Did You Hear About The Hudson Valley's Most Chilling Cold Case?

This one is hard to believe, but it's real, and it happened right here in the Hudson Valley.

While scrolling through Facebook on Monday, I learned about a shocking cold case out of Poughkeepsie that I'm shocked I'd never heard of before.

This story is too wild not to reshare.

A Poughkeepsie Woman Vanished In 1985

In December 1985, JoAnn Nichols, a 55-year-old first-grade teacher living on Vassar Road in the Town of Poughkeepsie, vanished without a trace. Her husband, James L. Nichols Jr., told police she had missed a hair appointment and never came home.

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For nearly three decades, the case sat cold. Investigators explored the possibility that she had run away, or that she had become despondent following the drowning death of the couple's son.

The Truth Didn't Come Out Until Her Husband Was Already Dead

James Nichols lived in that same house on Vassar Road for the rest of his life. He died of natural causes in early 2013 at the age of 82.

A few months after his death, a contractor was hired to clean out the home. On June 28, 2013, while clearing out the basement, the contractor made a discovery that cracked the case.

Behind a false wall, hidden inside a sealed container, were the skeletal remains of JoAnn Nichols. Turns out she was there inside her own home for 28 years.

It's alleged that her husband built the hidden wall.

opened secret door inside library — Photo by Stefan Steinbauer on Unsplash

The Dutchess County Medical Examiner identified the remains using dental records. The cause of death was ruled a homicide: blunt force trauma to the head.

Police named James Nichols as the primary suspect. Because he was already dead, no charges were ever filed.

The case remains one of the most chilling in Dutchess County history.