Episode 39: MURDERED: Lucy Dade Forrester - Frankfort, NY

A quiet village in upstate New York. A trusted shopkeeper who never turned anyone away. And a brutal murder that shattered a community and was never solved. Who killed Lucy Dade Forrester?

Episode Summary

Lucy Dade Forrester was a 69-year-old shop owner in the village of Frankfort, New York. She lived alone above the small variety store she had worked hard to build, a place where locals knew her as kind, dependable, and always willing to help. Lucy had a reputation for opening her door after hours if someone knocked, no matter the time. It was simply who she was.

On the night of February 19, 1964, Lucy was last seen alive inside her store on South Litchfield Street. Sometime overnight, someone came to her door. Investigators believe Lucy let them inside. What happened next was violent and fatal.

On the morning of February 20, 1964, Lucy was found beaten and strangled inside her store. The building, including her upstairs living quarters, had been thoroughly ransacked. Investigators quickly believed robbery was the motive, fueled by long-standing rumors that Lucy kept cash hidden on the property. No forced entry was reported. No suspects were arrested.

The New York State Police took over the investigation, canvassing the neighborhood and processing the scene, but the case stalled almost immediately. No witnesses came forward. No suspect was publicly identified. No charges were ever filed.

Lucy’s murder came during a year that would deeply scar Frankfort. Just months later, another violent crime would rock the village, but unlike Lucy’s case, that murder would be solved. Lucy’s never was.

More than sixty years later, her case remains open and unsolved. No forensic breakthroughs have been announced. No public suspects have been named. And Lucy Dade Forrester has become one of the oldest unsolved homicide victims in Herkimer County.

She was not reckless. She was not involved in a crime. She was a trusted, hardworking woman who believed in helping people, and someone took advantage of that trust.

Lucy deserves to be remembered as more than a cold case. She deserves answers.

If you have any information related to the murder of Lucy Dade Forrester, no matter how small, old, or uncertain it may seem, please contact:

• Frankfort Police Department: (315) 894-3594
• New York State Police – Troop D (Herkimer County): (315) 366-6000

Tips can remain confidential. Even decades later, one detail could change everything.

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