VT VT - Middlebury, 2WhtChildren(9-11/13-15)/1 WhtFem Adult(35-45), off logging Rd, May'35

[Alleykins]

No scientist here either! However I'm going by the fact that the underlying geology doesn't change, ie rainwater filters through the same rocks at the same rate today as it did 100 or 1,000 years ago and those rocks are the aquifer which feeds the water supply, so the isotope content should be unchanging, so much so that here in the UK archaeologists can use comparisons between modern and ancient remains to determine where a body grew up. It's used, for example, to map the origins of historic and prehistoric migrants into and around the UK, such as determining which parts of the Roman Empire migrants came from.

Good to know. I wasn't sure what kind of historical data was on file for comparison. Guess science is waaaay a head of me, LOL

 

[Alleykins]

If anyone comes across any of Dorothy's maternally related, living relatives, please let me know. Maybe we can get them to give a DNA sample to compare to this UID.

 

[rats]

If anyone comes across any of Dorothy's maternally related, living relatives, please let me know. Maybe we can get them to give a DNA sample to compare to this UID.

Looks like she had a sister who had at least one daughter, so... You never know?

 

[Alleykins]

I sent an email to NamUs, asking if Dorothy has been ruled out, and if not, how one would go about getting that done, given one case is active and the other isn't.

 

[Alleykins]

I heard back from the NamUs rep, she said she passed this along to the VT investigators to see if they wanted to pursue it.

 

[Gardener1850]

I think this case could be an easy solve with genetic genealogy. I doubt the suspect is alive but at least the family members could be named (assuming they are related) and have proper memorials. There is probably a family genealogist out there that doesn't know what happened to these three after 1930. They are probably listed in the 1930 census and then no where to be found come 1940. Most genealogists would take note of that and be frustrated at not finding them, but assume that they moved to an unknown location or were on an illegible page or perhaps their names were badly misspelled/transcribed incorrectly. I wouldn't think they were "missing persons" just from not finding any death records. But if DNA matched to a family tree that had a family matching these ages with no records for them found after about 1930 it would be obvious immediately. Perhaps Parbon or DNA Doe Project will pick this case up in the future?

MOO.

 

[rats]

I think this case could be an easy solve with genetic genealogy. I doubt the suspect is alive but at least the family members could be named (assuming they are related) and have proper memorials. There is probably a family genealogist out there that doesn't know what happened to these three after 1930. They are probably listed in the 1930 census and then no where to be found come 1940. Most genealogists would take note of that and be frustrated at not finding them, but assume that they moved to an unknown location or were on an illegible page or perhaps their names were badly misspelled/transcribed incorrectly. I wouldn't think they were "missing persons" just from not finding any death records. But if DNA matched to a family tree that had a family matching these ages with no records for them found after about 1930 it would be obvious immediately. Perhaps Parbon or DNA Doe Project will pick this case up in the future?

MOO.

I think that it's going to be nigh impossible, as two of the three bodies had insufficient DNA for profiling.

 

[Gardener1850]

I think that it's going to be nigh impossible, as two of the three bodies had insufficient DNA for profiling.

I realize they only have DNA from the adult female. If they were all related, then solving the woman's identity may reveal the children's names too. JMO.

 

[The Farm]

Have they checked missing out of Canada?

 

[Coffee56]

additional info on possible suspects with names and businesses etc

A 1935 Middlebury cold case

 

[Alleykins]

@Coffee56 that was a great article, thanks.

 

[LucyOso]

This is fascinating. The child’s dental work at $1000 would be the equivalent of $17k now. That type of work was not common, it was available but only to the wealthy and elite, typically European and East Coast US. I agree, this could be a mistress or migrant family. Perhaps she remarried, immigrated to the US with the new husband, he killed them and vanished with her money, inheritance, dowry. She could have been a WWI widower or left for a new life.

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Additional articles from 1935:

1935 Middlebury Does - Newspapers.com
Middlebury Does - Newspapers.com
<modsnip: removed images of full length articles>

 

[Alleykins]

Wow. Kudos to those investigators. That was quite an undertaking back in the day to contact 4k patients.

 

[Tabirey]

I wonder if @othram labs would have success with extracting DNA and building a tree for these three.

 

[othram]

I wonder if @othram labs would have success with extracting DNA and building a tree for these three.

Has anyone been in touch with folks behind the investigation? Does anyone know the current investigator assigned to the case. Its a really old, but interesting case. Definitely worth a look.

 

[Tabirey]

Has anyone been in touch with folks behind the investigation? Does anyone know the current investigator assigned to the case. Its a really old, but interesting case. Definitely worth a look.

This is the info I found, I have not contacted.

Namus numbers are UP13505, UP13506 and UP13507
Contact info:
Middlebury Police Department
(802) 388-3191
Agency Case Number15MB000503
Kris Bowdish, Detective

 

[Alleykins]

In 2016, I submitted Dorothy Arnold to NamUs for a potential match to the adult set of unidentified remains. Since she didn't have an active missing person report, which is needed for NamUs to get involved, they wouldn't investigate it. However, the caseworker said she forwarded the information on to Vermont investigators to see if they thought it would be worth looking into, based on the circumstances. I never heard back from anyone about it, but unless they found a living female relative of Dorothy's for a DNA sample, there would be no way to compare them.
After reading how expensive the dental work would have been back then, I think it would bear looking into, if they haven't already. Dorothy came from a very wealthy family & would have had high standards for something like that, and may have had access to money no one knew about.

 

[othram]

This is the info I found, I have not contacted.

Namus numbers are UP13505, UP13506 and UP13507
Contact info:
Middlebury Police Department
(802) 388-3191
Agency Case Number15MB000503
Kris Bowdish, Detective

OK, we will see if we can reach out and see where things stand for this case.

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

OK, we will see if we can reach out and see where things stand for this case.

Thank you for reaching out on behalf on the old Does, both these and others! Good luck!