Reed Taylor Jeppson was born on May 28, 1949. He was 15 years old when he went missing from Salt Lake City, Utah, and despite the efforts of local authorities, his whereabouts are still unknown more than five decades later.
On Oct. 12, 1964, Reed, a sophomore and football player at East High School, went to church with his family. When they returned to their home in the 1900 block of Browning Avenue, the teen decided to change out of his church clothes.
He then went to the backyard to feed his two dogs. They were both German shorthaired pointers, but one of them was a puppy and the other was an adult.
Sometime later, Reed told his sister that he was going to take the dogs for a walk. He told her that he would make it home in time for dinner, but according to The Salt Lake Tribune, he never returned.
At around 12:45 a.m. the following morning, relatives reported Reed missing, which prompted a search by law enforcement and volunteers. They purportedly stated that they didn’t believe that Reed ran away from home as he didn’t take any of his belongings.
Police learned through an investigation that Reed and his dogs were last seen between 1 and 1:30 p.m. on the day he disappeared.
One of his friends reported seeing the teen walking with his dogs at the old St. Mary of the Wasatch building, which was near Wasatch Boulevard. He was wearing blue Levi’s jeans, a white cotton knit shirt, and tennis shoes.
In 2010, detectives searched a gully near Clayton Middle School at 1900 East and 1450 South after receiving a tip, but they didn’t find any evidence or clues that led them to Reed’s location.
Fox 13 reported that Salt Lake City Police Officer Josh Ashdown said, “I can’t get into specifics as to why this location, but I can tell you it was a tip, and it was a tip that was enough we brought in cadaver dogs to look around.”
In 2010, the Salt Lake Police Department announced that they were going to take another look at Reed’s case, as it had not been examined in over 40 years.
That same year, Reed’s relatives arranged for a headstone to be placed at a cemetery in the Salt Lake City area. It has his name, the day he was born, and the day he went missing inscribed on the headstone.
Also, the words “Families are forever” can be found above his name.
At the time of his disappearance, Reed, who is described as a white or Caucasian boy, wore braces. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, was five-foot-six inches tall, and weighed 140 pounds.
Anyone with information regarding the disappearance of Reed Taylor Jeppson is urged to call the Salt Lake City Police Department at (801) 799-3000.
Reference Reed Jeppson or his case #64-46859.