Date of Discovery: July 11, 1984
Location of Discovery: Orangeville, Columbia County, Pennsylvania
Estimated Date of Death: Days prior
State of Remains: Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction
Cause of Death: Unknown
Estimated Age: Newborn
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: Unknown
Weight: Unknown
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
Dentals: Not available.
Fingerprints: Not available.
DNA: mtDNA available at UNT (ref UNTHSC-07-5186.1).
Clothing: Wrapped in pillowcase.
Jewelry: None.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
On July 11, 1984, by the Austin Trail near Millville in rural Columbia County, a family dog dragged the remains of an infant into it's owner's yard.
The body had been damaged by animals and the upper torso was missing, but the head and lower torso were located. The umbilical cord was still attached. The child appeared to doctors to be a male, at approximately 7 1/2 months gestation, delivered prematurely. It is unknown if the child was born alive or not. Cause of death could not be determined.The boy was buried at the New Rosemont Cemetery in Espy.
Shirley Walters, a Millville area woman, touched by the circumstances of the unknown child's case, adopted him as her grandson. She named him "Austin", since he had been found by the Austin Trail. She, along with donations from several other area people, purchased a gravestone for the child adorned with an angel. Through the generosity of a local supplier, the cost of the gravestone was a mere ยค100. Ms. Walters helped to arrange the funeral and got permission from the courthouse to tend to the child's gravesite. Through the years, she would add different decorations that reflected the age that Austin would be had he lived. It was a labor of love that would continue for the next twenty years, when the limitations of age would prevent her from being able to continue. But her nephew has taken over for her, and has pledged to keep tending the gravesite as long as he is able.
State Police Cpl Michael Reffeor reopened the case and learned that a bone sample had been saved in the evidence file when the child was buried. The sample was sent to the University of North Texas where a DNA profile was created. That profile has been entered into a national DNA database. While chances are slim, this could be the key to finding out where Baby John Doe came from, if his mother or another relative are entered into the database.
Agency Name: Pennsylvania State Police - Troop N - Bloomsburg
Agency Contact Person:Corporal Brian Noll
Agency Phone Number: (570) 387-4261
Agency Email: BNoll@pa.gov
Agency Name: Luzerne County Coroners Office
Agency Contact Person:N/A
Agency Phone Number: (570) 825-1664
Agency Email: N/A
Agency Name: Columbia County Coroner's Office
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 570-784-9179
Agency Case Number: N02-0145343
NCIC Case Number: N/A
NamUs Case Number: UP8906
Former Hot Case Number: 1213
Added: 1/1/2013; Last Updated: 06/06/2024
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information may be estimated.
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