Patrick Weymouth Paddon, 17 - November 29, 1969 - Upper Stewiacke/Burnside area, Colchester County, Nova Scotia
- Terynn Boulton
- Oct 18
- 12 min read
Patrick "Paddy" Paddon has been missing long term from the Upper Stewiacke/Burnside area of Colchester County, Nova Scotia, Canada
In the early morning hours of November 29, 1969, 17-year-old Patrick Paddon, his father, Bernard, and his uncle Neil, left their homes in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, headed to the Burnside area of Colchester County, via Upper Stewiacke and Pembroke Road, for a day of hunting together before the close of deer hunting season.
Patrick, called Paddy by his family, was a grade 11 student at Prince Andrew High School (now Woodlawn High School) and the second oldest of four children. Paddy was an experienced hunter and woodsman. In fact, according to his uncle Neil, an Indigenous friend of the family mentored Paddy for two or three years before their November 1969 hunting trip.
When Paddy entered the woods that morning, he was well prepared. He had food, a safety flare, a compass, a pocket watch, and of course, his rifle and a knife. In the butt of his rifle, he stored matches that he had dipped in wax, ensuring they would light even when wet. He was dressed warmly. The coat he was wearing was reversible, with one side being water repellent.
The trio entered the woods near 2491 Pembroke Road, about 500 yards from the farmhouse of a family friend. Bernard says his last instructions to his son were, " Be careful and, I will see you back at the farm at noon." They often split up so that they could drive deer towards one another. As Paddy walked away, his father called to him, saying, "Don't shoot too many deer." Bernard said he felt relatively secure in that Paddy had a good woods sense and the area where they were hunting was bounded by the Pembroke River, Pembroke Road, and the friend's farmhouse. The trio also had two rules: 1. Nobody was to cross the road 2. Nobody was to cross any water. They had also established a meeting time and place: noon at the family friend's farmhouse.
According to Bernard, he met Neil in the woods at 11 am. Neil told him he had last spoken to Paddy about 9:30 am. At 11:30 am, Bernard and Neil heard a car horn coming from the direction of the farmhouse where they were to meet. Thinking it was Paddy signaling he had a deer, they walked to the farmhouse, but Paddy was not there. The two sat and ate lunch, waiting for Paddy to arrive at the farmhouse.
When Paddy had not shown up by 1:30 pm, Bernard and Neil began to search for him. They drove up Pembroke Road, all the way to the highway, across to Truro, Stewiacke, and back, and found no sign of Paddy. At 3 pm they came across a hunter who told them he had been speaking to Paddy at 2:45 pm only about 6 miles (9.7 km) up the road from where they were now (I assume this means from where Bernard and Neil met the hunter on Pembroke Road). The hunter estimated Paddy was only 2 miles (3.2 km) from Riversdale when he saw him, and Paddy had asked him for the direction of the farm.
Full of hope, Bernard and Neil drove towards Riversdale, expecting to see a very tired Paddy walking towards them, but there was no sign of him. They stopped in the area of Iron Gate Road and began firing off rifle shots as a signal for him, but Paddy did not signal back. Bernard and Neil returned to the farmhouse, and the owner of the farmhouse called the RCMP in Stewiacke. Bernard and Neil were advised by police that they should call back if Paddy did not come out of the woods by dark. So Bernard and Neil went back out searching everywhere for Paddy.
Bernard called the police back at 7:30 pm to tell them Paddy had not shown up at the farmhouse. By this time, it was snowing heavily, and police advised him that little could be done until a search could be organised at daybreak. When interviewed by the Mail-Star for an article published on January 19, 1970, Bernard told the reporter that at this point, "I wasn't too worried about the cold and snow as Paddy was warmly dressed, had plenty of plastic coated matches, a ground sheet which he could use as a tent, a knife, and a two star red flare. Besides that, three weeks before we sat at the supper table and went through the whole procedure of what to do if lost in the woods."
Bernard and Neil drove along Pembroke Road until about midnight, blowing the horn and firing off shots. By 1 am, 10 inches (25 centimetres) of snow had fallen in the area. In total, 12 to 15 inches (30 to 38 centimetres) of snow had fallen overnight.
On November 30, 1969 Constable M.F. Soucie arrived on scene and initiated the investigation into Paddy's disappearance. According to the police, "At 3 pm REDACTED stopped a Volkswagon on the Pembroke Road which was proceeding south and asked the driver if he had seen a youth walking on the road. This man, who was accompanied by his wife, said that approximately ten minutes earlier he had been talking to a boy fitting PADDON's description. The youth was walking towards Riversdale. He asked for the time and the boy pulled out a pocket watch and showed him the time to be 2:45 pm. Young PADDON carried a pocket watch. This information put the boy about 200 yards south of the Iron Gate Road (a woods road which runs east of the Pembroke Road) at approximately 3 pm)."
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1969
On Sunday, November 30, 1969, 30 to 40 volunteers, and 15 snowmobiles searched the area of Iron Gate Road. No trace of Paddy was found. At 1 pm a helicopter arrived from Shearwater and conducted an air search for two hours. The search continued by snowmobile well into the next morning. Police noted that Bernard told them Paddy had often been in the woods and knew how to use a compass. The search area covered was approximately 12 miles (19.3 km) in on the Pembroke Road from Upper Stewiacke towards Riversdale and 2.5 miles (4 km) south of Riversdale in the area of Iron Gate Road.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1969
On Monday, December 1, 1969, Constable L.J. Lavoie took over the direction of the search from Constable Soucie. Search headquarters were set up at the farmhouse of the family friend on Pembroke Road. Aided by Lands and Forests personnel and vehicles, men with snowmobiles, 30 men from CFB Shearwater and a helicopter, 30 volunteers, and a Truro dogmaster, a search throughout the day failed to find any trace of Paddy. Not even a track was found. It is noted by the police that the general consensus was that he probably crawled under a tree to escape the snow and perished. The police sent out a plea over the C.K.C.L. radio station for the man who was last talking to Paddy to come forward. According to the police report. "REDACTED responded to the plea and pointed out the exact location where he last saw him. REDACTED description was such that it offered no doubt it was PADDON. REDACTED said that he met PADDON and asked him if he had any luck. PADDON replied that he saw a few rabbits and shot a porcupine. REDACTED that PADDON mentioned something about REDACTED but in retrospect couldn't associate the name with anything relevant. REDACTED PADDON that he was walking towards Riversdale and that it was about 2.5 miles (4 km) away." Then the police report states what most of you reading this right now are probably thinking, "It is difficult to imagine how the youth became lost when he was on the road leading back to his father's car."
It is difficult to imagine how he became lost. Paddy was experienced in the woods. He was not even in the woods at 2:45 pm, according to this witness. He was on the MAIN road. He had a compass, so it is confusing why he would be walking north on the road instead of south towards the farmhouse. This sighting was almost 3 hours after the scheduled meet up time of noon. Furthermore, if this sighting was of Patrick Paddon, this means that in only 15 minutes, even though he was already almost 3 hours late for their meet up, Paddy re-entered the woods for some reason, instead of staying on the main road. It also means he became so lost or incapacitated in only 15 - 20 mins, that shortly after 3 pm, when his father and uncle started blowing their car horn and shooting off rifle shots, he was unable to respond or follow the noise to find the main road. Remember, that his father and uncle continued searching and signaling for him for the rest of the afternoon, evening, and night until midnight, and there was no response from Paddy.
The police report provides this explanation: "One popular suggestion was that he chased a deer into the woods and thus became turned around, leaving open all kinds of theories on his failure to signal the searchers. The area is very densely wooded with numerous woods roads crossing in all directions."
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1969
According to the police report, "REDACTED By this time, a steady rain had lowered the snow level in the woods to about five inches. The search by snowmobile had to be discontinued. Approximately 80 men searched throughout this day without results. The helicopter failed to find any sign of PADDON. The helicopter had searched a 30 square mile area by this time and further searching was essentially done over the same ground. Radio station C.K.C.L. Truro broadcasted on our request a plea to hunters who had been in the area to phone our office with any pertinent information. Twelve calls were received but none of the hunters had seen the boy." It is unclear if the hunters mentioned seeing Neil and/or Bernard or if the hunters had not sighted any of the three Paddon men.
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1969
According to the police report, " REDACTED A ten man para-rescue unit from C.F.B. Summerside arrived and joined the search. Maps of the area have been maintained and they conducted a thorough ground search of the most probable spot of the boy's location. The search and rescue helicopter from Summerside spent the afternoon searching with negative results, along with a helicopter from Shearwater.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1969
According to the police report, "REDACTED Approximately 100 men, two tracking dogs, the Shearwater and Summerside ground units and the helicopter furthered the search for PADDON but again no trace of him was found. Hope was now abandoned that he would be found alive. Search headquarters were relocated in a vacant school about 2 miles (3.2 km) of the REDACTED farm. Midway in the afternoon, a report was received that footprints were discovered in a small amount of snow that was left in the woods. According to several searchers, the prints appeared to have been made during the snow fall. This was in a swampy area about 2 miles (3.2 km) from where the boy and his father separated. The searchers concentrated in this area for the remainder of the day but nothing could be found."
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1969
According to the police report, "REDACTED Helicopters, men, and dogs were again employed in the search efforts without avail. The searchers continued to concentrate their efforts in this one particular area. By the end of the day, nothing had been found. The Summerside crew returned, and the searchmaster said they could not come back. The men from Shearwater also could not return.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1969
According to the police report, "REDACTED Approximately 80 cilivilian volunteers plus Lands and Forests personnel turned up to continue the search. By this time, the ground had been searched as thorough as could be expected under the difficult terrain conditions. No results were obtained this date."
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1969
This was the eighth day of the search for Paddy. Approximately 50 men combed the woods but found nothing.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1969
The search for Patrick Paddon was called off. The total area searched for Paddy was a 72.5 square kilometre search area.
As per the police report, "Throughout the search, not a single trace of PADDON was found. It is most difficult to understand how this could be. The footprints in the snow were so deteriorated that one could not positively say they were made by PADDON. In any event, this area was thoroughly searched."
FOUL PLAY?
It is also noted in the police report that the possibility of foul play was discussed with Paddy's father, Bernard. Police state that the man who claims to have last seen Paddy was questioned at length in this regard and they were satisfied he was not involved in Paddy's disappearance. They did take a statement from this man which is being held on file.
RUN AWAY?
The possibility that Paddy ran away was also considered. As per the police report, "The distance that young REDACTED travelled from the time he became separated from his father, until he was observed in the Iron Gate Road area at 2:45 pm was about four miles (6.4 km). These four miles would be easy walking, but it is difficult to imagine why he would walk in a northerly direction when according to his father, he knew his compass directions well, and should have been going south on Pembroke Road in order to reach the car. PADDON's relatives in Ontario have been contacted, but none of them saw anything of the boy. The youth had not been having any family problems, and the possibility that he ran away was ruled out. Even if this did happen, he wouldn't have gotten far without being seen."
In the Mail-Star article published on January 19, 1970, Paddy's younger sister, who was only 15 at the time of his disappearance said, "Paddy had a good head on his shoulders - he wanted the wife, kids, and a white picket fence and he wanted to be an RCMP Officer."
SO WHERE IS PATRICK PADDON?
17 year old Patrick "Paddy" Paddon went hunting with his father, Bernard, and his uncle, Neil, on November 29, 1969. Bernard and Neil have always said that Neil was the last of the family to see Paddy. The Mail-Star article states that Neil was last talking to Paddy at 9:30 am. Neil says that Paddy was on Pembroke Road and mentioned to Neil that he was thinking about crossing the road to hunt on the other side, which would have been against the rules the group had agreed upon to stay safe. Neil, who sadly passed away this year, had always felt so guilty for separating from Paddy. It is unclear if Paddy ever did cross the road to enter the woods on the other side, and Neil did not see in what direction Paddy went.
Neil, and the hunter who says he saw Paddy at 2:45 pm, both say they last saw Paddy on Pembroke Road. So that would be once at around 9:30 am, and a second time at 2:45 pm, that Paddy was spotted on the main road. Keep in mind, that Bernard and Neil were up and down Pembroke Road multiple times from 1:30 pm until they met this hunter at 3 pm on Pembroke Road, and they did not see Paddy at any time on Pembroke Road during this time (1:30 - 3:30 pm), or any other time that afternoon, evening, and up until midnight when they continued to search, driving repeatedly up and down Pembroke Road.
Even the police seem confused as to why there was no sign of Patrick Paddon, given the extensive search that was conducted. Given that Paddy was so well prepared and good in the woods, how is it that even if he did become lost, he was unable to signal for help with his flares, shooting off his rifle, or lighting a fire? Why would he hide under a tree as the police surmised, to get out of the snow, without setting up shelter or some kind of more elaborate covering, in order to survive the night? If he had, surely this would have been discovered during the search, or by hunters sometime between 1969 and now.
Paddy's family have never stopped searching for him. Unfortunately both Neil and Bernard have passed away, but Paddy's siblings and their children are continuing the search efforts. In fact, Paddy's niece, Nicole, has been circulating these posters, asking hunters if they can be on the lookout for any items Paddy was carrying/wearing November 29, 1969, when he went missing. Please circulate this post and poster and if you find anything please contact Nicole at 902-802-5064 or Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime at 902-896-5060. Please note the location of the item you found, preferably by marking the location on Google Maps in your phone.
Here is the link to a map I created to give you an idea of the many key locations mentioned in regards to Paddy's disappearance. Please note: The points on the map are based on my understanding of the information given. They are not to be taken as 100% accurate. The map will be updated as new information/understanding is received.
On the map, you will see locations marked with stars. These are the locations of other hunters who went missing in Nova Scotia in 1969. You can click on the location marker of the map for more information about their disappearances and when they were located. I searched many newspapers and could not find other years where so many hunters went missing in one season. Patrick Paddon was the last hunter to go missing that season and the only hunter who has not been found. All of the other hunters were found shortly after they went missing, with the exception of one. A hunter who went missing on October 22, 1969, only a month before Paddy, was not found until May 2, 2009. His remains were found off of Russell Lake Road near Lansdowne Station.
If you have any information about the disappearance of Patrick Weymouth Paddon, please contact the Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime at 902-896-5060
