NY NY - Edna Kaminski, 23, Maspeth, Queens, Aug 1944

I found an Edna A Kaminski, wife of John, on the 1940 census. They are listed at 392 Woodward Ave in Queens, and her DOB 1921. This is most likely her. The odd thing is that there is a 1 year old Franklin (listed as a son) living with them, and according to NamUs, they had a 20 month old daughter. Would Franklin have been used as a girl's name at that time?

I did a search in the New York Times archive and couldn't find anything about her disappearance.
 
I was scrolling through Buckskin Girl's NamUs rule outs when I came across Edna. I was very surprised by how off her DOB was with what Buckskin Girl's would be. Anyway, I can't imagine the pain her family felt all this time. :rose:
 
I just happen to come across Edna and I live in Queens not to far from Maspeth.. its weird the photo of Edna reminds me of young photos of my mom.. but anyway... I thought she looked like the Unidentified Jane Doe in Virginia

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/512ufwv.html

Date of Discovery: May 10, 1950
Location of Discovery: Morgan County, Virginia
Estimated Date of Death: 2 days prior
State of Remains: Recognizable face
Cause of Death: Homicide by strangulation
Physical Description
Estimated Age: 35-50 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'5"
Weight: 125 to 130 lbs.
Hair Color: Red or auburn with recent perm
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Freckles on back of hands and lower arms. Very small hands. W-shaped scar on the center of forehead. Y-shaped scar on the right wrist. 10-inch hysterectomy scar. 4-inch appendectomy scar. Fair complexion. 4 1/2 narrow shoe size.
Identifiers
Dentals: Available. Natural teeth.
Fingerprints: Not available. Information was available with the FBI at one time.
DNA: Sample submitted - Tests complete
Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: None.
Jewelry: None.
Additional Personal Items: None.
Circumstances of Discovery
A mushroom picker discovered the nude body of a woman 42 feet down an embankment on old US 522 near Hancock Bridge approximately 3/10 of a mile from the Maryland/West Virginia state line.
Leads took investigators to Columbus, Ohio, but no identification could be made. Maryland State Police originally handled the case, but it was turned over to the West Virginia State Police.
In 2007, the body was exhumed to collect DNA. She is buried in the Greenway Cemetery in Berkeley Springs.
Some agencies list June 1950 as the date of discovery, but various news articles indicate that May is the correct date


kaminski_edna[1].jpegIMG_1541.jpg
 
I came across this article.. about August 1944 was the hottest summer.. and there were a lot of fires going on.. At Coney island Luna Park and Palisades Amusement Park... and other places..trying to find out if people died there or were unidentified..

http://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/17/nyregion/august-44-a-month-too-hot-for-satan.html

The New York landscape changed that summer when fires blackened the Hoboken pier, Luna Park amusement complex at Coney Island and the Palisades Amusement Park, opposite upper Manhattan. But in early August 1944, years before fast-talking pitchmen could hustle room air-conditioners, tropical clothes seemed more of a concern. ''Problem: Plenty of hot weather ahead,'' said an advertisement for a Fifth Avenue men's store. ''Solution: Plenty of hot weather suits, $21.50 to $29.50.''
New Yorkers did not need an ad to know there was plenty of hot weather that summer. The National Weather Service says its thermometers zoomed past the 90-degree mark on 37 different days in 1944.
 
I wish we knew who reported her missing and if her husband was checked out. I just had a crazy thought, since she live literally across the street from the cemetery. I know they usually dig the hole out for a burial the day before. She could of been put in a hole and had some dirt put over her and nobody would ever know. The next day family comes with casket its lowered and more dirt gets placed over it and nobody would ever know... I wonder if anyone was buried the day after she went missing at the cemetery across the street.
 
Child mortality was still quite high back then. It's quite possible that Franklin could have died and the girl would have been born in 1943. She'd be on the 1950 census (not available to the public until 2022) but not the 1940.

I found an Edna A Kaminski, wife of John, on the 1940 census. They are listed at 392 Woodward Ave in Queens, and her DOB 1921. This is most likely her. The odd thing is that there is a 1 year old Franklin (listed as a son) living with them, and according to NamUs, they had a 20 month old daughter. Would Franklin have been used as a girl's name at that time?

I did a search in the New York Times archive and couldn't find anything about her disappearance.
 
Too bad we can't interview the son or daughter. Maybe we could see if he had any children or grandchildren. They may have theories of their own.
 
There appears to not be a follow up to this story since then. I guess the remains were never ID'd?
 
I can't believe that the only info available is that she was last seen leaving the house. I know it was a different time and all, but a lot of these decades old missing persons cases have a ton of information, so why is her disappearance seemingly not documented. It makes me wonder if she was a troubled woman/had a history of disappearing for periods of time, so nobody was really concerned. Of course, the husband could be looked at too - if she had no family/friends in the area, he could've murdered her and gotten away with it because nobody else was missing her (the kids were way too young, obviously). I wish there was more on the investigation into her disappearance (if there was one at all) so we could find out if her husband was checked out & cleared, what other people she may have had contact with, etc. I agree that she looks older than 23, but it might just be the hairstyle (I think it makes everyone look older + it's a style that I associate with older women). Cases like this are beyond frustrating! I still hope some answers will be found. [emoji173]
 
I just happen to come across Edna and I live in Queens not to far from Maspeth.. its weird the photo of Edna reminds me of young photos of my mom.. but anyway... I thought she looked like the Unidentified Jane Doe in Virginia

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/512ufwv.html

Date of Discovery: May 10, 1950
Location of Discovery: Morgan County, Virginia
Estimated Date of Death: 2 days prior
State of Remains: Recognizable face
Cause of Death: Homicide by strangulation
Physical Description
Estimated Age: 35-50 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'5"
Weight: 125 to 130 lbs.
Hair Color: Red or auburn with recent perm
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Freckles on back of hands and lower arms. Very small hands. W-shaped scar on the center of forehead. Y-shaped scar on the right wrist. 10-inch hysterectomy scar. 4-inch appendectomy scar. Fair complexion. 4 1/2 narrow shoe size.
Identifiers
Dentals: Available. Natural teeth.
Fingerprints: Not available. Information was available with the FBI at one time.
DNA: Sample submitted - Tests complete
Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: None.
Jewelry: None.
Additional Personal Items: None.
Circumstances of Discovery
A mushroom picker discovered the nude body of a woman 42 feet down an embankment on old US 522 near Hancock Bridge approximately 3/10 of a mile from the Maryland/West Virginia state line.
Leads took investigators to Columbus, Ohio, but no identification could be made. Maryland State Police originally handled the case, but it was turned over to the West Virginia State Police.
In 2007, the body was exhumed to collect DNA. She is buried in the Greenway Cemetery in Berkeley Springs.
Some agencies list June 1950 as the date of discovery, but various news articles indicate that May is the correct date


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Edna has been ruled out as this Jane Doe - I thought it looked promising too!
 
I came across this Edna Thompson buried at Hart Island died 6-25-1980 at the age of 60 which is what I Believe this Edna's age would of been. She passed away in NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases. Could it have been she walked away from her life and changed her name?
 

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I do wonder who knows what. On Ancestry there is a family tree showing John Kaminski marrying Edna A Sarter (b1921) in 1937, with their son Franklin born the following year. This is supported by marriage records and birth records for each. The odd thing is that the tree shows Edna dying in Michigan circa December 1968 - but with no supporting sources. Whether this is good information or someone's speculation is not clear.
 

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