Identified! OH - Troy, Miami Co., 'Buckskin Girl' WhtFem 133UFOH, 15-25, Apr'81 - Marcia King

[Shamrocker99]

This will be my first time suggesting someone, but what about Barbara Cotton missing April 11, 1981 from North Dakota? Her face looks similar and she could have been hitchhiking for several days before being killed! The age is slightly younger, but she could have been a "well endowed" 15 year old--although 100 pounds might be a little light for someone with that chest size.
https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/2921/33/

 

[Woodland]

What strikes me about this UF is she is another case of a well cared for person who must have had somewhere to be that no one can identify.

I like the comment in post #204, 30 Dec 2011 that she may have traveled down from Canada. That is what I have started to think in the last week or so - some of the cared for women (good dental, clothing etc) found on American soil may not be American, and those found north of the 49th parallel are not Canadian. They may not be North American at all.

Could someone have brought women from poor countries to NA with a promise of a better life, therefore the families are unaware what may have happened to them?

Melonie Biddersingh (formerly known only as the suitcase murder) is a prime example.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41284&highlight=ontario

Maybe it's time to reach out to other countries for identification purposes.

 

[CarlK90245]

This will be my first time suggesting someone, but what about Barbara Cotton missing April 11, 1981 from North Dakota? Her face looks similar and she could have been hitchhiking for several days before being killed! The age is slightly younger, but she could have been a "well endowed" 15 year old--although 100 pounds might be a little light for someone with that chest size.
https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/2921/33/

According to Charley Project, Barbara Cotton had pierced ears (which Buckskin Girl didn't), and scoliosis (of which there is no mention for BG).

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/c/cotton_barbara.html

Nevertheless, i'm sure that Barbara Cotton has been checked out, even though she is not listed on the NamUs rule-out listing. Same goes for Sharon Pretorius. She is not on the rule-out list, but definitely has been ruled-out.

 

[Woodland]

I'm wondering if anyone has read what BG may have been strangled with.

Well cared for BG seems similar to me to the well cared for UF found in East Haven, CT on 16 August 1975 - previous orthodontic care, cosmetic surgery and found with black antenna wire wrapped around her neck, waist and knees.

Also to well cared for UF found McDonald Couty, MO on 2 December 1990 - expensive dental work and bound/strangled with coaxial TV cable. Travel between these 3 locations is very easy. There are a few in Canada as well - expensive dental work and at least one strangled with coaxial cable.

It's so hard to imagine women with access to money to go unidentified and unclaimed. Someone did care at one point in their lives.

 

[traacker13]

i scanned through the thread and checked the namus list but please shout if this is familiar territory.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1dfnd.html Barbara Cotton is younger than estimates and can't tell about the freckles/reddish tint. Height is also a little off, and I realize that there is a day drive distance.

But, here are the similarites that make this a strong possible:

Barbara had excellent teeth. So did BJD
Barbara's left ear was lower than her right. Looks like BJD has the same from photos.
Barbara had a distinguishing mole on her upper right chest. So did BJD.

We do know BJD was transported. Thirteen days would be plenty of time to get from ND to Miami County. The height difference can easily be accounted for by innaccuracies in measurements (on either end). And Barbara's disappearance sounds like an abduction which would fit.

I think impacted wisdom teeth also lean on the side of BJD being younger.

Just my humble opinion, but I think the similarities are worth a look. Anyone in contact with LE?

This is EXACTLY who I found when researching too and had an "ah ha" moment. I submitted it to LE and was just about to post that I think this is her when I searched and found that she was already posted about. Did you ever submit to LE about her KPDX?

 

[traacker13]

Even though there is some conflicting information between the descriptions, I highlighted the information that was similar. This is what I sent to LE about Barbara and a possible match for this UID:

She disappeared on April 11, 1981
She has a mole on the right side of her chest (as does Buckskin girl)
She has a noticeably lower left ear (as mentioned on Barbara's profile)
The nose of Buckskin girl was very unique with the nose shifting slightly to the right and the right nostril being much smaller than the left. If you look at Barbara's image and the image of the Buckskin girl the noses are an exact match
Barbara has long brown hair and brown eyes

 

[kpdx]

i never submitted because we had some debate about it...and i was waiting to see if i could get some better pictures from barbara's family. i am glad you submitted, though, i think its a good possible.

 

[Cymro]

Also good:

Barbara had "excellent teeth." Doe had teeth "in good condition."
Barbara left wearing jeans. Doe was wearing jeans (not surprising, but anything else could have been a strike).
Timeline is pretty good - 1,300 or 1,400 miles covered in 12 days.
Barbara's skin appears to be freckled, like Doe. Eye color is imprecise but consistent in both.
Barbara's face/jawline appear to be somewhat asymmetrical, as does Doe in the reconstructions (but this is very weak, due to the range of drawings and photographs available).

Bad:

Pierced ears on Barbara, not on Doe.
Doe's measurements are much larger - a chesty 130 lbs and 5'5" mean, vs 100 lbs and 5'2". 32D probably isn't that noticeable though - a D cup is much bigger at 36 I believe than at 32.
Doe has a scar on her chin; no mention of that on Barbara. Similarly, no mention of Barbara's neck mole on Doe. No mention of Barbara's curved spine on Doe, either.

DNA is with the local crime lab. Barbara only has mDNA rather than nuclear, as well, so even if Doe is now in CODIS, that might not be an automatic rule out.

 

[traacker13]

I contacted LE about this and here is part of the response that I received.

"Boy, you got my heart racing on this one. But Barbara Cotton has a mouthful of fillings, and Buckskin girl had perfect teeth except for a crown on a front tooth (assumed it was a chipped tooth). The rest is very compelling. I will pass this on to the detective and make sure he is totally positive that the dental information on the deceased is accurate, but I can't imagine it's not. A dentist did examine the victim and made a chart and notes in the autopsy report."

I am confused by this response because I assumed that based on the information in Barbara's profile she seemed to have "excellent teeth" I find it difficult to accept that the dentals for her are accurate knowing that someone would make that remark for a person that had a "mouthful of fillings"

Does anyone know how to verify or who we could contact to see if the dentals for Barbara are accurate? Anyway we might be able to get in touch with any family members that may be able to help us?

 

[kpdx]

The family has referred specific questions to the Williston LE

Williston Police Department
Lieutenant Mark Hanson
Missing Persons Unit
701-577-1212

Detective Division
Cory Collings - Detective Sergeant
collings@ci.williston.nd.us
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

NAMUS notes Barbara's dentals are available and entered, wondering if someone contacts WPD if they could ask them to make the dentals public?

I also got in contact with Barbara's sister to see if she had another photo which showed either Barbara's profile or her ears more clearly. She said she would look, but also referred me to WPD, so I think that is the best bet.

I typically can't make calls during business hours (on the West Coast)...but if y'all want me to email I am happy to do so. I know CarlK has had more success with phone calls for these smaller LE departments.

 

[traacker13]

The family has referred specific questions to the Williston LE

Williston Police Department
Lieutenant Mark Hanson
Missing Persons Unit
701-577-1212

Detective Division
Cory Collings - Detective Sergeant
collings@ci.williston.nd.us
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

NAMUS notes Barbara's dentals are available and entered, wondering if someone contacts WPD if they could ask them to make the dentals public?

I also got in contact with Barbara's sister to see if she had another photo which showed either Barbara's profile or her ears more clearly. She said she would look, but also referred me to WPD, so I think that is the best bet.

I typically can't make calls during business hours (on the West Coast)...but if y'all want me to email I am happy to do so. I know CarlK has had more success with phone calls for these smaller LE departments.

KPDX I think that would be wonderful! This is great that you have this information and know where to turn. If you'd like to email them or call them and see if the dentals could be double checked or made public I think that would be fantastic! I am hopeful that there was some sort of mistake with the initial comparison....

 

[Eoanthropus Dawsoni]

April of 1981 was the height of the previous oil boom in Williston. Then, as now, we had people constantly coming and going from everywhere in the USA and Canada.

 

[kpdx]

Ok, I sent an email to WPD and Barbara's sister following up about dentals and seeing if any additional photos are available.

I am super excited at the reaction from Ohio LE, as my gut felt pretty strongly Barbara was a good possible match. What a wonderful gift it would be to finally give her family some answers and peace!

 

[kpdx]

April of 1981 was the height of the previous oil boom in Williston. Then, as now, we had people constantly coming and going from everywhere in the USA and Canada.

That is so interesting! Can you elaborate? That might be really useful info for finding Barbara!

 

[Eoanthropus Dawsoni]

That is so interesting! Can you elaborate? That might be really useful info for finding Barbara!

Williston is an oil town. During the late 70's and early 80's there was a huge influx of people from all over the country. It's an area where in normal times crime is rare, but during the oil booms there are so many people pouring into the area that law enforcement can't keep up. Things were really crazy in those days. There was a lot of drug crime, and the domestic calls were non-stop. When we were not dealing with a domestic or a property crime we would be busy on the highways trying to keep the drunk drivers from killing people. Many crimes were unsolved because people would come in to town from anywhere, and be gone the next day.

Williston learned a lot from that period, so during the present boom they do have a better handle on the situation. However anyone who followed the Sherry Arnold threads would know that LE is once again being overwhelmed by outsiders.

 

[LucyOso]

I was wondering if Buckskin Girl could be Tracey. Her name isn't eliminated in Namus. As she was 14 when she disappeared the 2 inches in height would not be a big deal as she would grow until age 16 at least. Also, I noticed a birthmark/freckle on both nose bridges and chin. I can't tell the other marks due to picture quality (over exposure maybe) and the UID has not been "cleaned up well." Both have scars on their ankles. UID has other scars, but with a time elapse it is possible. Any chance she ran away or left by choice?

http://www.missingkids.com/missingk...NCMC&seqNum=1&caseLang=en_US&searchLang=en_US

http://doenetwork.org/cases/342dfpa.html

 

[JeannieC]

I know it's a long shot but could the Buckskin girl be Judy Martins. Judy went missing May 24, 1978 from Kent State Ohio. She was 22 years old, 5'4" and 120 lbs. She wore contacts or glasses but her glasses were left behind. Black hair and hazel eyes. Her pictures aren't clear enough to see if she has freckles.

Her disappearance was thought to be an abduction. The campus police didn't report her missing to her parents for two days. The investigation was slow to start since the students had gone home for the Memorial Day Holiday.

She is not listed in the Doe Network or in Namus.

[

Judy does have a WS thread.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/martins_judy.html

 

[JeannieC]

Carl Question. Who has to be contacted in order to have her put into Namus?

 

[tatertot]

The height is off and there's a time gap between the disappearance and the UID's discovery, but IMHO Eileen Francis Hynson resembles her at least slightly, and we have both front and side profiles for the UID and MP alike:

MP:
http://charleyproject.org/cases/h/hynson_eileen.html
https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/14520/0/

UID:
https://identifyus.org/en/cases/4790

 

[Hexe]

I can't help with any useful thoughts today, so I used my humble graphic skills and tried to make a little reconstruction of BG looks. I hope it will help.