A Wisconsin woman went missing 62 years ago. Police just found her 'alive and well.'

USA Today

05-05-2025

A Wisconsin woman went missing 62 years ago. Police just found her 'alive and well.'
A woman reported missing 62 years ago out of southwest Wisconsin has been found alive and well, authorities announced.
In July 1962, Audrey Backeberg was 20 years old when she was reported missing out of Reedsburg in Sauk County, Wisconsin, about 63 miles northwest of Madison. She also had two children at the time, per historical newspaper reports.
Investigators followed multiple leads to find her, to no avail, the Sauk County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.
In early 2025, the office assigned the cold case to a detective for 'a comprehensive review,' Sheriff Chip Meister said in the news release. It was part of the office's attempt to examine multiple cold case files.
The office used Ancestry.com to find her, reported television station WISN-TV.
'The Sheriff's Office is now able to report that Audrey Backeberg is alive and well and currently resides out of state,' the sheriff wrote. 'Further investigation has revealed that Ms. Backeberg's disappearance was by her own choice and not the result of any criminal activity or foul play.'
The sheriff's office did not immediately reply to USA TODAY's requests for comment, and the office did not say what state she lives in currently.
Young mother previously filed charges against husband
Prior to a missing person's report being filed, Backeberg was last seen on July 7, 1962, reported the Baraboo News Republic.
She picked up her paycheck that day and that was the last time loved ones saw her, the newspaper reported.
On July 4, 1962, just three days before she left town, police received a report that her husband abused and threatened to end her life, the newspaper reported. Her husband was granted a divorce in 1963, the year after she went missing, according to a Wisconsin State Journal record from Nov. 24, 1963.
Police also spoke to a 14-year-old girl who Backeberg had allegedly babysat. The girl told police she and Backeberg planned to run away. They took a bus to Indianapolis. However, the girl got sick and told police she was a runaway, reported the Baraboo News Republic. The girl last saw Backeberg as she crossed the street in Indianapolis.
In May 2002, investigators announced plans to search a Sauk County property where an informant said her body was buried. Then-sheriff Randy Stammen said police weren't sure what happened to the woman.
"We don't know if she's simply a missing person living a life somewhere else," Stammen said. "We do now there has been no activity on her social security number. The question still comes back to, is she just a missing person?"
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Detective: Ancestry allowed us to solve case
Det. Isaac Hanson of the Shauk County Sheriff's Office began working the case in early March, reported WISN-TV.
According to Hanson, Backeberg's sister had an Ancestry.com account he was able to use to track down the missing woman.
'That was pretty key in locating death records, census reports, all kinds of data," Hanson told WISN-TV. "Ultimately, we came up with an address ... So I called the local sheriff's department, said 'Hey, there's this lady living at this address. Do you guys have somebody, you can just go pop in?''
Ten minutes later, Backeberg called him and they spoke for 45 minutes, he said. And while her abusive husband may have led her to leave, the lingering question of what made her go so long without contacting anyone may always remain.
"I think she just was removed and … moved on from things and kind of did her own thing and led her life," he said. "She sounded happy. Confident in her decision. No regrets."
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at [e-mail].