MA MA - Furman Joseph Byrd, 18, Boston, June-July 1968

[Savemecastiel]

Yes he does look young in the photo. Younger than the age he supposedly went missing. I wish there was more info to go by

I honestly thought that was a middle school photo the first time I looked.

 

[HelpingHands614]

Has anyone looked into UP17651? Didn't see it on the exclusion list & body was found in Lake Erie with similar stats.

 

[bmo725]

There are mentions of a Furman T Byrd from Cleveland in this interview with the artist Nan Goldin: Oral history interview with Nan Goldin, 2017 April 30-May 13 | Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution | Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

She says they knew each other at a boarding school in Western Massachusetts. She says she has tried to find him but without success. She says he went to Boston University.

 

[Aurora90]

There are mentions of a Furman T Byrd from Cleveland in this interview with the artist Nan Goldin: Oral history interview with Nan Goldin, 2017 April 30-May 13 | Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution | Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

She says they knew each other at a boarding school in Western Massachusetts. She says she has tried to find him but without success. She says he went to Boston University.

She says she dated him when she was 14 and he was 18. It sounds like she dated him when they were in Massachusetts, just months before he went missing. I wonder when school got let out and why it is stated that he was last seen in Cleavland, but believed to be in Massachusetts? I can't find a single unidentified black John Doe from Massachusetts prior to 1980s in NamUs.

I wonder if they might have older john doe files that have yet to be entered online?

 

[Aurora90]

Could several things about Furman been reported incorrectly? Especially given when he supposedly disappeared. This John Doe appeared on my FB thread and I thought of Furman. It looks like the photo of him was taken at an odd angle...almost looking down on him, which I took into consideration when comparing photos. I see some similarities. Plus, I didn’t read anything stating exactly where the UID had been shot - maybe in the head or face?

Have you seen this child? JOHN DOE 1968
View attachment 254623View attachment 254624

Did you submit this?

 

[Aurora90]

Massachusetts Cold Case Unit Wants to ID Cases Back to '80s​

A Massachusetts county’s cold case unit is working to identify a dozen unidentified bodies or skeletal remains that have been found through the years, some dating back nearly four decades.

Massachusetts State Police is looking into identifying cold cases from the past 40 years. I am guessing anything prior to that is no longer available.

 

[sluethermac]

Can they check records to see if he was enrolled?

 

[Aurora90]

Can they check records to see if he was enrolled?

He was enrolled. There's a lot to this missing persons case.

 

[sluethermac]

He was enrolled. There's a lot to this missing persons case.

Certainly is. I hate to be 'that guy' but it's possible he's a victim of hate crime as well.

Boston... in the 60's... few years shy of the busing incident...

 

[FANCYTHAT666]

Not reported missing for 50 years!! Oh my gosh, sad.

It's a good sign that you don't have many friends.

 

[sluethermac]

It's a good sign that you don't have many friends.

Families tend to cope with 'well perhaps, xyz started a new life elsewhere' instead of accepting the harsh, bitter reality. That cope lasts for decades until someone (usually a younger sibling/cousin) files a missing report long after parents died.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

Furman Joseph Byrd – The Charley Project

 

[Aurora90]

It's a good sign that you don't have many friends.

I would disagree, reading this interview from the smithsonian, he had many friends.

 

[cheemsg]

An obit for a Furman Byrd in Massachusetts in 1986. The obit doesn't mention parents/siblings, just his wife and kids, so his blood family might have reported him missing not knowing he passed. Thoughts?
Anderson Independent-Mail 29 Jun 1986, page 16 - Newspapers.com

 

[madamx]

An obit for a Furman Byrd in Massachusetts in 1986. The obit doesn't mention parents/siblings, just his wife and kids, so his blood family might have reported him missing not knowing he passed. Thoughts?
Anderson Independent-Mail 29 Jun 1986, page 16 - Newspapers.com

That is a good find!… I wonder if it is the same guy?

 

[cheemsg]

That is a good find!… I wonder if it is the same guy?

Furman Byrd (1924-1986) - Find a Grave Memorial
Na, he was born 1924 so not him. Back to square one.

But maybe this Furman is his father? Seem a coincidence that two people with that uncommon name in MA.

 

[madamx]

Furman Byrd (1924-1986) - Find a Grave Memorial
Na, he was born 1924 so not him. Back to square one.

But maybe this Furman is his father? Seem a coincidence that two people with that uncommon name in MA.

Yes that could be his father. That name does not seem to be common and like you said in MA…

 

[SkyBoomer]

Oddly, a quick Google search turns up quite a few Furman Byrds, both living and deceased. Different middle initials, though.

 

[Diane Redfern]

Just an enhanced image of both, Randolph Houser and Furman Byrd. The eyebrows and hairline are very different, but maybe it's the perspective.
Warning (Post mortem photo)

Spoiler: Post mortem photo

 

[ColdCase_061]

There is a Furman Byrd DOB 02/1950 in the 1950 Cleveland U.S. census. He is listed as the grandson of Walter Byrd, 48, widower, a porter at a barber shop by trade, who resided with his son Walter, 19, never married and unable to work, and his daughter Ouida, 20, who kept house. The address of the house was given as 2240 Rear E. 97th, which currently appears to be a vacant lot listed as being owned by the city of Cleveland. One Furman Byrd of Williams HS in Stockbridge, MA received a blue ribbon at the 1968 Boston Globe Art Awards (Boston Globe 02/06/1968). Byrd must have been back in Cleveland by the summer as he is noted to be an exhibitor at an art show featuring inner city artists at the Severance Center Mallon Cleveland Heights in August 1968 (Sunday Plain Dealer 08/25/1968).

An article in the 04/30/1978 Sunday Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH) mentioned a “Furman Byrd Gallery” at the Collingwoods Art Center on St. Clair Avenue hosting an urban art themed show.

One thing to keep in mind is that the war in Vietnam was escalating around the time that Boyd was presumed to be missing. Perhaps he went to Canada or lived under an assumed name to avoid being drafted.

I wonder if user NRG is in fact Nan Goldin, subject of the interview posted by bmo725. She mentioned in the 2017 interview that she would like to find him.