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ADDISON COUNTY UNKNOWN DOE: W, 9-11, found with two others near an old logging road - 15 May 1935

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Akoya:




On 05-15-1935 the skeletal remains of three persons were found off of an old logging road in East Middlebury, Vermont. The location has recently been identified as off of Burnham Drive, a road that did not exist at the time. The three skeletons found together were of a female age 35 to 45, a juvenile teen age 13 to 15 and a child age 9 to 11.

Akoya:

Akoya:
NamUs UP # 13507

ME/C Case Number: 15MB000503
Addison County, Vermont
9 to 11 year old White

Case Report - NamUs UP # 13507
Case Information
Status Unidentified
Case number 15MB000503
Date found May 15, 1935 16:30
Date created February 10, 2015 13:09
Date last modified March 23, 2017 10:34
Investigating agency
date QA reviewed

Local Contact (ME/C or Other)
Name Steven Shapiro
Agency
Phone (802) 863-7320
Case Manager
Name Kris Bowdish
Phone 802-388-3191

Demographics
Estimated age PreAdolescent
Minimum age 9 years
Maximum age 11 years
Race White
Ethnicity
Sex Unsure
Weight (pounds) , Cannot Estimate
Height (inches) 52, Estimated
Body Parts Inventory (Check all that apply)
All parts recovered
Body conditions
Not recognizable - Near complete or complete skeleton
Probable year of death 1932 to 1934

Circumstances
Location Found
GPS coordinates 43.9952105 -73.0901158
Address 1 Burnham Drive
Address 2
City Middlebury
State Vermont
Zip code 05753
County Addison
Circumstances
On 05-15-1935 the skeletol remains of three persons were found off of an old logging road in East Middlebury, Vermont. The location has recently been identified as off of Burnham Drive, a road that did not exist at the time. The three skeletons found together were of a female age 35 to 45, a juvenile teen age 13 to 15 and a child age 9 to 11.

Physical
Hair color Unknown or Completely Bald

Left eye color Unknown or Missing
Right eye color Unknown or Missing
Eye description

No other distinctive body features

Fingerprints
Status: Fingerprint information is currently not available

Clothing and Accessories

Other items found
with body
pearl buttons (similar to those used on pajamas at the time), feathers (possibly from a pillow) and a canvas awning with wheel pulleys still attached.

Dental
Status: Dental information / charting is available and will be entered later

DNA
Status: Complete - Insufficient DNA for profiling

Akoya:
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2517umvt.html

2517UMVT - Unidentified Male



Date of Discovery: May 15, 1935
Location of Discovery: Middlebury, Addison County, Vermont
Estimated Date of Death: 1932 to 1934
State of Remains: Not recognizable - Near complete or complete skeleton
Cause of Death: Homicide by gunshot wound to the head

Physical Description
Estimated Age: 9-11 years old
Race: White
Gender: Unknown, presumed male
Height: 4'3" to 4'5", Estimated
Weight: Unknown
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers
Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Not available - Insufficient DNA for profiling

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Pearl buttons (similar to those used on pajamas at the time), feathers (possibly from a pillow), rope fragments, a blanket, and a green and buff-colored canvas awning with wheel pulleys still attached.

Circumstances of Discovery
On May 15, 1935, the skeletal remains of three persons were found off of a remote, old, logging road leading to the Brookins/Blackmer hunting camp in East Middlebury, Vermont. A woman named Grace Dague and her daughter, Inez Perry Masterson, were looking for flowers in the forest when they stumbled upon the skeletal remains of the three murder victims. The victims had been there for some time; a small tree root, about a 1/2 - 3/4" thick, had grown over the leg of one of the victims. Each victim had been killed with a shot to the head, most likely with a Colt automatic which fires .38 caliber bullets. It is suspected that they were dumped in that location as far back as November 1932, based on the testimony of Edward Munso, who was hunting in the area and "missed his deer because just then he detected a terrible odor," but didn't investigate further.

The location recently has been identified as off of Burnham Drive, a road that did not exist at the time. The three skeletons found together were of a female, age 35 to 45, a juvenile teen age 13 to 15, and a child age 9 to 11 years old. The DNA of the middle child and the adult female (despite being listed as "insufficient") suggested a parent-to-child relationship, whereas this victim's DNA could not be analyzed. However, they are believed to be related to one another.

Harvard anthropologists George Woodbury and Earnest A. Hooton suspected at the time that the victims were of Armenian descent with "skillful and costly dental work." The anthropologists also wrongly thought that this was the remains of a Mrs. Cora Golden and her two children who were missing from Milton, Vermont in 1923. Instead, Mrs. Golden and her son had run off with a local farmhand, Joseph Carter, and started a new life. Her daughter had been discovered with an adoptive family in Hartford, Connecticut.

Please note: all cases in which the gender of the victim is unknown are assigned and filed as male.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Vermont State Medical Examiner's Office
Agency Contact Person: Steven Shapiro
Agency Phone Number: (802) 863-7320
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 15MB000503

NCIC Case Number: Not entered
NamUs Case Number: 13507
NCMEC Case Number: 1244456

Information Source(s)
NamUs
NCMEC
Sun Community News
NCMEC: The Art of Forensics at the New York Academy of Art (YouTube)
The Harvard Crimson (1/6/38)
The Burlington Free Press (10/30/16)
Hutchinson News Herald (12/17/50)
Bluefield Daily Telegraph (12/16/50)

Admin Notes
Added: 2/14/15; Last Updated: 7/22/17

Akoya:
http://www.ctcoldcases.com/vermont.html

Family Murder? Who Were They?

 

It is perhaps one of the oldest cold cases in Vermont's history. In June of 1935, three human skeletons were discovered near Route 116 in the town of East Middlebury. They were an adult female possibly around the age of 45 and a two children, male around 14-16 years of age and a female around 10 years of age. To date, their identities have never been established. It is presumed that they may have come from some affluence as the male child had several thousands of dollars of unfinished dental work done on his mouth. According to news reports a hunter reported a terrible odor in the area back in 1932. It is possible that the victims were family members and killed back then. Two of the bodies were laid out next to each other while the third was place on top of them at a right angle. The area was found off of a hillside trail in an area that did not see much human traffic. and police believed at the time that the three were murdered elsewhere. The three had been slain by a gunshot wound to the head by a .38 caliber type of weapon. Found near the victims was a striped awning, old automobile curtains and a woolen blanket. Over the years, it's been theorized that the victims may have been Eastern European Jewish, Turkish or even Syrian. It is unknown if the case is still being investigated by the Vermont State Police.

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