Identified! WA - Spokane, WhtMale 45-60, UP338, "B5" Left Forearm Tattoo, Sep'71 - Bruce Frank Sherman

[madamx]

I found this guy and wanted to give him a thread.
I noticed the photo clearly has a B5 tattoo yet it's written down on the bio as B.S. Sadly the info even has been copied on to Namus also and who knows where.

The Doe Network: Case File 1283UMWA

Tattoo on decedents right forearm that reads "B.S."

Unidentified White Male

• • The victim was discovered on September 2, 1971 in Spokane, Spokane County, Washington
  • Estimated Date of Death: 2 days prior
  • Cause of Death: Probable drowning.
  • State of Remains: Decomposed
  • Vital Statistics
    
    • • Estimated age: 45-60 years old
      • Tattoos: There was a nonprofessional tattoo on the left forearm of the letters "B.S."
      • Fingerprints: Available, actual fingers were sent to FBI and prints were obtained but no match. Finger's then returned to the Coroner.
      • Dentals: Not available
      • DNA: Not available
    Case History
    The victim was located September 2, 1971 in the Spokane River just west of the Division Street Bridge in Spokane, Washington.
    Some decomposition made visible ID impossible.
    
    
    

 

[madamx]

Unidentified Person Case


Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP338Male, White / Caucasian
Date FoundSeptember 2, 1971
Location FoundSpokane, Washington



Case Information


Case Numbers
NCMEC Number--
ME/C Case Number71-0002
Demographics
SexMale
Race / EthnicityWhite / Caucasian

Estimated Age GroupAdult - Pre 60
Estimated Age Range (Years)45-60
Estimated Year of Death1971
Estimated PMI2 Days

HeightEstimated
WeightEstimated

Circumstances

TypeUnidentified Deceased
Date FoundSeptember 2, 1971
NamUs Case CreatedJune 30, 2007

Location Found Map
Street Addressin Spokane River, West of Division Street BridgeSpokane, Washington 99201
CountySpokane County

Circumstances of Recovery
adult male fd in Spokane River, probable accidental drowning.
Left arm tattoo of the letter "B.S." non-professional tattoo.
estimated age of 45- 60 years. Some decomposition made vivible ID impossible. Probable drowning.
Details of Recovery


Inventory of RemainsAll parts recovered
Condition of RemainsNot recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction

 

[madamx]

Medical Examiner - Unidentified Bodies and Missing Persons

Found in the Spokane River just west of the Division Street Bridge.



Adult Caucasian male. There was a tattoo on the left forearm of the letters "B.S." . Fingerprints were obtained, no match found.

 

[madamx]

It makes me sad this poor guy supposedly drowned 2 days prior and he has the wrong Tattoo and no hair color height weight clothes or anything..

Again I made this post for this guy because the B5 on his left forearm struck me as a concentration camp Tattoo. With a little research I found this, which makes me believe it could be a concentration camp Tattoo .

Tattoos and Numbers: The System of Identifying Prisoners at Auschwitz


In order to avoid the assignment of excessively high numbers from the general series to the large number of Hungarian Jews arriving in 1944, the SS authorities introduced new sequences of numbers in mid-May 1944.

This series, prefaced by the letter A, began with “1” and ended at “20,000.” Once the number 20,000 was reached, a new series beginning with “B” series was introduced.

Some 15,000 men received “B” series tattoos. For an unknown reason, the “A” series for women did not stop at 20,000 and continued to 30,000.

 

[LeenC]

I realize it’s a long shot but looking into old missing person cases, I came across William P Ferguson. He disappeared in Colorado in 1961 and was last seen in a bar after his brother’s funeral. What is interesting is that he was known to have initials tattooed on his left arm. It’s a long shot but since both cases are so old, I figured it wouldn’t hurt giving it a shot.

Wiliam’s Namus page: Missing Person Case

 

[madamx]

I realize it’s a long shot but looking into old missing person cases, I came across William P Ferguson. He disappeared in Colorado in 1961 and was last seen in a bar after his brother’s funeral. What is interesting is that he was known to have initials tattooed on his left arm. It’s a long shot but since both cases are so old, I figured it wouldn’t hurt giving it a shot.

Wiliam’s Namus page: Missing Person Case

oh wow good find.. I just wish we had more info on the John Doe for his stats it would help so much

 

[madamx]

Bumping

 

[madamx]

Bumping

 

[MadMcGoo]

Refreshing the thread...

 

[devertere]

It makes me sad this poor guy supposedly drowned 2 days prior and he has the wrong Tattoo and no hair color height weight clothes or anything..

Again I made this post for this guy because the B5 on his left forearm struck me as a concentration camp Tattoo. With a little research I found this, which makes me believe it could be a concentration camp Tattoo .

Tattoos and Numbers: The System of Identifying Prisoners at Auschwitz


In order to avoid the assignment of excessively high numbers from the general series to the large number of Hungarian Jews arriving in 1944, the SS authorities introduced new sequences of numbers in mid-May 1944.

This series, prefaced by the letter A, began with “1” and ended at “20,000.” Once the number 20,000 was reached, a new series beginning with “B” series was introduced.

Some 15,000 men received “B” series tattoos. For an unknown reason, the “A” series for women did not stop at 20,000 and continued to 30,000.

it could be a holocaust tattoo, but i think it's initials, either done by the person themselves (very common on the lower left arm/wrist/hand) or in prison.

there is a two details that point me into that direction:
- the b looks very ornamental. it would be unusual for both, the tattoo machines and hand tattooed. machine wouldn't have wasted the ink, person wouldn't have wasted the time.
- there is no "divider" between the letter and number. usually, there would be an "-". of course i cant speak for all camps, but the ones i have seen always had one.

my educated guess is that this person had the initials B.S. ... so it'll be a waiting game until a name that fits, pops up in namus.

 

[madamx]

Bumping

 

[madamx]

Bumping

 

[heartanium]

2 September 1971 The Spokane Chronicle, pg 5

 

[othram]

Bumping

Bump no further. SOLVED: Spokane County Medical Examiner's Office & Othram Identify 1971 John Doe

 

[MadMcGoo]

He was quite a bit younger than the estimated age range but the tattooed initials were his.

Rest peacefully now Bruce.

 

[victoriarobinson642]

Bruce was born in Itasca County, Minnesota on April 17th, 1943, and was a member of the Ojibwe Tribe from Deer River Minnesota. He moved to Washington State with extended family in his 20s. He was known to have gone missing in the early 1970s and was reported missing and searched for by his family, but there was no further information on the disappearance. Bruce was 28 years old at the time of his death.

 

[madamx]

Wow I was so Wrong and here I started this thread thinking the it was B5!!! It was just a bad BS!! He was also much younger and Native American..

Iam seriously thankful Othram is around!!! Helping to bring names back to so many people! Bruce got his name back and still has a living brother that peace and closure finally came to his life.
Rest In Peace Bruce.

 

[othram]

Wow I was so Wrong and here I started this thread thinking the it was B5!!! It was just a bad BS!! He was also much younger and Native American..

Iam seriously thankful Othram is around!!! Helping to bring names back to so many people! Bruce got his name back and still has a living brother that peace and closure finally came to his life.
Rest In Peace Bruce.

It is our dream to one day reduce uncertainty and ambiguity in all of these cases.