HI HI - Hauula, 'Barnacle Bill' UP6909, 19-25, SCUBA suit bought In Tacoma, Nov'82

[houndpounder]

Odd, Namus doesn't even have this Unidentified in their Hawaii listings, although if you click on an old link it comes up.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

I got an email from someone on the Alaska Shipwrecks board who wanted Websleuths to know what they are doing. Many families of the missing are active there or in touch with them.
He asked that this be posted.

“Well, we are making some progress. With Capt. Warren Good’s info, we were able to develop an initial list of 18 possible individuals from 6 different vessels. We’ve been able to remove one already as Alaska State Troopers case file shows he was later found — that’s Chuck Parlett off the St. Patrick. We are in contact with the families of 2 other individuals and are putting them in touch with the Alaska State Troopers Missing Persons Program which will do DNA profiles. It’s a long process and it starts with the parents or siblings stepping forward first putting DNA on file before Hawaii authorities with attempt to profile Barnacle Bill/Bob. So, 2 out of 17 now in process. We urgently need to find the other families so we can put them in touch with AST Missing Persons. I do not have posting rights on Websleuths, so I hope someone who does will post this information over there.”

 

[meanmaryjean]

That's wonderful!

 

[U2forever]

Bill of the Barnacles, once adrift in the vastness of the sea, also known as Barnacle Bill, has for so long been unknown but with the help of others one day soon our dear sea drifter will once again be known.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Owutatangledweb]

Such good news that things are moving along.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Such good news that things are moving along.

Well, here is the latest from Alaska Shipwrecks. We now know where the suit was sold.....

“The KOMONews.com from 11/22/2015 reports the Bayley survival suite was sold by the “old Tacoma Marine Supply” now closed. The reporter for KOMO News spoke with Don Jacobsen, the son of the man who owned the Marine Supply. The records of the purchase seem to be unavailable. I attempt to contact Lindsey Cohen through KOMO and found he/she had left their employ about a year ago. KOMO was unable or unwilling (understandably based on my cold call) to provide contact information to Cohen for me. Seattle / Tacoma is a very common source of supply for the Alaska fisheries and many who fish Alaska waters live or are based in Seattle area. I am actively seeking surviving family from the Hellion, Norel, Gemini, Commander & Cory P. and I’d sure like to get the word out in the Seattle area in an appropriate way. If dental records can be located that would be most helpful and DNA profiles of closest living relatives may also lead to BB’s identity.”

Looks like the Bayley suit is a dead end unless someone finds Bayley warranty info from the factory. I don’t think the DNA will help Bill but if I had a missing relative I would want my DNA in the system so that if remains were found somewhere there would be a chance of ID.
Grasping at straws now, but we may yet get a hold on one......

 

[MOTORUNNER]

Well, here is the latest from Alaska Shipwrecks. We now know where the suit was sold.....

“The KOMONews.com from 11/22/2015 reports the Bayley survival suite was sold by the “old Tacoma Marine Supply” now closed. The reporter for KOMO News spoke with Don Jacobsen, the son of the man who owned the Marine Supply. The records of the purchase seem to be unavailable. I attempt to contact Lindsey Cohen through KOMO and found he/she had left their employ about a year ago. KOMO was unable or unwilling (understandably based on my cold call) to provide contact information to Cohen for me. Seattle / Tacoma is a very common source of supply for the Alaska fisheries and many who fish Alaska waters live or are based in Seattle area. I am actively seeking surviving family from the Hellion, Norel, Gemini, Commander & Cory P. and I’d sure like to get the word out in the Seattle area in an appropriate way. If dental records can be located that would be most helpful and DNA profiles of closest living relatives may also lead to BB’s identity.”

Looks like the Bayley suit is a dead end unless someone finds Bayley warranty info from the factory. I don’t think the DNA will help Bill but if I had a missing relative I would want my DNA in the system so that if remains were found somewhere there would be a chance of ID.
Grasping at straws now, but we may yet get a hold on one......

You think maybe if you contacted her through linkedin or Twitter she would be willing to help?

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

I apologize if someone has already mentioned him, but Gary Todd Stallings? Or perhaps his fellow crew member, Clifford Stigall (sometimes listed as Stiegell)?

"Missing from commercial fishing vessel, The St. Patrick, off the southeast end of Marmot Island [Kodiak, AK]. There were 12 people on board. Two people were recovered alive and eight were located deceased. Missing are Gary Stallings and Clifford Stigall."

The boat was abandoned on November 30, 1981. Gary was taller (73") than the UID is believed to be, but within the age range, at 19, while Clifford was 68", but older than the estimated age, at 32.

There is an article stating that nine of the twelve who abandoned ship were in survival suits, although three of the ones that didn't were among the five that were still missing at the time the article was written. I was unable to find out if Stallings or Stigall was wearing one.

The bodies of five of the 12 crewmen who...

Missing Person Case
Missing Person Case

More information about the wreck:
WRECKSITE - SAINT PATRICK FISHING SHIP 1948-1981

 

[Laughing]

Nancy Drew RN, you & the poster posting (tehehe) from the Alaska Shipwrecks site both mention the St. Patrick.

Thanks for finding the names!

Unknown man in that orange suit
Connecting us across Cyberspace
Connecting dots to find your name
Reconnecting to your family & friends
Restoring your name

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

This thread indicates that Clifford Stigall is NOT a match, although this is not listed on NamUs. So close, though, down to the orange Bayley exposure suit, proximity to Tacoma, and maxillary injuries.

Alaska Recent Maritime Losses 1972-2009

If the suit was manufactured in 1979, and the body was discovered in 1982, that is a very, very tight window for that to happen, at least in Alaska. And to have the exposure suit on board a boat, it would be a colder climate/water, and to be bought in Tacoma, it would probably be an American or Canadian boat/individual. The boat would also have gone down or been abandoned with sufficient warning for the suit to be donned--not someone washed overboard. This has always seemed like such a long shot to me to figure out who he is, but, the more I find out about it, it really is a very narrow pool.

 

[MOTORUNNER]

Good to see some more interest in Bill. I think about him often and I hope he will be another 2018 identification. It's a shame he was not a match with Stigall, as it sounded very promising.

He said, "Don't forget me when I've gone!"
but his boat disappeared with the dawn.
His name was Bill,
He found the land made him ill.
He just couldn't say no to the ocean.

 

[Captain Warren Good]

This thread indicates that Clifford Stigall is NOT a match, although this is not listed on NamUs. So close, though, down to the orange Bayley exposure suit, proximity to Tacoma, and maxillary injuries.

Alaska Recent Maritime Losses 1972-2009

If the suit was manufactured in 1979, and the body was discovered in 1982, that is a very, very tight window for that to happen, at least in Alaska. And to have the exposure suit on board a boat, it would be a colder climate/water, and to be bought in Tacoma, it would probably be an American or Canadian boat/individual. The boat would also have gone down or been abandoned with sufficient warning for the suit to be donned--not someone washed overboard. This has always seemed like such a long shot to me to figure out who he is, but, the more I find out about it, it really is a very narrow pool.

"Nancy, this was posted on my Alaska Shipwreck web site: Edward Festor,
Could you let “Nancy Drew RN” on Websleuths know that Clifford Stigall is still a potential match and his sibling’s DNA is being profiled by the Alaska State Troopers Missing Persons Program. Todd Stallings was not wearing a survival suit when he abandoned ship, only a life jacket. He perished a few feet away from me so I know he is not Barnacle Bill. Aaron Goin from the Hellion is also has a relatives’ DNA being worked up by the Troopers. Keep in touch. Wally Thomas.
(Thank you for passing this along Warren!)" The author was Wally Thomas who is the last living survivor of the Saint Patrick disaster in which 10 crewmembers were lost. He is helping to try to identify the possible identity of Barnacle Bill.

 

[meanmaryjean]

"Nancy, this was posted on my Alaska Shipwreck web site: Edward Festor,
Could you let “Nancy Drew RN” on Websleuths know that Clifford Stigall is still a potential match and his sibling’s DNA is being profiled by the Alaska State Troopers Missing Persons Program. Todd Stallings was not wearing a survival suit when he abandoned ship, only a life jacket. He perished a few feet away from me so I know he is not Barnacle Bill. Aaron Goin from the Hellion is also has a relatives’ DNA being worked up by the Troopers. Keep in touch. Wally Thomas.
(Thank you for passing this along Warren!)" The author was Wally Thomas who is the last living survivor of the Saint Patrick disaster in which 10 crewmembers were lost. He is helping to try to identify the possible identity of Barnacle Bill.

This is wonderful news!

 

[Laughing]

Wow, I noticed that article about the beach arrival of the suit & the remains so long ago!

Thanks ever so much, Capt. Good!

Mr. Adrift, we're closer to returning you to your family.

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

It is great news that it's not being eliminated as a match! My understanding is that there is no DNA on Bill, just dentals? Is this accurate? He was cremated before DNA evidence was ever a thing, but I don't know if they kept samples. The match is so strong on demographics that I would feel a lot easier if the dentals were re-compared. Bill was mentioned as having postmortem dental losses, and I could see it being difficult to make a good comparison, especially depending on how up to date the comparison records with Clifford Stigall were. Now, if there were comparison x-rays for the maxillary injury--that would be amazing.

I read a highly detailed account of the accident of the St Patrick in this book, and based on that, I believed that, as stated above, Todd Stallings was not one of the ones in a survival suit (the author employs pseudonyms for most of the victims, but this individual ["Larry Saunders"]was described as the "youngster" of the group), and his drowning/sinking beneath the waves was witnessed by Wally Thomas. The victim in this account that I believe is Stigall ("Art Simonton," former logger from WA, most experienced crew member) was with Robert Kidd, the other survivor of the accident. I'm sorry to hear that it sounds like Kidd's since passed but very grateful that Wally remembers what Stigall was wearing, as Kidd would've been the next logical line of inquiry. The information source for the story is pretty clearly Wally Thomas, who was part of a different larger group of 9-10 following the incident, so there's not as much information there about what happened to Kidd and Stigall. Based on a maritime lawsuit I found online, Kidd did witness Stigall's death, but it's unclear what happened to his body.

 

[Captain Warren Good]

The following is an excerpt from a post (July 11, 2018) by shipwreck survivor Wally Thomas on my Alaska Shipwreck web site. "... you might let Nancy Drew RN and the group over know that the Alaska State Troopers Missing Persons Clearinghouse told me that the Honolulu County Medical Examiner informed them that some tissue samples from Barnacle Bill were preserved or least the file indicated that. We are all hopeful that these samples can be located and DNA extracted once the 2 profiles now being worked become available. Still a number of months, 6 to 12, probably before we know more. " Progress is slow but ongoing.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

The following is an excerpt from a post (July 11, 2018) by shipwreck survivor Wally Thomas on my Alaska Shipwreck web site. "... you might let Nancy Drew RN and the group over know that the Alaska State Troopers Missing Persons Clearinghouse told me that the Honolulu County Medical Examiner informed them that some tissue samples from Barnacle Bill were preserved or least the file indicated that. We are all hopeful that these samples can be located and DNA extracted once the 2 profiles now being worked become available. Still a number of months, 6 to 12, probably before we know more. " Progress is slow but ongoing.

If there is DNA available from Bill, this is a major game changer! GEDmatch can now be used to find close genetic relatives, and forensic genealogists then pinpoint the identity, at least that’s the plan....
What a journey this case has been. I spent a fair amount of time convincing people that a Bayley exposure suit is not a scuba suit, and contacted Alaskan Shipwrecks feeling that the currents and time in the water, along with the Tacoma sales site of the suit made a fishing boat mishap a good a starting place as any. I had no idea that so many were lost! He may of course have not been a fisherman at all. He may have been on a pleasure craft, but at least the ball started rolling.

 

[carbuff]

That was a fantastic idea. Fingers crossed for Bill!

 

[MOTORUNNER]

You're coming home, Bill!! I can feel it!!!

 

[Laughing]

Ah, a most welcome update, thanks so much!