Were the Missing Sodder Children Seen Alive After the Fire? #crimejunkies #truecrimepodcast
- Sep 13, 2026
- 1:22
- Short
Days after the December 25, 1945, fire at the Sodder family home in Fayetteville, West Virginia, a hotel operator said she encountered four children who resembled members of the missing Sodder family.
In a sworn affidavit provided years later, the witness described three girls and one boy traveling with two men and two women at a hotel located a little over an hour from Fayetteville. When she tried to speak with the children, she said the adults became hostile, the men began speaking quickly in Italian, and the entire group left by the following morning.
The account was never confirmed, but it became one of many possible sightings pursued by George Sodder and Jennie Sodder as they searched for their missing children: Maurice Sodder, Martha Sodder, Louis Sodder, Jennie Sodder, and Betty Sodder. Could some of the Sodder children have been seen alive after the fire—and, if so, who was traveling with them?
Watch the full episode on @CrimeJunkie and tagged below to learn more about the disappearance of the five Sodder children. -------- Follow Crime Junkie: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crimejunkiepodcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CrimeJunkiePodcast/ Crime Junkie is created and hosted by Ashley Flowers.
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Brief Summary
The Sodder children may have survived a 1945 fire, with sightings reported years later raising questions about their fate.
Key points
- The Mysterious Hotel Sightings. Years after the fire, a hotel operator claimed to have seen the missing Sodder children alive.
