Sharon Gail Fowler:1978, St.Louis, Missouri

   


   Sharon G. Fowler was born on December 11th, 1963. Her mother was Florence Fowler.  She had an older sister named Theresa Kielp as well as 4 other siblings. Sharon was the youngest in her family. 


  She grew up in St. Louis on the 3300 block of Lemp Avenue. That’s in an older historic neighborhood of St. Louis not far from the Mississippi River. You may have heard of the Lemp Mansion in that area. In the 1970’s this area would not have been the fancy neighborhood that it is now. The older historic neighborhoods were mostly in disrepair then. Large homes were often remodeled to accommodate several apartments. Today many of those homes have been restored to single family housing. It is a very desirable neighborhood in 2026.


  Sharon was in eighth grade in 1978 at Shepherd School. She liked to go by "Cheri". 


  On Wednesday June 7th, 1978, Sharon disappeared. Her mother said that “she left Wednesday night to take in a show with a friend of her older brother’s”. Her mother reported her missing on June 10th, 1978. She said she had hoped all weekend that Sharon was just with a friend. She had hoped that Sharon would just walk in the door and explain everything. But, that did not happen. 



   On the 10th of June, 1978, Sharon was found near 319 Orville Road in the Chesterfield neighborhood of St. Louis. That’s all the way on the west side of St. Louis. 






   A homeowner in the area spotted Sharon’s body as he was backing out of his driveway on Saturday morning June 10th, 1978. 


   Sharon was missing from Wednesday the 7th and found on the 10th. Did her killer keep her all that time? If so, where? 


   14 year old Sharon had been strangled and very likely sexually assaulted. The article written about her murder are few. They do not give many details.  I did not find any follow up articles.  Often if the family of the victim is poor this is what happens. Their resources are limited to push for more investigations. Photocopying flyers and things like that would come along later.  In 1978, very few people had access to a Xerox machine. 

   

   One of the saddest parts of the articles is the victim blaming.  Sharon is described as too trusting. Sharon was a child. She is not responsible for her own murder. Only the murderer is culpable.  


   Who abducted 14 year old Sharon Fowler in 1978? Who kept her for days before killing her? Who took her to the suburbs? In 1978 that area was still being developed and it would have been a bit more rural and isolated. It’s an odd spot.  Maybe the killer took exit 16 off Interstate 64 to get there. That stretch of 64 is called the “Blues Highway” because of St. Louis’ long tradition of Blues Music.  The name becomes even more poignant and sad in Sharon’s case. 


  Can Sharon’s case be solved? What evidence was saved in her case? Did investigators clip and save her fingernails? If not, perhaps they could exhume her remains and look for her killer’s DNA under her nails. It may still be there. 


  Who was questioned in her neighborhood? Is there anything in her case file that might point to someone that investigators should look at again. Was that “friend of her older brother” questioned? Who was he? What has he been up to? 


  Is her case related to any other cold cases in Missouri from the same time period? 



   Sharon Gail Fowler is buried at Mt. Olive Catholic Cemetery in Lemay, Missouri. There is no headstone. Cemetery records indicate that she is buried there. It is a peaceful looking place.


   Rest In Peace, Sharon.


If you have information about the murder of Sharon G. Fowler, please call the Missouri State Police at 844-458-6622.


  


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