Barbara Ann Blount
Barbara, circa 2008
- Missing Since 05/02/2008
- Missing From Livingston Parish, Louisiana
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Female
- Race White
- Date of Birth 03/29/1950 (74)
- Age 58 years old
- Height and Weight 5'5 - 5'7, 135 - 150 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description Shorts and a tank top.
- Associated Vehicle(s) Silver four-door 2006 Toyota Camry (accounted for)
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Graying brown hair, hazel eyes. Barbara's maiden name is Barber. She wears eyeglasses and her ears are pierced.
Details of Disappearance
Barbara was last heard from at 11:30 a.m. on May 2, 2008, when a neighbor spoke to her via telephone at her residence in the 38800 block of State Highway 1036 in rural Livingston Parish, Louisiana. She said she was cleaning out her kitchen cabinets. She has never been heard from again.
When her nephew checked her house, the front door was wide open, the windows were open and Barbara's phone was lying on the floor with the battery pulled out. Pots were stacked on the kitchen floor and valuables were left out in plain view; it didn't appear that there had been a robbery.
Her silver four-door 2006 Toyota Camry was found parked in an abandoned about a quarter of a mile from her home at 4:15 p.m. the day of her disappearance. It had been was parked on a dirt logging road on the property of a hunting club, 25 or 30 yards off the main road and out of sight, hidden by trees. There was water on the floor of the vehicle, possibly from the heavy rains that had occurred in the area. The car keys were half-buried in the gravel about 20 yards from the car.
A witness reported having seen a woman matching Barbara's description standing outside Barbara's car that day, wearing a tank top, pinstriped shorts and purple Crocs. There was a Caucasian man standing near her, and a late model white pickup truck was parked nearby. The witness was so troubled by the frightened expression on Barbara's face that he called Crime Stoppers.
Barbara is a widow and lived alone at the time of her disappearance, but she kept in regular touch with her relatives and her disappearance is out of character. Her two children lived on the same road as herself, and she still cooked dinner for them every day, as well as driving her sister to medical appointments. She lived quietly and was active in her local Baptist church.
She is described as a cautious individual who didn't open her door to strangers and carried a gun when she went outside to milk the cows. Her credit cards haven't been used since she went missing. Investigators believe she was taken against her will.
There's a theory that her disappearance is related to the June 2004 death of her husband, 55-year-old Henry Euel "Junior" Blout Jr. He had died when he was struck by a train while driving a gasoline tanker truck over the tracks. Two railroad employees were also killed in the accident, and members of the locomotive union blamed Junior for it and said the two railroad employees had been "murdered." It's unclear whether the accident is tied to Barbara's disappearance almost four years later, however.
Foul play is suspected in Barbara's disappearance, but little evidence is available in her case. It remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office 225-938-4323
Updated 8 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated June 8, 2020; picture added, details of disappearance updated.