News
Police release age progression image of woman who disappeared in Manchester more than 50 years ago
Isabella Skelton nee McDowall went missing in June 1969 aged 35 and hasn't been seen since.
The Manc -
2nd September 2020 
Investigating officers at Greater Manchester Police have released a fresh age progression image of a woman who went missing more than 50 years ago.
On what would have been her 86th birthday, the age progressed image shows what Isabella Skelton nee McDowall – also known as Izzy – could potentially look like if found today.
She went missing in June 1969 aged 35.
Born in Glasgow on 21st January 1934, it is believed Isabella attended school in Anderson Cross, Scotland and at the time, had a good friend called Anna Owen. She worked in a florist and also for the James Howden engineering company in Glasgow.
She married Lewis Skelton in July 1952, was the mother of three children – Linda, Richard and Stephen – and moved to Manchester in the early 1960.
She first lived in Salford, and at the time of her disappearance, was living on Lidiard Street, Crumpsall.
While living in Manchester, Isabella previously worked at Atlas Express in Blackfriars, Salford, and is also believed to have worked at Gallagher Cigarettes and Ball Bearings Services, the latter at the time of her disappearance.
Her family grew up under the belief that Isabella had left Manchester to work away for a period, but they never saw her again.
Detective Inspector Claire Moss of Greater Manchester Police’s City of Manchester Division said: “After more than 50 years, Isabella’s family are still desperately looking for answers.
“There is no record of Isabella after she left Manchester and there is no record of her death, [so] we therefore believe she is still alive and remains classed as a missing person with GMP. We appreciate that we are talking about a long timeframe, with little information to go on, but we hope that someone may recognise the image we’re releasing today.
“We owe it to Isabella’s family not to stop looking for her.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101, or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
