The Disappearance of Ricky “Jeannie” Bryant — Missing Since 1949.

 

December 19th, 1949.
Mauston, Wisconsin — a small, quiet town just preparing for Christmas.
Four-year-old Ricky Jean Bryant — or “Jeannie,” as her family called her — was at home with her grandparents and two siblings when a fire broke out in their house.

Her parents were away at the time. In the chaos, Jeannie’s five-year-old brother later said they stood together outside, watching their home burn when a strange woman pulled up in an expensive-looking car.
She told him to run and get help — and when he returned, both the woman and little Jeannie were gone.

But Jeannie’s grandmother told a different story. She said she brought the other children outside and went back in to look for Jeannie — calling her name over and over, but getting no answer.
Authorities believed Jeannie had perished in the blaze. Some bone fragments were found and sent for testing… but none were ever confirmed to be hers.

For decades, Jeannie’s fate was a mystery buried in ashes.
But her siblings never stopped wondering. They came to believe their little sister might have been taken that day — possibly hidden by relatives, perhaps given to another family — and that the fire might have been set to cover her disappearance.

Over fifty years later, investigators reopened the case.
In 2006, a woman from Minnesota even came forward for DNA testing — but it wasn’t a match.
Still, hope remains. If Jeannie survived, she would be 79 years old today.

Someone, somewhere, might know the truth.
Was Jeannie lost to the fire — or stolen from her home and hidden away for a lifetime?

If you have any information about the disappearance of Ricky “Jeannie” Bryant, please contact the Juneau County Sheriff’s Office in Wisconsin.