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Quiz about Unsolved Mysteries
Quiz about Unsolved Mysteries

Unsolved Mysteries Trivia Quiz


History is full of unsolved mysteries. Here are ten of them for your quizzing pleasure.

A multiple-choice quiz by nmerr. Estimated time: 7 mins.
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Author
nmerr
Time
7 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
358,347
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Very Difficult
Avg Score
4 / 10
Plays
1000
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 90 (6/10), Guest 172 (1/10), Guest 97 (1/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. It has been said that this British naval hero was Ian Fleming's model for James Bond. He had earned his hero status during World War II as a deep sea diver whose job was to search for limpet mines. In 1956, he was sent by Lord Mountbatten on a spy mission to investigate the Russian cruiser, Ordzhoniikize. Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolai Bulganin were on board for what was to be a diplomatic mission to Britain. The spy headed out toward the cruiser but never returned. Who was he? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. He is the only cadet in the history of the West Point Military Academy to have disappeared without a trace. The date was January 14, 1950. He left in the company of someone named George and was never seen again. What was the name of this cadet? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. In 1897 a crime was committed that foreshadowed a similar crime in the 1960s, the basis of which became Truman Capote's bestseller "In Cold Blood." Both crimes involved the murder of an entire family. The murders committed in 1897 happened in Tennessee. A father, mother, their two children and a neighbor's child were all murdered. What was the name of this family? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. At Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, one can find an illustrated book in the library's collection that dates back to the 15th century. It was named for the rare book collector who acquired it in 1912. What is the name of this mysterious manuscript? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. The theft of valuable paintings from a Boston museum occurred on March 18, 1990. Paintings by Vermeer, Manet, and Rembrandt were stolen along with five Degas drawings. At which museum did this brazen heist occur? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Abraham Zapruder famously filmed the assassination of President John Kennedy in 1963. In some of the footage, a mysterious woman can be seen taking pictures. She is directly across the street, facing the infamous grassy knoll. This woman was known in the media as what? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. A well-known New York City judge mysteriously disappeared in August 1930, never to be seen again. He was heavily involved in New York politics, specifically Tammany Hall, New York's political machine at that time. Who was "The Missingest Man in New York?" Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. On October 12, 1964 a 43-year-old socialite was murdered while taking a walk in Georgetown, an upscale neighborhood located in Washington D.C. She was shot twice at close range. The ex-wife of a CIA official and rumored lover of President John F. Kennedy, what was her name? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Since the 1980s tiles containing a mysterious message have been found embedded in asphalt in city streets throughout the U.S. and South America. The message is always the same and always found on busy streets in major cities. The name in the message could refer to a British historian or a Ray Bradbury short story. What are these mysterious tiles known as? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. In 1948 on Somerton Beach in Adelaide, South Australia, the body of an unidentified man washed ashore. A message had been scrawled on a scrap of paper found in a pocket of his pants. Other than that scrap of paper, the body had no identification. What was the man called? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. It has been said that this British naval hero was Ian Fleming's model for James Bond. He had earned his hero status during World War II as a deep sea diver whose job was to search for limpet mines. In 1956, he was sent by Lord Mountbatten on a spy mission to investigate the Russian cruiser, Ordzhoniikize. Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolai Bulganin were on board for what was to be a diplomatic mission to Britain. The spy headed out toward the cruiser but never returned. Who was he?

Answer: Lionel Crabb

Fourteen months after Crabb disappeared, the body of a man in a frogman's suit was found floating in Chichester Harbour. Since the corpse was missing the head and hands, identification of the body was nearly impossible. The coroner formally announced that it was Crabb's body. Those who knew him best doubted it.

Some believe he was killed by the Russians. Others believe that the dive to the cruiser was a cover-up for his defection to Russia. Still others believe that British Intelligence knew all along what happened but chose not to disclose the information.
2. He is the only cadet in the history of the West Point Military Academy to have disappeared without a trace. The date was January 14, 1950. He left in the company of someone named George and was never seen again. What was the name of this cadet?

Answer: Richard Cox

In 1985, retired school teacher Marshall Jacobs began an extensive investigation into the disappearance of Cox. The result was the book "Oblivion" written by Harry Maihafer. Jacobs believes Cox's disappearance was staged so he could serve the government in a different capacity. So much time has elapsed since Cox's disappearance that it's unlikely the full story will ever be known.
3. In 1897 a crime was committed that foreshadowed a similar crime in the 1960s, the basis of which became Truman Capote's bestseller "In Cold Blood." Both crimes involved the murder of an entire family. The murders committed in 1897 happened in Tennessee. A father, mother, their two children and a neighbor's child were all murdered. What was the name of this family?

Answer: Ade

All family members were killed with a blunt object. No one was ever charged with the murders. After the family was killed their home was set on fire. Three one hundred dollar bills were found in a jar among the charred ruins so police doubted that robbery was the motive. Since it had rained the night of the murders, much of the evidence was washed away.

At the time of the crime there were plenty of rumors as to who was responsible but the case remains unsolved.
4. At Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, one can find an illustrated book in the library's collection that dates back to the 15th century. It was named for the rare book collector who acquired it in 1912. What is the name of this mysterious manuscript?

Answer: Voynich Manuscript

The fact that no one has been able to figure out what the manuscript is or who wrote it has led some experts to believe it is a hoax. The manuscript itself is made up of undecipherable writing, astrological symbols, drawings of unidentified plants and naked ladies. Everything from alien language to a long-forgotten or unknown language have been put forth as possible explanations.
5. The theft of valuable paintings from a Boston museum occurred on March 18, 1990. Paintings by Vermeer, Manet, and Rembrandt were stolen along with five Degas drawings. At which museum did this brazen heist occur?

Answer: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Oddly enough, the museum's most valuable piece, Titian's "The Rape of Europa," was not taken. Myles Connor and Billy Youngworth, notorious art thieves, and gangster Bobby Donati and his accomplice David Houghton were on the FBI's short list of suspects. Youngworth claimed he knew where the paintings were and tried to bribe the police.

It didn't work. Sadly, the paintings have never been recovered.
6. Abraham Zapruder famously filmed the assassination of President John Kennedy in 1963. In some of the footage, a mysterious woman can be seen taking pictures. She is directly across the street, facing the infamous grassy knoll. This woman was known in the media as what?

Answer: Babushka Lady

The "Babushka Lady" was so named because she wore a scarf on her head in a style similar to those worn by Russian women. Because of where she was positioned, if there had been a second shooter on the grassy knoll (as many believe) then she could have taken photos of him. Who was this woman? In 1970, a dancer by the name of Beverly Oliver came forward as the woman in the photos.

It was later determined that she was an imposter. To this day "Babushka Lady" has never been identified.
7. A well-known New York City judge mysteriously disappeared in August 1930, never to be seen again. He was heavily involved in New York politics, specifically Tammany Hall, New York's political machine at that time. Who was "The Missingest Man in New York?"

Answer: Joseph Crater

Judge Crater was last seen getting into a cab. His wife believed that he had been murdered. Others believed that he had run off with a showgirl. In 2005, a letter was found in the apartment of an elderly woman who had recently died. The woman had been living in Queens, a borough of New York City.

The letter, found by the woman's granddaughter who was instructed not to open the letter until after her grandmother's death, had been written by the woman's late husband, a cop. In the letter he claimed that he, another cop, and a cab driver murdered Judge Crater and buried his body under the boardwalk at Coney Island.

The New York Aquarium now sits on that property. Fact or fiction? You be the judge (pun intended).
8. On October 12, 1964 a 43-year-old socialite was murdered while taking a walk in Georgetown, an upscale neighborhood located in Washington D.C. She was shot twice at close range. The ex-wife of a CIA official and rumored lover of President John F. Kennedy, what was her name?

Answer: Mary Pinchot Meyer

Mary Meyer had moved in the circles of Washington's elite. Attractive, well-spoken, and connected, her death mystified those who knew her and those who didn't. Who killed Mary Pinchot Meyer? Some may tell you that a criminal named Raymond Crump did it.

He was arrested but never convicted of the crime. Others may tell you that the deed was carried out by the CIA. Whatever the truth, it will likely remain a mystery.
9. Since the 1980s tiles containing a mysterious message have been found embedded in asphalt in city streets throughout the U.S. and South America. The message is always the same and always found on busy streets in major cities. The name in the message could refer to a British historian or a Ray Bradbury short story. What are these mysterious tiles known as?

Answer: Toynbee Tiles

The message reads as follows: "Toynbee Idea In Movie 2001 Resurrect Dead On Planet Jupiter." Toynbee may refer to Arnold Toynbee or Bradbury's story "The Toynbee Convector." "Movie 2001" may refer to Kubrick's sci-fi film "2001: A Space Odyssey." Putting it all together in a meaningful way hasn't been so easy.

Many of the tiles have been destroyed over the years through normal wear and tear of traffic and weather changes. Documentery filmmaker, Justin Duerr, belives that the tiles were the work of a Philadelphia man, Severino Verna.

Others believe it to be the work of another Philadelphia resident, James Morasco, who, according to Duerr, was an alias used by Severino Verna. Morasco died in 2003.
10. In 1948 on Somerton Beach in Adelaide, South Australia, the body of an unidentified man washed ashore. A message had been scrawled on a scrap of paper found in a pocket of his pants. Other than that scrap of paper, the body had no identification. What was the man called?

Answer: Tamam Shud

Tamam Shud had to do with a phrase which appeared on the scrap of paper. The phrase, translated from Persian to mean "ending", is part of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám", selected poems attributed to Omar Khayyám, a Persian poet. One South Australian Chief Superintendent who had worked on the case believed the man was from an eastern European country, which is why he couldn't be identified. To date no one has ever positively identified the body.
Source: Author nmerr

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