The Lost and the Found

https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/16623/details



Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP16623 Female, White / Caucasian

Date Found March 20, 1968
Location Found Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Estimated Age Range 30-60 Years

Case Information

Case Numbers
NCMEC Number--
ME/C Case Number 68-1529

Demographics
Sex Female
Race / EthnicityWhite / Caucasian
Estimated Age Group Adult - Pre 60
Estimated Age Range 30-60 Years
Estimated Year of Death 1968
Estimated PMI Days
Height 5' 2"(62 inches) , Estimated
Weight 115 lbs, Estimated

Circumstances
Type Unidentified Deceased
Date Found March 20, 1968
NamUs Case Created May 12, 2017
Agency QA Reviewed--

Location Found Map
Street Address Schuylkill River Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
County Philadelphia County
GPS Coordinates--
Circumstances of Recovery Found 50 feet west of Penrose Ave. in Schuylkill River near oil refinery.
Details of Recovery

Inventory of Remains All parts recovered
Condition of Remains Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction

Physical Description
Hair Color Black
Head Hair Description black-grey long hair
Left Eye Color Unknown or Missing
Right Eye Color Unknown or Missing
Eye Description--
Distinctive Physical Features
No Information Entered

Clothing and Accessories
Clothing
socks and stockings, walking suit, 2 sweaters, polo type shirt, fir hat. Skirt from Lord and Taylor, Labels: Deloux, Knitmaster & Dele. Size 10
On the Body

Footwear
Black chucka boots
On the Body

Jewelry
Timex Wrist Watch, white metal # 50102366
On the Body

Case Contributors
Seth Ditizio, Medicolegal Death Investigator
Philadelphia Cnty Med Exmnrs Ofc
215-685-7458

Jamie Willer, Medicolegal Death Investigator

Opened in 1951, the George C. Platt Memorial Bridge carries 56,000 cars a day.

Platt Bridge Looking Down River.

The refinery is located on the south bank of the Schuylkill River at the George Platt Bridge.

https://pes-companies.com/refining-complex/history/

The PES Philadelphia Refining Complex has been “part of the neighborhood” in South Philadelphia for over 150 years and is closely tied to the growth of the American oil industry in the 19th century.

In 1866, one year after the end of the Civil War, Atlantic Petroleum Company established its operations at Point Breeze along the Schuylkill River below Passyunk Ave. Four warehouses were built, and those could store 50,000 barrels (2.1 million gallons) of refined oil product, mostly kerosene used as lamp oil to light the homes and businesses in the growing city. (Remember that the automobile had not yet arrived on the scene, but when it did, it was probably powered by ethanol.)

Atlantic also built docks and railroad trunk lines to connect with the new refineries in Western Pennsylvania that were established after oil was discovered in Titusville, PA, in 1859. Atlantic installed its first petroleum refining units in 1870, changed its name to Atlantic Refining Company and soon became Philadelphia’s largest employer. Right after the turn of the century, Atlantic introduced the first fractionating tower, which would radically alter and improve the way oil would be refined.



In 1966, Atlantic Refining Co. and Richfield Oil Co. in California merged to become ARCO. In 1982, Gulf was bought out by Chevron, and the Girard Point refinery became the Chevron USA Philadelphia refinery.

The north bank of the Schuylkill River appears to be a location where a body could be released into the river.