Barbara Ann Bockwith was 20 years old when she vanished on her way to class on Dec. 5, 1979. It was her final exam of the semester – one that was open note – and she remembered that she left her textbook in her car as she entered Building 58. With a, “I’ll be right back!” Bockwith left the building ten minutes prior to the beginning of the exam. 

After the exam began, classmates started to wonder where Bockwith was. She never missed a day of class; she had stellar attendance and was a straight-A student. 

When the other students left, they had forgotten that she never turned up. It wasn’t until later that they learned that she never made it to her accounting exam or to her other classes.

She never finished her semester.

She never came home.  

Section 1: The timeline

Barbara’s case remains one shrouded in mystery. Where had she vanished within those ten minutes? Why would she skip out on a final that she’d been looking forward to? These are all questions that have plagued the Bockwith family for generations. Her parents, Neva and John Bockwith, referred to Barbara as a “60-60-minute kid”, meaning that she would never abruptly change her plans and not let anyone know – especially her parents. That’s why, when she turned 21 on Dec. 31 but never called home, her family began to lose hope that she would ever return.

“I don’t think I’ll see Barbara return in my lifetime,” said Neva in 1989. 

She was right. Neva passed away in 2006, preceded by her husband 20 years earlier. 

But what was the timeline? How did everything go so south so quickly for the Bockwith family? The timeline is very simple, yet mysterious.

Beginning, Bockwith awoke in her Warrington home on the morning of Dec. 5, and got ready to meet a friend at the Navy Point McDonald’s for breakfast. She arrived at the establishment around 7 a.m. and got home around 8 a.m., and took a short nap. After she rose again, she got ready and left for her last day of the winter semester around 9:30 a.m.

She arrived at Building 58 of the UWF campus shortly before her final exam, at around 11 a.m. Witnesses state that she was seen talking to a few male friends of hers outside of the classroom, and upon realizing she left her notes in her car for an open book test, left about ten minutes before the exam began to get them. She left through the south exit and never came back.

Later that day, at around 12:05 p.m, a friend of hers supposedly saw her at the corner of Creighton Road and Ninth Avenue and waved at her. Bockwith waved back from the driver’s seat of her cherry red 1977 Toyota Hatchback. When she drove off through the intersection, she was never seen or heard from again. 

In the ensuing days, the Bockwiths and their friends passed out fliers, pamphlets and tickets with Barbara’s details, hoping someone would know where she was. The family put out a $10,000 reward if someone came forth with information leading to the finding of Barbara. Among this group was her on-and-off-again boyfriend, 25-year-old Robert “Mack” Deaver. This man is important – remember him. 

As the days go on, Bockwith is nowhere to be found. The Bockwiths hired private investigators and worked closely with UWF staff and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office (ESCO) but turned up empty. That is, until the day of Dec. 10, five days after her disappearance. 

Located in a far-off parking lot of the Pensacola Municipal Airport was Bockwith’s hatchback. When the police inspected the vehicle, which they did not test for fingerprints, discovered that the driver’s seat had been pushed all the way back, and her textbooks and personal belongings (sans her purse and wallet) had been moved from the passenger’s seat to the back of the vehicle. 

These details were considered odd to the investigators. For one, Bockwith was about 5’3, which meant that her driver’s seat should’ve been further up to match her smaller stature. This could mean that someone much taller than her must’ve driven the vehicle to the lot. Secondly, she was known to keep everything she needed for classes in the front passenger’s seat for easy access. This detail could explain that someone was in that seat prior to the vehicle being parked at the airport. 

These details lead investigators to believe that Bockwith was not the only person in the vehicle prior to this moment. Someone much taller than her must’ve driven the car to the airport, with Barbara (or even someone else) next to them. 

So, who and where was the person in that car at the time?

That night, investigators began to suspect someone close to Barbara – her boyfriend, Robert Deaver. 

Being much taller than her, Deaver was around 6 ‘3, and had been known to be physically violent against Bockwith. Several police reports had been made against Deaver by Barbara, in both April and June 1979, where Deaver had physically assaulted her, threatened her and attacked her at-the-time date and their vehicles. Deaver served probation – but no other action came from these reports.

Knowing this, the investigators scheduled a questioning and lie detector examination for Deaver the following day, Dec. 11, at 11 a.m. When Deaver failed to show up at the courthouse for the test, Barbara’s brother, Charles Bockwith, traveled to the Deaver home to search for him.

Charles found Deaver’s body at around 8 p.m.

He had a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his chest. Deaver had left a suicide note – which didn’t mention Bockwith explicitly – but did note of a “pressure” he felt prior to his death. 

Since that discovery, her case began to get cold. There have been no major updates or tips that have been received regarding her disappearance. There was supposedly a 1992 tip where someone saw a person dumping something suspicious into the bay, but after dredging for days the investigators found nothing.

Numerous private investigators have taken on this case. It’s personal to them, seeing as many of them had daughters Bockwith’s age. 

Both of her parent’s passed without knowing what happened to their daughter. The years have gone by and her brother, Charles, recounts those days of her initial disappearance and has been known to flip through family albums reminiscing about his long-lost sister. A daughter of his was named after her – she notes that she wishes she could’ve met her aunt. 

She touched the lives of people she knew, and even those she had never met. How is it that someone so special was lost so quickly? 

What could’ve happened to Barbara Ann Bockwith?

Section 2: The theories

There has been much speculation over her disappearance for the last four decades. From family to friends, and even those on websites like Reddit and Websleuths question the circumstances surrounding that December day. 

In total, there have been three major theories that I’ve seen spread throughout the internet. Some from the family, some from friends and some from the aforementioned websites. However, all of these are speculative. There has never been a concrete theory or any evidence supporting these claims – they are all circumstantial and none of the following theories are representative of the thoughts maintained here at The Voyager. We remain neutral in this investigation.

The theories are as follows:

1. Deaver did it. (DDI)
2. The drug trade was involved. (DT)
3. She left of her own accord. (LOA)

For the sake of readability, we will shorten these theories titles into acronyms – DDI, DT and LOA respectively. 

To begin, the DDI theory speculates that Deaver was behind her disappearance. It’s an obvious conclusion to draw – with the understanding that he had several run-ins with the law regarding violence against Barbara. These have been recorded in ESCO books, they are factual. According to friends and the Bockwith family, Deaver had been possessive of her, and became easily jealous of other men in her life. 

Some online users have posited that perhaps Deaver had seen Barbara talking to her male friends in Building 58 and flew into such a jealous rage that when she left to briefly grab her textbooks, he ordered her into her vehicle and drove off. However, a wrinkle in this theory is the supposed spotting of Bockwith in her car in that intersection. She was alone, so where could Deaver have been?

Another major crutch to the DDI theory is the fact that Deaver committed suicide on the day he was supposed to appear in court for questioning. Making it  even more compelling is the lack of Bockwith in his suicide note, but an allusion to a “pressure” he had been feeling since her disappearance. The idea of it being a mere coincidence or an intentional clue is still up for debate. There has been no concrete evidence linking Deaver to the crime – this is all merely speculation. 

However, this theory is the most popular among message boards, and even her father, John Bockwith. In a 1981 article with Pensacola News Journal, he states that Deaver had “been crying just as hard as [he] was,” alluding to the idea that Deaver had known more about Barbara’s disappearance than he had let on. 

However, these claims have never been proven and remain up for debate.

Secondly, the DT theory states that perhaps both Bockwith and Deaver had been involved in the Pensacola drug trade prior to 1979. There’s barely any evidence to fulfill this theory, but there are some that believe that the shotgun wound inflicted on Deaver on the day of Dec. 11 was unable to be done by him. The position Deaver was found in is supposedly impossible to fulfill a suicide wound of that nature, especially with a shotgun. However, it is physically possible.

 In addition to this, some believe that she made an excuse to visit her vehicle before class in order to fulfill a drug trade and was kidnapped at a secondary location. The witness report of Bockwith at the intersection supports this theory, however this is all speculation. There has never been any evidence whatsoever that Bockwith nor Deaver had any interactions with a local drug trade. Barbara’s family states that she never would’ve abused any substance or involved herself within that life. 

Finally, the LOA theory claims that she was planning to leave Pensacola. There isn’t much detail to this theory, as it’s the least popular. However, I’ve spotted some notions around message boards that perhaps Bockwith left the school willingly. This theory is supported by the idea that her car was found at the airport in a long-term lot. Meaning that she could’ve possibly staged her disappearance, made it to the airport and booked a ticket to another place outside of Pensacola. 

This theory is also corroborated by the fact that she had been seen alone in her vehicle, suspiciously close to the airport. However, a wrench can be thrown as it’s known that her car had been tampered with, suggesting that someone besides Bockwith had driven the car last (her seat and belongings). Additionally, her family has stated repeatedly that she would never give up and abandon her family without telling them.

Additionally, noting that within her bank account, money had not been withdrawn within several days prior to her disappearance. This could suggest she couldn’t have purchased a plane ticket nor parking space rental. She left all of her clothes and personal belongings at home. There is no evidence to suggest that Barbara had left of her own volition. However, again, this is all entirely speculation. 

Barbara Ann Bockwith is presumed deceased by the Escambia County Police Department. Her funeral was held on Jan. 12, 1985, at St. John’s church. She would’ve been 68 this year. 

Section 3: The impact

So, what really happened to Barbara Ann Bockwith?

Every theory has been exhausted. All pieces of evidence have been scrutinized. The only person who could’ve possibly known anything about her disappearance was long dead and hadn’t been questioned. Her vehicle wasn’t swabbed and neither was Deavers. No new leads have come up in almost 45 years. 

So why is this case even being reported? After almost five decades, why should we care about Barbara Ann Bockwith?

On Dec. 5, 1979, The Who was the most popular band. Small firms in Pensacola were facing tough times. Last-minute holiday shopping was being done right in time for Christmas – which was less than three weeks away. “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” was being shown at the local theater; it was the most popular movie in the world at the time. The daily horoscope for Capricorn reads as follows: “It is not wise to force associates into doing what you think is best during the day. Be more diplomatic for best results.”  

Barbara Ann Bockwith, aged 20, left her home in the morning to meet a friend who she had known forever to eat hotcakes at McDonalds. When she went home, she took a nap because she was tired from studying late the night before. Before she left, she most likely picked up a copy of the newspaper and read that exact horoscope; that exact news, because it was in that exact copy of the Pensacola News Journal. 

She didn’t want to nap long because she had her final exam of the semester. She was a junior Accounting Major and had one year left before she graduated with her bachelors. She wanted to get everything right. 

When she got up, she put on a plaid shirt and brown pants. She got in her cherry red hatchback,she was reported to have loved it. It was brand new and beautiful for a college student. 

As she left Building 58 on Dec. 5, she didn’t know that she wouldn’t return home, or maybe she did. Her blue eyes were set on the parking lot, and her friends saw her leave through the south exit.

“I’ll be right back,” she said. Her classmates never saw her again. 

Whatever happened to Bockwith has happened. Wherever she has gone, she will stay. 

Barbara Ann Bockwith is not a true crime story. Her story isn’t one that you hear on your way to class through your headphones. She’s not some tabloid darling. 

She was a 20-year-old girl who had dreams of becoming an accountant. At age 18, she had become the youngest recorded real estate agent in the history of Florida. She was an honors student – she never got graded lower than an A. She dedicated her time to learning  and loving others in her life. She hung photos of boats and birds in her room. Her mother slept in this room until she died. 

She parted her long chestnut-brown hair down the middle like so many of us do. She babysat children regularly. She was a blue-eyed youth who had never been caught unsmiling. 

I can’t pretend that I know Barbara Ann. I was born in 2003 – she went missing in 1979. But I do know this: She lit up the world wherever she went. She was so sincerely loved by everyone; they all recalled her as being a sweet and sunshine-filled young woman. Barbara Ann was just like you and me. 

She mattered before her face was on milk cartons and the evening news. She mattered when she never came home. 

And she matters even now.

Wherever you may be Barbara Ann Bockwith, I hope that you’re among the boats and birds that you hung on your walls and are eternally bathed in sunshine; the kind that you radiated upon others. 

“When people die, you have to go on,” said her mother. “Somebody, I believe, still knows what happened.”

“I’ll still give them the $10,000 if I just knew. But at this point, I don’t think I’ll find out what happened in my lifetime.”

If you know any information surrounding Barbara Ann Bockwith’s disappearance, please notify the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9630 or contact them via email through their website. You can also contact Pensacola Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.