CANADA Canada - “Albert Johnson”, "Mad Trapper of Rat River" killed in an Arctic shootout, Feb 1932

[dotr]

The Mad Trapper of Rat River shot & killed... - RareNewspapers.com

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https://ohfa.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Mad-Trapper-of-Rat-River_Marcus.pptx-MARCUS-HANNON-Student.pdf

''DNA analysis has shed new light on the identity of the Mad Trapper, also known as Albert Johnson.By analyzing isotopes, scientists determined that Albert Johnson grew up in the northern United States or northern Scandinavia.News of Johnson's nationality disappointed dozens of Canadians who had submitted their DNA for testing.Scientists also determined that Johnson was in his 30s when he died.CBC/RADIO CANADA. (2009, FEBRUARY 20). MAD TRAPPER NOT A CANADIAN, SCIENTIFIC TESTS DISCOVER | CBC NEWS. CBCNEWS. RETRIEVED APRIL 1, 2023''

 

[othram]

Tough case, but we are working through it!

 

[Richard]

Bumping thread up...

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Bumping for a trapper mad
Who somehow survived a savage land
The Mounties finally tracked him down
Now he lies in the permafrost ground

I recently watched Death Hunt, with Lee Marvin and Charles Bronson. As you can imagine, testosterone flies off the screen. It is a great adventure movie, but very poor history. They should not have used the names of actual people and written a fictional story about them.
Today I finished The Mad Trapper of Rat River by Dick North. It is an engrossing read, and it really took me to that time and place….so much so that I put on an extra blanket while reading it.
It is a good book but 20 years old at this point, and of course does not address the exhumation and DNA work that has taken place since then. As for Albert Johnson’s identity, the author focused on John Johnson, an American, who has since been ruled out as a match. Still, I recommend the book.
We are getting close on this one. The DNA database grown daily, and there will be a match some day soon.

 

[Melt71]

@Magnum P.E. I like to hope there's a DNA kit under someone's Xmas tree right now that in about 3-4 months is going to unlock the mystery.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

@Magnum P.E. I like to hope there's a DNA kit under someone's Xmas tree right now that in about 3-4 months is going to unlock the mystery.

I hope so. A close match will surely show up in the next year or two.

The isotope analysis results are frustrating. They show that he grew up in Sweden….or the upper Midwest of the US, which is about what you would have expected anyway from someone who spoke English with a Scandinavian accent. I do hope that someone figures out a way to do more with isotope analysis. So far it has not delivered on its promise. I don’t know of any cases solved by isotope analysis.

DNA shows a connection to three towns in Sweden. There are two known ancestors (likely collateral ancestors) but Othram has yet to find the smoking chromosomes.

 

[Melt71]

I hope so. A close match will surely show up in the next year or two.

The isotope analysis results are frustrating. They show that he grew up in Sweden….or the upper Midwest of the US, which is about what you would have expected anyway from someone who spoke English with a Scandinavian accent. I do hope that someone figures out a way to do more with isotope analysis. So far it has not delivered on its promise. I don’t know of any cases solved by isotope analysis.

DNA shows a connection to three towns in Sweden. There are two known ancestors (likely collateral ancestors) but Othram has yet to find the smoking chromosomes.

Haha "the smoking chromosomes". Love it! What a great description.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Bumping once more for a mystery man
They blew up his cabin and off he ran
With his Savage 99 and old snowshoes
But the Mounties made sure he paid his dues.

 

[Richard]

There is an old saying; "A Mountie always gets his man."

 

[Richard]

Since this guy was a pretty rough character with a lawless and violent streak, it might be possible that he had spent time in prison at some point prior to his run-in with the Mounties in Canada. Perhaps his name (or one of his aliases) is included in an old prison roster somewhere.

Stillwater prison in Minnesota might be such a place. There is an historical roster of inmates dating from the mid 1800's to the early 20th century online. It lists names, Minnesota County where arrested and convicted, Date of incarceration, age at the time, and birthplace of inmate.

LINK:

LibGuides: State Prisons: Historical Inmate Records: Getting Started

Historical inmate and employee records from Minnesota State Prisons Preliminary research you can do before visiting MHS

libguides.mnhs.org

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Since this guy was a pretty rough character with a lawless and violent streak, it might be possible that he had spent time in prison at some point prior to his run-in with the Mounties in Canada. Perhaps his name (or one of his aliases) is included in an old prison roster somewhere.

Stillwater prison in Minnesota might be such a place. There is an historical roster of inmates dating from the mid 1800's to the early 20th century online. It lists names, Minnesota County where arrested and convicted, Date of incarceration, age at the time, and birthplace of inmate.

LINK:

LibGuides: State Prisons: Historical Inmate Records: Getting Started

Historical inmate and employee records from Minnesota State Prisons Preliminary research you can do before visiting MHS

libguides.mnhs.org

Richard, you bring up a pretty good point. He probably didn’t become that rowdy all of a sudden, and there is a good chance that he did time somewhere before.
The Mounties got good prints off him. The Bertillonage system was long gone by that time, so a prison in the US would have taken prints off its prisoners. The US did cooperate with Canada in trying to identify him, but exactly how hard did they try? And did the prints from state prisons ever make their way into the FBI print database? Would it be worthwhile to run his prints again? Hmmm……

 

[OTTOTMT]

Possible photo of "Albert Johnson" when living. But was that his real name?

Just to note, this photo is not at all Albert Johnson, but a trapper who was from the area. It is noted that someone has erroneously written “ the Mad Trapper of Rat River “ across the top of a version of this photo, which is causing confusion. But, it is most definitely not Albert. Even the police museum has this photo erroneously indicated to be AJ, which has confused people who are not familiar with what photos are confirmed to be AJ and those determined for sure to not be. They have been notified of this error, and presented with the evidence.

 

[OTTOTMT]

I am working on finishing a book with a fair bit of previously unknown information on the case, which I am hoping to publish late next year. At 62000+ words now.

 

[dotr]

I am working on finishing a book with a fair bit of previously unknown information on the case, which I am hoping to publish late next year. At 62000+ words now.

Welcome to Ws@OTTOTMT, all the best for your forthcoming book!

 

[Richard]

Composite drawing made from photos taken of "Johnson's" dead body.

"Albert Johnson" was photograpfed in death, but he was emaciated from his long arctic run, and freezing conditions. The above facial composite drawing is an artist's conception of how he might have appeared in life.

 

[OTTOTMT]

Welcome to Ws@OTTOTMT, all the best for your forthcoming book!

Thanks!

 

[The4TierBridge]

I am working on finishing a book with a fair bit of previously unknown information on the case, which I am hoping to publish late next year. At 62000+ words now.

Do you have any updates on the genetic genealogy research for him? I know they hit a brick wall with some ancestors in (Sweden iirc?) a few years ago.

 

[OTTOTMT]

Do you have any updates on the genetic genealogy research for him? I know they hit a brick wall with some ancestors in (Sweden iirc?) a few years ago.

To my knowledge, there hasn't been anything substantial since the match to Gustaf Magnusson and Britta Svensdotter a few years ago, which is the brick wall I assume you are referring to. However, I have a friend doing holistic genealogical research who has made progress on the line, and feels he is getting close to some potential matches. He feels he and I (our family trees are connected) may actually be related to the trapper as well. I haven't seen his work with my own eyes yet, but If he hits anything promising that has a realistic chance of a match, it will be announced in my book.

 

[OTTOTMT]

"Albert Johnson" was photograpfed in death, but he was emaciated from his long arctic run, and freezing conditions. The above facial composite drawing is an artist's conception of how he might have appeared in life.

As much as I would like to think that is what he looked like, I know that composite works tend to vary dramatically in some cases. The woman in the well is a good example with the two composites being similar, but different enough that they did look like two separate individuals. Oddly enough, one of the families I was researching and was in contact with, sent me a cousin's photo. It was a spitting image to that composite, and the person I was dealing with said she felt like she was looking at a family member when she saw Albert's death photos.

 

[Richard]

Several different families felt that they were related to "Albert Johnson" but DNA comparisons ruled them all out.