On April 9, 2025, I submitted Modesto Jane Doe 1975 to be added to the Doe Network. On April 22,
Jane Doe's profile was added to the site.
Here is my own write-up with everything I could find out about the case. Disclaimer: if this seems familiar to anyone, I plan on posting about it on my Reddit account, so don't worry the upcoming Reddit post is not plagiarism lol
On Wednesday, July 30, 1975, a tractor driver was using a scraper to clear underbrush and weeds for a fence west of Gardner's Cove in Modesto, CA, when he noticed a bit of clothing among the debris he was clearing off. Upon closer inspection, he realized that there were human bones inside the clothing. Authorities were promptly notified, and investigation of the area continued up to at least August 1 to search for more remains.
Newspapers reported that the bones, "have been found scattered over an area about seven yards square. Some remains were moved by the tractor driver and his scraper Wednesday as he cleared a path for workmen to build a fence. Others were found when the detectives and inmates — ["a work crew of five men from the Stanislaus County Honor Farm"] — unearthed them with shovels. Others may have been carried off by animals or fallen in the river, and may never be found."
Only partial skeletal remains, including "an arm bone, most of one rib, and another smaller piece of rib bone," were uncovered. The skull, as well as one or more limbs, were not recovered.
The body was found west of Gardner's Cove and its fishing resort, 4ft east of the edge of a San Joaquin River slough on the north bank of the river, and 20 ft south of Highway 132, about 12mi west of Modesto. The very first clipping regarding the discovery mistakenly reported it being found near the Tuolumne River instead of the San Joaquin River. This area generally corresponds to the 10400 block of Maze Blvd, as stated by the Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers website.
The area was used as a dumping ground for passing motorists at the time, as detectives found litter of all kinds in the area. Deputies at the time theorized that the body might have been tossed out of a passing car on nearby Maze Rd (aka Highway 132). Despite this, investigators reportedly did not find any evidence of foul play. However, the Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers — which I find at least a bit dubious, as I don't know where it got its information from — states that Jane Doe was the victim of a homicide.
The body was determined to be that of a young woman, probably white; while NamUs states that she was about 25-30 years old, a contemporary newspaper clipping reported that she was estimated to be between 18 and 25. Jane Doe was estimated to be about 5'7 and 150 lbs. While NamUs states that her hair and eye color are unknown, as her head was not found, both the Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers as well as a contemporary newspaper clipping stated that she had brown hair. The latter specifically stated that she had "curly brown hair subjected to heat treatment, possibly a permanent [perm]."
Jane Doe is thought to have died in the first half of 1974, more than a year before the discovery of her remains. The Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers states that her "mitochondrial DNA was obtained and entered into the CODIS system."
When she was found, Jane Doe was wearing a lime green double-breasted jacket with pink lining — though one contemporary clipping stated that it was beige — that was belted and had one-inch gold-colored metal buttons; a white cotton short-sleeve shirt, size small; black — though clipping says dark blue — "hip-hugger" capris/pedal-pusher pants that appeared homemade with no labels, possibly made out of polyester according to one source, and had a waist measurement of 34"; and "some lingerie", which was deteriorated, though the hip size was determined to be 36".
Jane Doe's NamUs case was created on October 22, 2014 and last updated on August 8, 2023. On April 9, 2025, I submitted Modesto Jane Doe 1975 to be added to the Doe Network; on April 22, a profile for her was added to the site.
Jane Doe has 0 MP rule-outs on NamUs. Anyone with information should contact the Coroner Division of the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Dept. at 209-567-4480.
