Evelyn Hartley
- Sarah Turney
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Listen now:
How much of what we watch in true crime entertainment is actually true? And what happens when a story is rewritten for the screen, replacing a family's painful, decades-long mystery with a neat, tidy, and conclusive fictional story?
The new season of Netflix's Monster is a global phenomenon. But in its telling of the Ed Gein story, it presents a young woman named Evelyn Hartley as one of his confirmed victims. It's a gripping narrative.
There's just one problem. According to the official investigation, it's not true.
My mission in today’s episode is to tell the true, unresolved story of Evelyn Hartley's disappearance, to reclaim the facts from the fiction, and to remember the girl who vanished long before she was ever a character on a screen.
14-year-old Evelyn Grace Hartley was last seen on October 24, 1953, in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She has brown hair and blue eyes. At the time of her disappearance, she was 5’6” and weighed approximately 126lbs. She was last seen wearing red jeans, a white blouse, and white bobby socks.
Anyone with information is asked to call the La Crosse Police Department at 608-785-5962.
Sources:
Argus Leader. 11 May 1954.
Biggs, Jade. "Revealed: The fact vs fiction of Monster: The Ed Gein Story." 6 Oct. 2025.
Chicago Tribune. 10 Jan. 1954.
Chicago Tribune. 13 Jan. 1954.
Chippewa Herald Telegram. 24 Oct. 2020.
Cobb, Kayla. "Breaking Down Fact and Fiction in ‘Monster: The Ed Gein Story’: Here’s what we know about the real Adeline Watkins, Evelyn Hartley and more." TheWrap, 4 Oct. 2025.
Daily News. 24 Oct. 1954.
"Disappearance of Evelyn Hartley." Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
Green Bay Press Gazette. 11 Nov. 1967.
Janos, Adam. "The Mysterious Disappearance of Evelyn Hartley—and Whether Serial Killer Ed Gein Played a Role." A&E, A&E Television Networks, 17 Sept. 2025.
The Knoxville Journal. 24 Oct. 1954.
The La Crosse Tribune. 26 Oct. 1953.
The La Crosse Tribune. 27 Oct. 1953.
The La Crosse Tribune. 28 Oct. 1953.
The La Crosse Tribune. 29 Oct. 1953.
The La Crosse Tribune. 21 Nov. 1953.
The La Crosse Tribune. 11 July 1954.
The La Crosse Tribune. 24 Oct. 1963.
The La Crosse Tribune. 22 Oct. 1978.
The La Crosse Tribune. 27 Feb. 1997.
The La Crosse Tribune. 16 Mar. 2003.
The La Crosse Tribune. 27 Aug. 2017.
Leader Telegram. 11 Nov. 1967.
Legardye, Quinci. "The True Story of Evelyn Hartley, Ed Gein's Alleged Victim in Netflix's 'Monster'." Marie Claire, .
McLeod, Kyle. "Monster True Story: What Really Happened To Evelyn Hartley." Screen Rant.
"‘Monster: The Ed Gein Story’ Cast Guide: Meet the Real-Life Killers and Victims in Netflix’s Serial Killer Anthology." Variety, 3 Oct. 2025.
Nashville Banner. 21 Nov. 1953.
Soen, Hayley. "The Ed Gein Story: True story of babysitter Evelyn Hartley is actually a gruesome mystery." The Tab, .
Spanos, Brittany. "Addison Rae Gets Murdered in ‘Monster: The Ed Gein Story’ Trailer." Rolling Stone, 16 Sept. 2025.
Sweeney, Gary. "The Babysitter Who Vanished: What Happened to Evelyn Hartley?" The Lineup, Open Road Media, 25 July 2018.
The Winona Daily News. 29 Oct. 1953.
The Winona Daily News. 21 Nov. 1953.
The Winona Daily News. 24 Oct. 2020.
Wisconsin State Journal. 25 Nov. 1974.
