UK UK - Preston, Lancs, WhtMale 35-50, stated "I want to go back to Warner Park", Aug'78

[PropaneYeeter]

Stumbled upon this case at the UK Missing Persons Unit website. It tugged at my heartstrings a bit. There's very little information I could find.

UK Missing Persons Unit (post-mortem image at link, but it's only visible if you click "view sensitive images")

Case 06-024910
View sensitive images

Gender
Male
Age range
35 - 50
Ethnicity
White European
Height
152cm - 152cm
Build
Medium
Date found
28 August 1978
Body or remains
Body
Circumstances
Male found suffering from hypothermia on a farm in Longton near Preston. He stated "I want to go back to Warner Park". He was taken to hospital where he subsequently died.
Hair
Dark Brown - Collar Length
Facial hair
Moustache
Eye colour
Brown
Clothing
Jacket - Suit - Grey - Unknown

Trousers - Suit - Grey - Unknown

Overcoat - Thigh Length - Maroon - Unknown

Footwear - Shoes - Black - Unknown - All Clothing Destroyed By Hospital-Verminous State

 

[PropaneYeeter]

Did a quick search on Google Maps for Warner Park, it seems there's one in Eyemouth, Scotland. It's a football park, but I'm unsure whether or not it existed in 1978.

There's also several Warner Parks in the US.

 

[sonz82]

There is also a warner park in Madrid, it's a theme park, and warner park cricket stadium in basseterre - st kitts and Nevis.
I couldn't find on in the UK except a warners park in st Ives.
Was there any mention of an accent?

 

[Blurgle]

Warner or Walmer?

There's a village called Walmer Bridge less than a mile from where he was found, and it does have a few parks. Maybe that's where he left his personal effects?

 

[PropaneYeeter]

There is also a warner park in Madrid, it's a theme park, and warner park cricket stadium in basseterre - st kitts and Nevis.
I couldn't find on in the UK except a warners park in st Ives.
Was there any mention of an accent?

No mention of an accent. As I said, there's very little information on him. I have tried so many search terms on Google and I've only been able to find the case at the Missing Persons Unit, and in an article from 2015. Even then, that article just copied and pasted what was said on the MPU website. The British newspaper archive doesn't seem to have many articles dating from 1978 readily available to search, but still, I tried multiple search terms in the archives and got no hits. Quite frustrating.

 

[Keine Engel]

Please see below post.

 

[Keine Engel]

...Male found suffering from hypothermia on a farm in Longton near Preston. He stated "I want to go back to Warner Park". He was taken to hospital where he subsequently died.

Warner's Park??
- this one's Saint Ives -

What would St Ives be without Warner's Park?
​

"In the middle of St Ives is a green oasis where mature trees and hedgerows share the location with a children's playground. Joggers and dog walkers, children and pensioners, all enjoy this quiet space...

In colder months football matches take place."

Named after William Wigston Warner who gifted the land to the town in his will (died - 1905)

...the London Standard reported on William's will, including that he had 'left a close of land for a public park for St. Ives'.

​

St Ives 100 Years Ago: William Wigston Warner

 

[Bit of hope]

Considering his estimated age when diseased he would have been born between 1928 - 1943. He looks on the younger site to me.

 

[Bit of hope]

How terribly sad..the missing persons site UK doesn't give stats, no "normal" query possible, because date of missing can not be entered (more then 3 years) and most of all annoying the name tag is over the picture of the face. In 2019 you would think that there is a more professional site, but no...The only one listed is a 24 years old man who has the looks and is missing since 1977. For sure this isn't this John Doe
The Doe Network: Case File 1147DMUK

 

[Bit of hope]

I also looked at https://missing-you.net/
for somebody missing a dad etc. from the South West UK but noting "hit me".

 

[bombardier]

*edit* Bit of hope, you linked this man and said he couldn't be the UID. Is that just due to his age?
Simon Armley has been missing from Eastbourne, East Sussex since 28 July 1977. He was 24 years old. UID found about a month later, a ~5.5 hour drive away from Eastbourne.
I think they look similar, comparing the hair line, the nose, the thick eyebrows, and the facial hair (just shaved differently).

 

[Legally Bland]

*edit* Bit of hope, you linked this man and said he couldn't be the UID. Is that just due to his age?
Simon Armley has been missing from Eastbourne, East Sussex since 28 July 1977. He was 24 years old. UID found about a month later, a ~5.5 hour drive away from Eastbourne.
I think they look similar, comparing the hair line, the nose, the thick eyebrows, and the facial hair (just shaved differently).

The UID was found 1978, so a year and a month after Simon went missing, but given the state of his clothing - "All Clothing Destroyed By Hospital-Verminous State" - it sounds like he'd been sleeping rough for a while.

I'm sold on the pictures.

 

[Keine Engel]

How terribly sad..the missing persons site UK
In 2019 you would think that there is a more professional site, but no...
The only one listed is a 24 years old man

Trying to find ANYTHING in general regarding missing people in the U.K. is shocking!

Simon is the only possibility I could find also (sadly thou it not like there's much info. out there to compare)

He does look very similar??

Help us find Simon Armley

 

[sonz82]

Some missing men that I've never heard of before, but I found no photos and very little information.

Roy Lewis,46, dissapeared from great Yarmouth on January 2nd 1973. He had a history of mental illness.

Norfolk police conduct fresh probe into missing people in county

There's information on that same link about other missing males from the 70s.

Also, Fred Handford

Fred Handford - Unsolved Murder 1976 - Ballbeard Farm, New Mills - Fred Handford Unsolved Mysteries UK

 

[Keine Engel]

Some missing men that I've never heard of before, but I found no photos and very little information.

Roy Lewis,46, dissapeared from great Yarmouth on January 2nd 1973. He had a history of mental illness.

Norfolk police conduct fresh probe into missing people in county

There's information on that same link about other missing males from the 70s.

Also, Fred Handford

Fred Handford - Unsolved Murder 1976 - Ballbeard Farm, New Mills - Fred Handford Unsolved Mysteries UK

Well Done!

I think we can rule Fred out

Fred Handford, 56, vanished from his farm in 1976
Am I A Murderer reveals chilling mystery of woman who claims she killed her 'rapist' - but police can find no proof
​

For years, she said she thought he had thrown himself down a mine shaft but now she believes that he “attacked and raped her”...
But a statement from Derbyshire Constabulary said that police were not following any active lines of inquiry into the disappearance of Mr Handford, who was 56-years-old when he went missing in March 1976.
Chilling mystery of woman who says she killed 'rapist', but police find no proof
‘No active lines of inquiry’ in cold case of missing farmer

 

[bombardier]

The UID was found 1978, so a year and a month after Simon went missing, but given the state of his clothing - "All Clothing Destroyed By Hospital-Verminous State" - it sounds like he'd been sleeping rough for a while.

I'm sold on the pictures.

oops, youre correct, i meant to write 'a year later' but I wrote 'a month'! If he had been sleeping rough and had lost weight, was smoking, generally not taking care of himself etc that could explain the premature wrinkles and the age discrepancy. Also, I can't find when that picture of SA was taken - for all I know it could have been a few years old and not reflecting how SA looked, age-wise, in 1977.

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bumping

 

[sonz82]

Well Done!

I think we can rule Fred out

Fred Handford, 56, vanished from his farm in 1976
Am I A Murderer reveals chilling mystery of woman who claims she killed her 'rapist' - but police can find no proof
​

For years, she said she thought he had thrown himself down a mine shaft but now she believes that he “attacked and raped her”...
But a statement from Derbyshire Constabulary said that police were not following any active lines of inquiry into the disappearance of Mr Handford, who was 56-years-old when he went missing in March 1976.
Chilling mystery of woman who says she killed 'rapist', but police find no proof
‘No active lines of inquiry’ in cold case of missing farmer

Sounds a bit sketchy to me, how could she not remember what happened? Sounds like a made up story in my opinion.
He is still missing though, so can't really rule him out yet.

Edit: didn't see the photo properly, so yeah I doubt that's him, oops.

Going to shift my efforts to researching missing men from the north west, or Cornwall (just a hunch)

 

[sonz82]

Frederick potter , not seen since 1975, would have been in his 30s at the time, couldn't find much info on him
https://missing-you.net/people/frederick-potter-143216.php

 

[bombardier]

I wonder if the UID's height is a misprint? 152 cm is just under 5 feet, which is very short for a white male and would make the search for an identity a lot easier. Could they have meant 162 or 172cm?