John Railey - The Lost Colony Murder on the Outer Banks: Seeking Justice for Brenda Joyce Holland

Enjoyed it all the way[Railey] really caught the aura of the place.

bestselling true crime writer JERRY BLEDSOE, author of Bitter Blood and other works

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC

www.historypress.com

Copyright 2021 by John Railey

All rights reserved

Cover: Bridge photo by Aycock Brown, courtesy Outer Banks History Center, State Archives of North Carolina.

First published 2021

e-book edition 2020

ISBN 978.1.43967.257.0

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021931239

print edition ISBN 978.1.46714.739.2

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

For Brenda

and for Kathleen

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My thanks to all the sources, named and anonymous, who helped me bring this book together. The inside story of Brendas case had never been told. It was buried for more than half a century. I heard from several Manteo residents who thought it should stay there. Fortunately, some islanders disagreed. They bravely came forward, both on the record and anonymously, generous with their time in my repeated phone calls, e-mails, private Facebook messages and visits.

Brendas siblingsAnn Holland Earley, Charles Hoyt Holland and Kim Holland Thornbravely dug into long-suppressed pain to talk about their sister in the hopes of justice for her. Claudia Fry Sluder Harrington, the daughter of Dotty Fry and the former stepdaughter of Dr. Linus Edwards, and Buddy Tillett, whod reopened the case while working as a deputy for the sheriffs office in 1995, proved invaluable in telling the story. Claudia generously shared her familys rich genealogical research. She provided solid editing as well.

The Outer Banks History Center in Manteo, led by Samantha Crisp and supported by North Carolina tax dollars and local donations, was a treasure-trove. Stuart Parks and Tama Creef of the center always answered my queries for photos and articles and promptly gave me fresh ideas on how to find more information.

The following people also helped greatly: Molly Griggs Miller, former Dare County deputy Sammy Smith, Jack Cahoon, Penny Twiford Craven, Debbie Twiford Mueller, David Miller, Margaret Harvey, Quentin Bell, Della Basnight, Marilyn Whittington, Harriet Oneto, Dorothy Hester, Lisa Griggs, Carroll Leggett, Joseph L.S. Terrell, Al Matthews, Roy Riddick, former Manteo town manager Kermit Skinner, attorneys Mark and Vince Rabil, Earl Mirus, Dr. John Butts, Dr. Richard Sadler, cold-case SBI investigator Tony Cummings, SBI spokeswoman Paula McQuillan, Dare County sheriff Doug Doughtie, the family of Danny Barber, Paul Midgett, Mary Ann Edwards, Gladys Johnson, Nellie Heffron, Dottie Lowery, Lucien Morrissette, Marlene Cole, Maria Karnitschnig, former SBI agents W.A. Doc Hoggard and Jim Bailey, Chris Nunemaker, Drew Wilson, Robert Long, Amy Gaw, Beth Ownley Cooper, Jean Lipham Oates, Harry Niser Jr., Angel Ellis Khoury, Tony Duvall, Debra Johnson, Chip Py, McMullan Pruden, Cam Choiniere, acquisitions editor Kate Jenkins and senior editor Ryan Finn at The History Press, Bob Thorn, Snow Photo & Digital Imaging, lebame houston and Joseph L.S. Terrell.

My life long friend Blades Robinson, whose business is training for underwater investigations, took on Brendas case as if it were his, enriching the book with his insights and his contacts. We both grew up hearing about the case as boys at Nags Head. My friend Drew Patton gave me insights for the book on a beach walk at Oak Island, a headquarters of our beloved McClellan clan.

Tony Clark, the former publisher of the Coastland Times; the papers general manager, Theresa Schneider; and former managing editor Kari Pugh encouraged me, generously edited and ran my columns on the case and relayed tips on it to me. Seth Effron at WRAL-TV in Raleigh picked up the columns, as did John Drescher, then at the News & Observer of Raleigh, generating more tips. Reporter Rachael Cardin, then at WTKR in Norfolk, covered our fight well. Legendary Outer Banks photographer Aycock Brown is long gone, but his classic photos, including one used on the cover of this book, gave me the dreamscape to bring characters alive.

My favorite Nags Head bar, Sam & Omies, run by my friend Carole Sykes, provided me with just the spot to find inside sources. My friends Jerry Bledsoe and Mary Giunca gave the manuscript a careful read and supplied many suggestions to make it better.

My Uncle Billy Tarkington of Manteo and the Ocean House motel in Kill Devil Hills first told me Brendas story. He and his venerable motel are long gone, but his storytelling lives. Ditto for the stories my fellow workers at the Seafare restaurant in Nags Head weaved.

My late parents, Hazel and Dick Railey, taught me to love the beach and fight injustice, starting in their turquoise dream of a cottage by the ocean in Nags Head with my siblings Richard, Jo and Mimi. My daughter, Molly Fincher, and her husband and children share that love of the beach and keep me laughing.

Most of all, thanks to my bride, Kathleen, who never gives up on me as she tirelessly helps me turn my dreams into books. Into the mystic, my love.

AUTHORS NOTE

I think one thing that attracts us to islands is the sense of belonging their residents have. That is what drew me to this story as a child and keeps me there now. I spent much of my formative years in Nags Head and often ventured to nearby Manteo. I envy the tight bonds and loyalty the Roanoke Islanders share. They are loath to tell their secrets.

This is a story about an outsider, Brenda Joyce Holland, who was killed on Roanoke Island in the summer of 1967. The suspects in her slayingSome of whom were outsiders, some of whom were islanderswere each confronting what it means to belong or to be cast out.

Much of this story is about flawed lawmen. I am indebted to the families of some of those men, who let me in and candidly shared their loved ones stories. Redemption rings for these men who find their footing later in the story.

In this, the first nonfiction book on Brendas unsolved case, I have relied on unique access to the sealed SBI file, hundreds of interviews with her siblings, case insiders and other islanders telling their stories for the first time, newspaper articles and a thick file on Brenda that her sister Kim compiled.

Most of the dialogue in this book comes verbatim from those documents and interviews. Other dialogue has been re-created based on those sources. The names Rob Breeze, Molly Black, Jay Fieldman, Coy Dupree and Houston Rob Waters are pseudonyms to protect privacy. All other names are real. The names of Manteo streets are those used in 1967, instead of names that were changed in the years afterward. Several people in this story share the Midgette and Midgett surnames. None of them are directly related, although its said on the Outer Banks that all the Midgette families are distantly related, tied through their proud history.

JOHN RAILEY

Nags Head, North Carolina

October 2020

Personally, I doubt there is anything to know. Things happen. Good things, bad things, things no one understands. They happen. Makepeace shrugged. Life goes on.