cross-country to (the) Dome parking area.” Some students thought she had “run off with someone”, although there has never been any evidence of that.

Anita Rounds, one of the last to see Trenny

Scott Troy, one of the last to see Trenny

It was only when the group returned to the bus at 3:30 PM that they realized Teresa wasn’t there. By 3:40 the teacher was concerned enough to search for Trenny. Wayne Dunlap and student Danny Johnson set off to search for her. Someone claimed they’d seen “tennis shoe tracks” on the Appalachian Trail. This part of the trail is on the way to Double Springs Shelter. Dunlap headed toward the shelter and Danny went to the bald. Neither Dunlap nor Danny found any trace of the young girl. Using CB radio, the National Park Service was contacted. At 4:30 PM Ranger Sammy Lail arrived at the parking lot.

Double Springs Shelter is a stop on the Appalachian Trail. Located in Swain County, North Carolina, it’s a very primitive shelter. The best times to visit this section of the trail is from April through November.

Once Ranger Lail had been updated on the situation, he searched the area around Andrew’s Bald. Having no success in finding Trenny, he made an official report on a missing child in the Park. An immediate search was organized, with NPS personnel from Tennessee and North Carolina being asked to assist. Wayne Dunlap advised the bus driver to return to Bearden High School with the students, choosing to remain behind and assist in the search.

As evening descended the area was hit with wind, rain, and fog. No doubt the weather conditions along with the darkness hampered the approximately nineteen searchers who arrived between 6:30 pm and 8:00 pm. Meanwhile, around 8:00 PM, Trenny’s mother was informed her daughter was missing. This was a full five hours after Trenny disappeared. Why was there such a delay in notifying the parent? Didn’t Hope Gibson question why her daughter hadn’t returned with her class? Trenny’s father, Robert Sr., was returning from an out of town business trip. He raced from the airport to collect his wife before heading to the search area. They brought some of Trenny’s clothes so the search dogs could get her scent.

The weather conditions worsened as the evening progressed. The trails were slippery with rain and fallen leaves. In addition, as the temperature dropped, hoarfrost made the ground even more slippery. Visibility was impacted as well. Despite the complications, some broken undergrowth was discovered on the trail close to the spot Trenny was last seen. Also found nearby were three cigarette butts and a partially consumed can of beer.

Three tracking dogs located Trenny’s scent where the Appalachian Trail crossed the search area. The dogs followed the scent past Clingman’s Tower to a spot about a mile and a half from Newfound Gap where they lost the scent. Curiously, cigarette butts of the same brand found where Trenny had left the trail were found at that point, not far from the road. For some reason Clingman’s Dome Tower was not searched during this time. There is also a “cavity at the base of the tower. The search continued until 3:00 AM when it was called off until the morning.

On the morning of October 9th Ranger Jack Linahan coordinated the first full day search. Teams of dogs were brought in. Pieces of Trenny’s clothing were supplied by her parents to acquaint the dogs with her scent. Linahan closed the public road from the Dome parking area to Newfound Gap. National Guard helicopters were called in but the weather did not clear sufficiently until late afternoon. Two of Trenny’s uncles joined in the search bringing their own dogs. Approximately one hundred and fifty people took part in the search on October 9th and the Red Cross was onsite providing food. At one point during the search days they supplied three hundred meals.

Trenny’s parents informed officials of an incident that occurred in the past. Another student at the high school, Kelvin Bowman, had once threatened Trenny’s life. There are conflicting stories surrounding the event. One story stated that Bowman broke into the Gibson home to rob them. At one point it was claimed Bowman had a crush on Trenny. Another tale was Trenny and Bowman were secretly dating and Trenny had left a window open so Bowman could enter unseen. Whatever the truth was, Hope Gibson caught him and shot him in the foot. Bowman was arrested and sentenced to two years in a juvenile correction facility. While in court he made threats against Trenny, threatening to harm Trenny. If this is true, it’s unlikely they were in a relationship. He only served six months and when released, he returned to Bearden High School. I couldn’t find any records to indicate there were issues between Trenny and Kelvin Bowman. In addition, Principal Frank Hall at Bearden High School stated that Bowman was in attendance the entire day of the class trip.

The FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) initiated an investigation on October 12th. Unfortunately their results were never made public.

The search continued until October 18th, 1976. A limited search was conducted until November 2, 1976. Approximately 756 people searched for Trenny. There were reports of girls who resembled Trenny. One report referred to a young girl in nearby Bryson City trying to get married. Apparently she was underage. It was not Trenny. Another report came from a North Carolina hospital claiming they may have treated Trenny on the day she disappeared. When the hospital staff saw a photograph of Trenny, they realized it wasn’t her. Eventually it was reported it was a local girl.

Trenny’s father, Robert, was able to initiate a new search the following year, April 18, 1977. The National Park Service assembled search parties and, once again, the areas around Clingman’s Dome were searched. They followed a trail from Dome Road to the Appalachian Trail and onto Collin’s Gap Road among other trails. No sign of Trenny were found; not a piece of clothing, not any remains, not even a bone. Trenny had disappeared into thin air on October 8, 1976 and no evidence of what happened was ever discovered.

There has been a variety of theories about what happened to Trenny Gibson. There was speculation she got lost and made her way to the road where she was picked up by a stranger and subsequently killed. To reach the road in question, she might at some point have passed the base of the Tower. The tracking dogs followed her scent around that area. There were many people there. Why didn’t anyone report seeing her? Is it possible she was trying to avoid being seen? Or was she being forced along the trail and warned not to attract attention? Were there other hikers nearby? Were they questioned? I believe there were restrooms located nearby. She may have been headed to the bathroom when something happened. I have considered the bus driver may have been responsible for her disappearance and subsequent murder.

Trenny’s star sapphire ring and necklace were found in the possession of another student after they returned to school. According to reports the girl never revealed how she obtained the jewelry. She said she would return them to the family but never did. Was there some animosity between Trenny and the girl, or a group of girls? Did they do something to her and one girl kept the jewelry as a souvenir? Could a confrontation have occurred in the restroom and Trenny was accidentally killed? Was the restroom searched? It was known that Trenny was bullied at school. Some speculated it was because she had been dating Kelvin Bowman. Because she was Caucasian and Kelvin was African American it would have been scandalous. High school girls are notorious for bullying less popular girls and the relationship between Trenny and Kelvin would have provided an excuse to torment the girl.

At one point Robert was under suspicion. When was the jacket he loaned Trenny recovered? How did Robert get it back? Was it examined for evidence of a crime? And how did Trenny’s distinctive comb end up in Robert’s car? He said she asked him to hold it. If she always carried it in the pocket of her jeans as her mother claimed, why the change in her behavior? Wouldn’t he have wanted to return it to her mother?

As I wrote earlier, some students said Trenny had “run off with someone.” This seems unlikely since she had a thousand dollars in a bank account, two hundred dollars in cash at home, and there was no indication she was involved with anyone. She couldn’t have arranged to run away in advance since details of the trip weren’t revealed until all the students were en route on the bus.

Finally, there were rumors that her mother may have had something to do with her disappearance. As difficult as it is to believe, racism was still alive in the South. If Trenny and Kelvin were dating, the relationship would have been frowned on. If Hope Gibson, or both she and her husband Robert, opposed the relationship or were concerned about appearances, would they have gone so far as to kill their daughter? Could they have arranged for Trenny to be taken away? These theories seem highly unlikely, in my opinion.

The disappearance of Trenny Gibson remains an unsolved mystery. I doubt the questions will ever be answered. Some of the students may know more than they have revealed. Some of the people involved have died. There is no grave, no urn of ashes. All that remains is the mystery of her disappearance and a plaque at Bearden High School placed beneath a tree planted by her classmates in her memory.