UNSOLVED NY - East Bronx, Girl, ~5, in Rodman's Neck Park, Aug'57

In 1957 a little girl was found in a New York park.
She was believed to be around 5 years old.
This was during the same time as The Boy in The Box was found. Since the crimes were similar it was thought to be possibly related.
I can find nothing more about this poor little girl.
Has anyone else heard of this case?

Looks like she was found on Wednesday August 14 (reported in the August 17 newspaper) in Rodman's Neck Park in the Bronx. She was nude but wrapped in a sleeveless type men's undershirt and a portion of an Army raincoat that were tied around her. The cause of death was determined to be from peritonitis as a result of swallowing some type of sharp object. I would guess from this that the death could have possibly been accidental although then why hide the body? I suppose her parents could have been afraid they would be charged with neglect but that seems illogical to me.

To note; children raised in extemely stressful, threatening, abusive, neglectful and unloving situations often suffer from what is known as psychosocial dwarfism so I wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't a year or two or even three years older than she appeared. It causes smaller stature and can even delay development such as the eruption of permanent teeth and puberty.

See also http://americasunknownchild.net/Archives5Text.html

I don't see the connection between the two deaths. Maybe they didn't release all the information they had. Im guessing the little girl was never identified either.

For what it's worth, Rodman's Neck has an Army history, which I did not know. I only knew it as the NYPD shooting range. From Wikipedia:

"In 1941, during World War II the U.S. Department of War began to use the area as a Navy base and in 1950, the United States Army drained the site and built barracks for soldiers at Fort Slocum. When the Army finished using the land, the site was turned over to the New York City Police Academy, where the police reestablished the permanent training facility and firing range in 1960."

wfgodot said:

See also http://americasunknownchild.net/Archives5Text.html

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its interesting that this is from the Philadelphia Inquirer. I wonder if any NYC newspapers covered it.. I have not found anything else.

08/17/57 Philadelphia Inquirer
N.Y. Girl's Death Tied To Boy's Slaying Here
**
Similarity of circumstances surrounding the discovery of the body of a small girl in a secluded park in East Bronx, N.Y., and the murder of a young boy stuffed in a carton in Fox Chase eight months ago, launched a full-scale investigation yesterday by Philadelphia and New York police.
The two-state investigation was begun after the girl, about 5 years old, was found Wednesday in a lonely area of Rodman's Neck Park in the East Bronx.
The similarity between the death of the little girl and of the still unidentified boy in Fox Chase was noted immediately by Lt. David Brown, acting commander of the Philadelphia Homicide squad, who said a New York police teletype message seeking information on the girl's identity "immediately was placed in the file on the murdered boy."
*
PLEDGES COOPERATION
*
"We definitely intend to cooperate fully with New York detectives on this case" Brown said. He added that he was in telephone contact with homicide detectives there in an effort to run down any leads, which might develop, on either case.
In New York, Homicide Detective Harold Leahrer said police, as in the case of the Fox Chase boy, are "getting dozens of leads daily on possible identity of the girl." He, too, said he would remain in "close touch" with Philadelphia police on any developments pertinent to the two cases.
The girl's body was found in a woodland in the park. The body was wrapped in a white sleeveless undershirt with pieces of Army-type OD raincoat around it and tied with white cord. Several feet away was a torn blue canvas suitcase believed to have been used to transport the body.
*
DEAD FIVE DAYS
*
An autopsy yesterday revealed the girl apparently died of acute peritonitis caused after she swallowed a sharp object. Assistant Medical Examiner Henry Siegel said the girl apparently had been dead for about five days before she was found.
Brown said the similarity between the two cases was remarkable in that the Fox Chase boy also was undernourished, and was naked, except for being wrapped in a portion of blanket, when he was found February 26 in a cardboard carton.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/R...defaac243ccbb2!8m2!3d40.8534336!4d-73.8009667

here is a map.. there is nothing out there and only one road

If these poor children weren't cremated, they could attempt to get a DNA sample. I was just reading on how you do this with mummified remains. Chances are, they would be able to trace to relatives.

http://www.naturallivingcenter.net/...mccqa7w8v75&DocID=genomic-dnamummifiedtissues

I was thinking about this case last night. I live in the area and it has always nagged at me.

Here are some facts to consider:

From 1950 to approx. 1960, Rodman's Neck was used by the US Army for barracks for soldiers at Fort Slocum. The Army raincoat scraps found with the child point to this possibly being the daughter of a soldier and his wife.

Rodman's Neck is an isolated area that I did not even know was there, despite many trips to City Island, where you have to pass by its entrance to access the City Island bridge. So whoever left the girl there knew the area.

In 1957, Co-op City was not yet built. It was still a marshland, a former municipal landfill. Huge swath of land and very convenient for dumping a body. Freedomland was not built until 1959 - so anyone coming northbound on the Hutchinson River Parkway could have just left the body there, rather than search for Rodman's Neck.

I believe in my heart that this little girl was the daughter of a soldier and his wife. It is the simplest explanation on why she was found with the Army coat scraps, in an Army area which was and still is isolated from most of the public.

Bumping

Bump!

The large sharp object should have still been in situ. It would be very difficult for a child to defacate a large sharp obect without awful damage. I wonder why they think that she swallowed it rather than having it inserted?

The cruelty toward both of these children, left wrapped in whatever and not even wearing some decent clothing. Obviously they come from very abusive homes (or possibly a facility of some kind?) but still, not even an ounce of consideration. It is heartbreaking.

Maybe someone bolder than I could contact the law enforcement for the "Boy in the Box" case to inquire about this case? They must at least know if it was solved. I wonder if it was but was covered up or if it wasn't solved and just got less attention.

I really hope we get answers for this girl... Even if she isn't connected to the Boy in the Box, she needs answers. At least we need to know if she was ever identified or not.

I feel like it would be easy enough to determine if she swallowed it if her body was in good enough condition. I assume the object would have left damage all the way through her digestive tract. Was the object ever described as being 'large'?

I have a gut feeling she wasn't intentionally murdered, but she was abused/neglected and that's why her parents/whoever was caring for her dumped her body instead of reporting her death. Or maybe she lived in extreme poverty and her family couldn't afford medical care or a proper burial.

I'd like to think she was loved and well-cared-for but the family just felt they couldn't afford medical treatment and burial, but they put her there wrapped in a sleeveless type men's undershirt and a portion of an Army raincoat tied around her.
That was the best they could do?


Archives-text page 5

After she passed away maybe her clothing was not clean. So they couldn't wash her and put an old nightgown or something nice on her? Or a decent blanket? No one is that poor. Not a caring person or people. My opinions.

Too bad they couldn't get some clues off the evidence like fingerprints or DNA, but it was the '50s. .

I had a teacher that told the class that when she was a child her mother told her not to tell other people the things that go on in the house

she was born circa 60s/70s

a hush hush don't air any dirty laundry by all means necessary mentality happens to be a reoccurring theme in the household and families of many bronxites

That is a realistic possibility as to why this Jane doe is unidentified

it could be one of many reasons or it simply could be just one

Gypsysoul25 said:

I had a teacher that told the class that when she was a child her mother told her not to tell other people the things that go on in the house

she was born circa 60s/70s

a hush hush don't air any dirty laundry by all means necessary mentality happens to be a reoccurring theme in the household and families of many bronxites

That is a realistic possibility as to why this Jane doe is unidentified

it could be one of many reasons or it simply could be just one

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I agree. Though it's not just the Bronx or the 50's and 60's.
That no one from the family comes forward many years later at least is also not acceptable in my mind. Multiple people knew this child.

There are a few recent cases of Jane Doe babies / children I'm following here, and it's mind-boggling, because they aren't infants. People knew them. They were abused. Yet many remain unidentified so far.

ChatteringBirds said:

I agree. Though it's not just the Bronx or the 50's and 60's.
That no one from the family comes forward many years later at least is also not acceptable in my mind. Multiple people knew this child.

There are a few recent cases of Jane Doe babies / children I'm following here, and it's mind-boggling, because they aren't infants. People knew them. They were abused. Yet many remain unidentified so far.

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One controversial youtuber whom I will not name has joked in the past that if a abused child went to a neighbor's house to tell said neighbor that the parents were"whooping their *advertiser censored*"then the neighbor will also whoop the kids *advertiser censored* just for telling on the parents to the neighbor

He's in his 40s

So that mentality was unfortunately prevalent on many older generation folk

Even if he was trolling it doesn't change the fact that people like that exist in real life and it is scary

Not to mention that many cultures still practice corporal punishment

Many households in America still practice corporal punishment

Sometimes the line between child abuse and punishing your kid often blurs

jessr927 said:

I was thinking about this case last night. I live in the area and it has always nagged at me.

Here are some facts to consider:

From 1950 to approx. 1960, Rodman's Neck was used by the US Army for barracks for soldiers at Fort Slocum. The Army raincoat scraps found with the child point to this possibly being the daughter of a soldier and his wife.

Rodman's Neck is an isolated area that I did not even know was there, despite many trips to City Island, where you have to pass by its entrance to access the City Island bridge. So whoever left the girl there knew the area.

In 1957, Co-op City was not yet built. It was still a marshland, a former municipal landfill. Huge swath of land and very convenient for dumping a body. Freedomland was not built until 1959 - so anyone coming northbound on the Hutchinson River Parkway could have just left the body there, rather than search for Rodman's Neck.

I believe in my heart that this little girl was the daughter of a soldier and his wife. It is the simplest explanation on why she was found with the Army coat scraps, in an Army area which was and still is isolated from most of the public.

Click to expand...

Would certainly explain why they would choose to hide the body instead of reporting it. It was the 1950s' and being a military brat myself, I can certainly jumped to the assumption that they wouldn't disclose what happened to their child out of pride. However, wouldn't people question them? Like, "Where's your daughter?" 50s' wasn't like nowadays where we click a button and the entire world can see a news article, but it does make me wonder if anyone had any suspicions and just didn't speak up.