HALF A MYSTERY SOLVED

‘Delta Dawn,’ Toddler Found Dead in Mississippi River in 1982, Is Identified

The 18-month-old’s mother, who vanished with her, is still missing.

In 1982, the body of an 18-month-old girl clad in a pink-and-white dress was found in the brush of Mississippi’s Escatawpa River. Authorities dubbed her “Delta Dawn” as they began to investigate who she was and how she died. Thirty-eight years later, at least part of the mystery has been solved. Using genealogy DNA sleuthing that was not available at the time of the child’s death, authorities have determined that she is Alisha Ann Heinrich, the daughter of Gwendolyn Mae Clemons Heinrich, both of Joplin, Missouri, AL.com reports. The pair left home for Florida to start a new life with an unidentified man and were never heard from again. “We do have a suspect, but he is deceased,” Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell said. “We have family members cooperating with us.”