It was a purse that looked like it came from the 60s. When he opened it, he knew that it was critical that the owner be found. But how could that be done?

But now that he had discovered this purse, it seemed like the job just got harder. How do you track down the owner of a purse from 60 years ago? It seemed too much for a single man, but he wasn’t expecting that the search was going to intrigue a lot of other people.

He saw that the old purse had a lot of pictures in it when he opened it to check for any kind of identification. At first, he wasn’t really sure how to feel about what he found, seeing that it was really old.

Armando just knew that the owner needed to have it back. He was just so scared to browse through everything, as he might ruin something considering the age of the purse and its contents. That’s when he decided that he should turn it over to the authorities. 

Sarah Osborne, a representative for League City, clearly remembered the day Armando surrendered the purse to their office. In an interview, she told The Washington Post that it was evident the purse was old, considering the chew marks from rodents over the years. Inside the purse, however, everything was perfectly preserved.

There were a couple of old floral handkerchiefs, plus a few pencils and a nail file. There was also a small pocket calendar from the year the owner presumably lost the purse. But aside from these little odds and ends, something else made this mystery more exciting.

This wallet was literally packed to the brim, not just with pictures but with small pieces of paper that had messages written on them. With these new items available for inspection, one part of the mystery was immediately solved.

Even the notes on the small pieces of paper showed that they were given at around the same month and year. So the purse and everything in it was 60 years old! Now with one part of the mystery solved, it was time to find out more.

The notes also revealed the name Beverly Williams, who seemed to be 13 years old at the time. This was a great piece of information that everyone could work with during their mission to find the purse’s owner. But was it still possible to trace the person’s whereabouts 60 years later?

Sarah, now as engrossed in the mystery as Armando, quickly searched local records for any trace of a person named Beverly Williams. Being the League City representative, she was in a perfect position to find useful sources. However, it’s turning out to be a disappointing lead.

Considering the very little they knew about the woman they were looking for, and the amount of time she had invested in the case, she had no other choice. She had to put the search on hold and attend to more pressing matters. So the purse was placed in storage until things took a turn in September 2022.

Sarah remembered the purse and realized that this was part of the new rec center’s history. So she took it out of storage and decided to place it in a display case during the opening. She made sure all the pictures and other mementos in it were showcased.

Sarah knew that the entire town would probably show up at the event. This made it the perfect opportunity to get people to look at the photos and see if they recognized anyone in them. It truly was a brilliant plan and could give them the big break that they had been waiting for!

Nobody recognized any of the people in the pictures. But when Sarah thought about how she connected this purse with the rec center’s history, she came up with another great idea. What if they reached out to the Clear Creek Independent School District and the League City Historical Society?

He likened the experience to unlocking a time capsule where the secrets of a past era are unlocked. He examined each item closely. Knowing that a lot of work had already been put in before he was brought into the case, Richard knew he had to explore every possibility.

Once everything was fully documented, he sent his findings to the Clear Creek Independent School District. They then uploaded a video showing how Richard went through all the pieces. With this video out in public, they were all hoping that someone would finally come forward and shed light on the mystery.

All these little pieces of the puzzle were starting to come together. Which meant they must be closer to the answers they were seeking. The notes in the purse also gave them a few more pieces of vital information.

There was also a journal in the purse where Beverly’s thoughts and experiences were written. Richard compared the journal to a classic form of Facebook where people could share things that were important to them. It even had notes about Beverly’s love life!

This makes sense, knowing that boys and girls at that time got serious about love at an early age. In fact, History.com says that it was normal for boys and girls to get hitched at 20 to 23–they were all prepared to start families at a young age.

Basically, everyone back then was trained to respond to a crisis efficiently. They knew what to do and where to go in case there was an attack. This definitely added some trauma to teens from that era, giving us a little background on Beverly’s circumstances at that time. 

With all the information now posted in public, the Clear Creek Independent School District called for anyone who knew Beverly to come forward so that her prized possessions could finally make their way back to her. They all waited in anticipation, hoping this finally paved the way to the mystery being solved.

Richard was told to reach out to a woman named Deborah Hicks. The caller said that Deborah was Beverly’s daughter! Knowing that their efforts were finally paying off was excellent news indeed. Were they finally going to come face to face with Beverly soon?

The conversation with Deborah revealed even more details about Beverly. It turns out that Beverly had a total of nine kids! It’s also possible that they found very little about Beverly Williams because her real name was actually Andrea Beverly Williams.

Everyone who took part in the search was thrilled that they were finally closing the case soon. But unfortunately, Beverly’s kids brought with them the sad news that Beverly had actually passed away in 2015. She was 69 years old and living in Washington when she passed.

It was also perfect timing when they found out about the purse. It turns out that it was supposed to be their mom’s 77th birthday two days before, so this was a great way to celebrate her memory. But they weren’t the only ones with memories of Beverly in the rec center that day.

Robert said that a wave of nostalgia hit him when he found out that people were looking for information about Beverly. They lived on the same street. “She saved my life,” Robert said as he remembered what a traumatic childhood he had.

But Robert joined the marines, so they were separated for some time. When he finally got back, he tried to reconnect with Beverly, who lived with her grandmother at the time. Unfortunately, Beverly’s grandma kept sending him away, so they never saw each other again.

It turns out that Beverly didn’t even go to League City High School, the place where the purse was found! This must be why they found it impossible to look for clues. But how did the purse get there, and what connection did they miss?

They recall that Beverly’s sisters were the biggest practical jokers, so this might have been part of a prank. They also realized that they never saw their mom with a purse this small, so she must have started using larger purses when she lost this one!

But they also acknowledged that this was part of this place’s history. They believe that this was meant to be put on display here, a part of the story that made this rec center what it is today.