Identified! MA - Granby, off Route 116, WhtFem 15-26, UP14969, shallow grave, clothes, gold ring, Nov'78 - Patricia Ann Tucker

[FiveFelines]

I lean towards a young girl, approx age 12-17 by the shirt. And I believe that is a size based on teens clothing. I'm still curious about other articles of clothing being found.

From one of the news articles: "In addition to the swan blouse, according to newspapers, she was wearing vinyl wedgie-style shoes, a blue tank top and a black windbreaker." No word on sizes, though, and it doesn't sound like she was wearing anything on the bottom, like pants.

 

[FiveFelines]

Did I miss a link or is she not in Namus?

 

[Skeeter]

From one of the news articles: "In addition to the swan blouse, according to newspapers, she was wearing vinyl wedgie-style shoes, a blue tank top and a black windbreaker." No word on sizes, though, and it doesn't sound like she was wearing anything on the bottom, like pants.

So two tops and a windbreaker could possibly be early spring maybe...
Im not familiar with the weather in MA

 

[FiveFelines]

Yeah, I'd guess maybe April or early May. It was in the 50s and 60s then: http://farmersalmanac.com/weather-history/search-results/

Possibly the previous November, but that's pushing it.

Also of note: The Blizzard of '78 was that February.

 

[Owutatangledweb]

As to someone asking about pants:

"She probably was not from the area," said Granby police detective David Trompke. "Otherwise, I'm sure she would have been identified."
She was wearing jeans and a short-sleeve, polka-dot blouse with a swan embroidered on the back, Trompke said, which are among the few clues to her identity. " <modsnip: broken link>

 

[carbuff]

Yeah, I'd guess maybe April or early May. It was in the 50s and 60s then: http://farmersalmanac.com/weather-history/search-results/

Possibly the previous November, but that's pushing it.

Also of note: The Blizzard of '78 was that February.

Of course she could have had a jacket or something that wasn't buried with her.

 

[Ravenspur]

The murder took place in 1978-79. Route 116 forms a border between Granby and South Hadley. Pretty sure
there was a stop by Granby Heights.

The dump site was at least a mile from Route 116 in a direction no college student would travel. There were also no missing college students with bad teeth. The trail still exists, but it's not visible from the road. It's most likely a dump site, not a murder scene. The trail is and was not traveled or visible.

Early '70's. Yes on hitching in the Five Colleges area in the 1970's. Yes on a Five College bus between the campuses. But you couldn't travel between Mount Holyoke and Smith: you had to go over to Amherst first. There was virtually no public transportation between this area (especially South Hadley, which I'm more familiar with) and Springfield, Holyoke, well, anything really. Not many young people had cars. Thus, the need to hitch. People worried about hitching, but that became more of an issue in later years.

IRC, Granby was on the Five College bus route, but you couldn't get off. Parts of Granby are on Route 116?

Could the UID have been on a bicycle? Is the trailhead/entry to the woods visible from the road? She could have run in there to get away from someone and was unsuccessful? She jumped out of a car?

The magnet may have been used to defeat security devices in retail shops, if they used magnets in those days. The shirt (or other item) could have been hocked? Maybe the magnet was for something similar, but not exactly that? Stealing coins? Jewelry?

 

[Owutatangledweb]

Okay, so no leads on the shirt, but in reviewing another old thread, I have a suspect to consider. Unfortunately he is deceased but they have his DNA AND I wonder if they have any DNA from this UID's clothing. This UID WAS A GUNSHOT TO THE HEAD IF I RECALL, correct me if I am wrong. Also, some of us have speculated that this UID is a bit younger than listed. So, consider this guy who shot two twelve year old girls in California but during our time frame was in the Maryland area.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-41489.html

 

[carbuff]

It's still a long way from Maryland to western Massachusetts.

 

[EmmaliLucia]

So I'm guessing that the 13/14 was pants size instead of shirt size considering the shirt had no tags and shirts are not usually sized in numbers...

I want to know if the police think it was her belt. If it is then she may be a bit (Or a lot) smaller than what she was wearing.

But on that debate about what her weight would be: I am a size 6/8 (Depends on the day) and I'm 5'9 and 124 lbs. She'd only be two sizes above me (13/14 is the modern day 10/12). I'm guessing she'd be around 130-150 lbs depending on height.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

"Granby Girl: NamUs, a Department of Justice database, aids amateur sleuths in cold case investigations"

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/08/granby_girl_namus_a_department.html

Obviously, if there are an estimated 40,000 John and Jane Doe cases, but only 12,251 are entered in NamUs, there are many cases that have not been entered into the system.

One of those not entered, incidentally, is Granby Girl.

Matthews said NamUs is still relatively new, and despite efforts to publicize it, there are many law enforcement agencies, coroners and medical examiners who are unaware of what it is and what it can do.

 

[Aeronomy]

"The most distinctive article of clothing was a size 14 short-sleeved pullover blouse with a green swan sewn onto the front and a green imitation-suede collar."
" . . . and one of the hands was wearing a gold ring, which was possibly a wedding ring."
http://www.masslive.com/news/index...._a_look_back_at_the.html#incart_story_package

 

[carbuff]

Huh? I don't remember the bit about the ring!

 

[FiveFelines]

Huh? I don't remember the bit about the ring!

I mentioned it up thread. I think it is noted in some of the old newspaper articles.

 

[carbuff]

I mentioned it up thread. I think it is noted in some of the old newspaper articles.

I'm sure it's totally my memory...

 

[Aeronomy]

I mentioned it up thread. I think it is noted in some of the old newspaper articles.

Ooh, I didn't see where you'd mentioned it previously. My sincere apologies.

 

[FiveFelines]

Ooh, I didn't see where you'd mentioned it previously. My sincere apologies.

No, it was just a quick mention! I wish they'd show a photo of the ring. I guess maybe it was just a plain gold-colored band?

 

[Laughing]

Was the leather strap there? Is it specifically a belt? A poster mentioned stables on campus -- plenty of different leather straps around a stable.

 

[rats]

Was the leather strap there? Is it specifically a belt? A poster mentioned stables on campus -- plenty of different leather straps around a stable.

Something I read said it was a mans belt but it could be wrong?

Pretty sad, this case is somewhat close to where I go to college... I wish they'd do a reconstruction sometime (if they haven't already. Didn't see one though.) I could probably get it sent through the newsletter for my school, along with the picture of the shirt. And she's still not in NamUs?

 

[Jmoose]

I did a lot of sewing in the '60s and '70s, thus my comments above. I taught myself how to sew knits. Yes, there were patterns for knits. Sewing knits became popular in the early 70's. You had to have a sewing machine that would sew zigzags, and most sewing machines out there did not.

Even if you were used to sewing knits, the round yoke and the stitched-in V at the neckline on that top would be tricky: there's no pucker, and the yoke edging would be on the bias. And if the inset piece isn't a knit, you're working with a knit seamed with a non-knit. Yowza! And if the green stuff is a knit, then the appliqué is a knit, too?

If there is consensus that the top is homemade, I would try Butterick.

In the 70s, my mother used to use Stretch and Sew patterns, for knit garments