PA PA - Bedford, 'Mr. Bones' WhtMale 30-35, 585UMPA, 30-06 rifle, gold dental wk, camping equip, Oct'58

[madamx]

I came across this missing guy from Kentucky from July 1957. It’s from the Sheriffs Star, the ad was in the paper. Not sure if the guy ever showed up. The only thing is, it states he is 6ft tall .. but i just thought I would post it anyway

https://www.flsheriffs.org/uploads/star/THE_SHERIFFS_STAR_VOL_1,_NO_11,_JANUARY_1958.pdf

 

[citizen_sleuth]

I wonder if Mr. Bones could be William Dawson Sharpe, missing from Scranton, PA since 1948, when he left to presumably take a construction job in Albany, NY. He was declared legally deceased in 1975, with a presumed date of death of 1955. I have no idea how old he would have been in the 1950s, however, as his date of birth is not listed in the public notices.

 

[JamesRUstlerIV]

I wonder if Mr. Bones could be William Dawson Sharpe, missing from Scranton, PA since 1948, when he left to presumably take a construction job in Albany, NY. He was declared legally deceased in 1975, with a presumed date of death of 1955. I have no idea how old he would have been in the 1950s, however, as his date of birth is not listed in the public notices.

I found William A. Sharpe on the 1930 US Census for Scranton, age about 18, with an older sister Martha D. Sharpe, age about 20... Both listed as having been born in Scotland. Thomas A. Sharpe is listed as a younger brother, age about 6. If this is the same William Sharpe, he would have been born in about 1912.

 

[StarrChance]

I wonder if Mr. Bones could be William Dawson Sharpe, missing from Scranton, PA since 1948, when he left to presumably take a construction job in Albany, NY. He was declared legally deceased in 1975, with a presumed date of death of 1955. I have no idea how old he would have been in the 1950s, however, as his date of birth is not listed in the public notices.
View attachment 421091View attachment 421092

Did a bit of digging into William on Ancestry, he was in the family 1950 census
Detail Source

Name	William Sharpe
Age	38
Birth Date	abt 1912
Gender	Male
Race	White
Birth Place	Scotland
Marital Status	Never Married (Single)
Relation to Head of House	Son
Residence Date	1950
Home in 1950	Scranton, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, USA
Street Name	Corbett Avenue
House Number	934
Dwelling Number	132
Farm	No
Acres	No
Citizenship	Yes
Occupation Category	Other
Worked Last Week	No
Seeking Work	No
Employment Status	No
Household Members (Name) Age Relationship Margaret Sharpe 66 Head Martha Sharpe 40 Daughter William Sharpe 38 Son Thomas Sharpe 26 Son Jean Sharpe 21 Daughter

I believe his middle name is Anderson, couldn’t find a Dawson.
Social security number
Detail Source

Name	William Sharpe
Social Security Number	188-01-3478
Birth Date	8 Aug 1911
Issue year	Before 1951
Issue State	Pennsylvania
Last Residence	14607, Rochester, Monroe, New York, USA
Death Date	18 Jul 1998

Born 8 August 1911 Scotland, was a US veteran and I believe I found his death
Detail Source

Name	William Sharpe
Death Age	86
Birth Date	8 Aug 1911
Death Date	18 Jul 1998
Interment Place	New York, USA
Cemetery Address	2650 Lake Avenue Rochester, NY 14612
Cemetery	Riverside Cemetery
Notes	Us Army World War Ii

 

[Magnum P.E.]

I am going to try a Hail Mary play here. We will get nowhere until modern DNA testing is done on Mr. Bones’ bones. I am willing to pony up $500 towards doing the testing. Anyone want to join me? How do we get Othram to take the case?
Just to spark some interest, I will reveal some interesting things I uncovered that I have sat on for years now.

1) One of Conner’s family members in Lima told me that he thought that Conner and RF’s wife may have been involved with each other, hence RF’s possible ïmotive for the killing.
2) Another family member told me that according to family lore, Conner’s body was “under a highway in Pennsylvania”.

I wondered who could possibly have been in a position to tell them where the body was. My best guess: Conner’s son (now deceased) had got in trouble on a burglary charge in the early 1960s. He was quite young at the time. RF’s attorney in the “Bodyless Murder Trial” later represented Conner’s son at his burglary trial! Did he feel sorry and tell him where his father’s body was? Was this remotely true? We will never know, everyone involved is gone now. This attorney was a real character.

RF was exiled to Ft. Wayne by a judge in the early 1950s. Mr. Bones’s Remington was sold there. We know thanks to Richard that the 1939 date (which keeps cropping up) can’t be true, as that weapon could not have been made before 1949.

No smoking gun (sorry) but enough coincidences to make one wonder if somebody really would go that far with a body in the back of a vehicle. And we will keep on wondering until the DNA testing is done.

One individual has excoriated me here for the theory that Mr.B could be Conner. I am not sure why he has that level of hostility.

Conner is officially a rule out, though I don’t know the basis for it. Conner had no dentals and Mr. B. has no DNA.

So, let’s see if we can get DNA done.How much are you willing to pledge to satisfy your curiosity, if Othram will take the case?

Anyone willing to kick in?

 

[TrustedTracker5097]

I am going to try a Hail Mary play here. We will get nowhere until modern DNA testing is done on Mr. Bones’ bones. I am willing to pony up $500 towards doing the testing. Anyone want to join me? How do we get Othram to take the case?
Just to spark some interest, I will reveal some interesting things I uncovered that I have sat on for years now.

1) One of Conner’s family members in Lima told me that he thought that Conner and RF’s wife may have been involved with each other, hence RF’s possible ïmotive for the killing.
2) Another family member told me that according to family lore, Conner’s body was “under a highway in Pennsylvania”.

I wondered who could possibly have been in a position to tell them where the body was. My best guess: Conner’s son (now deceased) had got in trouble on a burglary charge in the early 1960s. He was quite young at the time. RF’s attorney in the “Bodyless Murder Trial” later represented Conner’s son at his burglary trial! Did he feel sorry and tell him where his father’s body was? Was this remotely true? We will never know, everyone involved is gone now. This attorney was a real character.

RF was exiled to Ft. Wayne by a judge in the early 1950s. Mr. Bones’s Remington was sold there. We know thanks to Richard that the 1939 date (which keeps cropping up) can’t be true, as that weapon could not have been made before 1949.

No smoking gun (sorry) but enough coincidences to make one wonder if somebody really would go that far with a body in the back of a vehicle. And we will keep on wondering until the DNA testing is done.

One individual has excoriated me here for the theory that Mr.B could be Conner. I am not sure why he has that level of hostility.

Conner is officially a rule out, though I don’t know the basis for it. Conner had no dentals and Mr. B. has no DNA.

So, let’s see if we can get DNA done.How much are you willing to pledge to satisfy your curiosity, if Othram will take the case?

Anyone willing to kick in?

Depends. How would this fundraiser work? Would we launch a Go Fund me?

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Depends. How would this fundraiser work? Would we launch a Go Fund me?

Hiya TT.
If you go to Othram’s website, he lists cases and the level of funding they have achieved. So there is some way to do it directly through Othram. I think that would be the way to go, if he takes the case. That way no money passes through a third party and there is no question of somebody partying with the $$$ instead of using it for what was intended.
I’m just spitballin’ ideas here. I don’t know if LE needs to set this in motion or what.
This is a prime case for DNA. No exhumation is necessary. Those take time, money, and a judge’s order.

 

[CCJD]

From NamUs report printed 10/10/2011 under DNA:

Complete and entered
Type: mtDNA
Location: FBI NMPDD
Reference #: Lab # 030421003 PF OA

and then -

Complete and entered
Type: mtDNA
NucDNA

Location: University of North Texas
Reference # 10-3279.1
Lab ORI TX220035Y
Comments: Partial (6) STR's and full mito profile recovered from remains. CL

 

[Magnum P.E.]

From NamUs report printed 10/10/2011 under DNA:

Complete and entered
Type: mtDNA
Location: FBI NMPDD
Reference #: Lab # 030421003 PF OA

and then -

Complete and entered
Type: mtDNA
NucDNA

Location: University of North Texas
Reference # 10-3279.1
Lab ORI TX220035Y
Comments: Partial (6) STR's and full mito profile recovered from remains. CL

Yep. That is the old 6 STR test used for CODIS. Great for matching someone to a crime scene if they left their own DNA. Inadequate for identifying remains. I think they sample millions of STRs now. And you can’t use the old DNA results for modern forensic genealogy.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Bumping for my old friend Mr. B. My offer to pledge $500 for testing of Mr. Bones’ bones still stands. Anyone else want to try Othram? I am out of gas on this case. I have worked it well over 10 years, only a few things to show for it, and really no closer to finding out his name and what happened.

 

[Warwick1991]

Bumping for my old friend Mr. B. My offer to pledge $500 for testing of Mr. Bones’ bones still stands. Anyone else want to try Othram? I am out of gas on this case. I have worked it well over 10 years, only a few things to show for it, and really no closer to finding out his name and what happened.

At one point Othram participated in this thread with one post. I think PA LE would have to authorize Othram to examine what they have left. I'd be willing to donate towards the effort, but not really sure where to start - probably PA LE?

 

[John/Jane Doe]

At one point Othram participated in this thread with one post. I think PA LE would have to authorize Othram to examine what they have left. I'd be willing to donate towards the effort, but not really sure where to start - probably PA LE?

Someone should ask PA LE if they are considering using Genetic Genealogy in the case.

 

[Caring1]

At one point Othram participated in this thread with one post. I think PA LE would have to authorize Othram to examine what they have left. I'd be willing to donate towards the effort, but not really sure where to start - probably PA LE?

Anyone can submit a case suggestion to [email protected]

You can always tag @othram as well and he will let you know if they are able to look into it.

 

[Richard]

This unsolved case is over 65 years old...


"Mr. Bones" - Unidentified White Male, 30's,
Skeletal Remains found Oct 1958, Bedford, PA

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Ok, I have pen and checkbook in hand! There must be some way to start the process….

 

[Ann99]

Besides the Remington .30-06 rifle and 3 boxes of ammunition, the crime scene was supplied with the following items:

- a leather jacket
- a bed roll
- a four-quart canteen
- a canvas backpack
- a few changes of clothes and towels
- a portable cook stove and utensils
- three books:
"100 Modern Poems", by Selden Rodman, "Reading Poems", and "Science and the Modern World" by Alfred North Whitehead.
- a Brass Key (stamped "Active 195 Ave A")
- Cash: $38 was found in a black wallet, and that $23 in crumpled bills was found in his pocket.

I’ve been wondering about the cash. The bills. It’s along shot and maybe impossible, but, could the bills be examined and the bill serial numbers checked?
I don’t know how to word this.
Could bill serial numbers be a clue as to the location/origin of the bills
In the distant past, I’m assuming people didn’t easily travel far and wide as we can do today. Maybe a possible geographical location of some kind could be established. Where Mr Bones came from, where he had travelled. Idk.
Also, using $60.00 in cash as a starting point. In 1958, that would have been a considerable amount of money. By todays standards it would compare to an amount of close to $700.00

 

[Richard]

Yes, US paper currency
has always had both a letter code and printed name of the city where it was printed. However, unless the bills were all new and relatively uncirculated, it would be very difficult to draw any accurate conclusions.

 

[madamx]

I came across this guy in the sheriffs star he was missing Sept 1957. Don’t know if he was ever found.
Donald Forest Gratz aka Mark Martin.
6’ 170-180 lbs brown hair wore glasses. Wrote out bad checks. Don’t remember if I ever posted him on the thread. But he had ties to the university of Missouri as either a student or an instructor and was suicidal.

https://www.flsheriffs.org/uploads/star/THE_SHERIFFS_STAR_VOL_1,_NO_7,_SEPTEMBER_1957.pdf

 

[Warwick1991]

Although I can't link it easily, a newspaper account from Williamsport, PA noted that an inmate in a Federal penitentiary named Donald Gratz was stabbed by another inmate in 1962. I am not sure if he survived. A copy of a July 1958 FBI bulletin indicated that Donald Forest Gratz was captured in 1958. He faced Federal indictments and was convicted. Link - hopefully this works: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjTt8nlsbODAxWqkmoFHU00ChEQFnoECBkQAQ&url=https://leb.fbi.gov/file-repository/archives/july-1958.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1y_gNoOUoiPpC5LXvppMq9&opi=89978449

Not Mr. Bones... Gratz impersonated an instructor, but was apparently not a student or an instructor.

 

[madamx]

Although I can't link it easily, a newspaper account from Williamsport, PA noted that an inmate in a Federal penitentiary named Donald Gratz was stabbed by another inmate in 1962. I am not sure if he survived. A copy of a July 1958 FBI bulletin indicated that Donald Forest Gratz was captured in 1958. He faced Federal indictments and was convicted. Link - hopefully this works: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjTt8nlsbODAxWqkmoFHU00ChEQFnoECBkQAQ&url=https://leb.fbi.gov/file-repository/archives/july-1958.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1y_gNoOUoiPpC5LXvppMq9&opi=89978449

Not Mr. Bones... Gratz impersonated an instructor, but was apparently not a student or an instructor.

Wow Warwick1991!!
Super Great find thank you!! Yep not Mr Bones ugh! Again thanks for finding that so quick!
Oh the old FBI bulletin!. I love those old magazines/bulletins/newspapers..you can get so lost for hours in them!