PA PA - Bedford, 'Mr. Bones' WhtMale 30-35, 585UMPA, 30-06 rifle, gold dental wk, camping equip, Oct'58

[Marilynilpa]

So you think it might be, at the least, an interesting intellectual exercise to contact the "A Active Key and Lock Company" I found in Chicago? The name of the company, to me suggests it may have been around a few years, as most companies in this business now identifed themselves as locksmiths. Towns and cities do re-name streets on occasion.
Another question, as I have never actually seen one...Could this have been a police officer's callbox key?

My uncle collects police memorabilia, and I called to see what he could tell me about call box keys. While he didn't rule out the possibility that the key found on Mr. Bones was a call box key, he doubts that it was. The keys he has in his collection do not have anything stamped on them other than "Yale" or whatever company made the key.

I also checked eBay, searching for call box keys, and found several from the 1950's, none of which had anything stamped on them.

Of course, that is by no means an exhaustive search.

 

[upallnite]

I think this is a different John Kelly. From what I can tell, this John Kelly immigrated from Ireland to the U.S. On 8/2/1845, his mother posted this ad seeking the whereabouts of her son.

I thought it just meant this was the year she was inquiring about her son? It says he was a us. government worker.

 

[Marilynilpa]

I thought it just meant this was the year she was inquiring about her son? It says he was a us. government worker.

That IS what this is. I think you are missing the fact that it was placed in 1845.

 

[upallnite]

That IS what this is. I think you are missing the fact that it was placed in 1845.

Thanx Marilynilpa, I was missing that.:bang:

 

[Marilynilpa]

Thanx Marilynilpa, I was missing that.:bang:

Hey, it's good to know I'm not the only one who gets confused sometimes.

 

[Richard]

So you think it might be, at the least, an interesting intellectual exercise to contact the "A Active Key and Lock Company" I found in Chicago? The name of the company, to me suggests it may have been around a few years, as most companies in this business now identifed themselves as locksmiths. Towns and cities do re-name streets on occasion.
Another question, as I have never actually seen one...Could this have been a police officer's callbox key?

It might be worth calling them, if only to rule them out. But be sure to ask if they have always been in the same location, or if there was ever another "Active" Key and Lock company. They would probably know, as they would have receieved plenty of mail and wrong number calls for them.

 

[Richard]

Yesterday afternoon, I spoke with the State Police Investigator by phone regarding this case. I asked him a few questions and forwarded comments from this thread.

One thing that I asked was about his shoes/boots. He looked in the inventory of personal effects and said that they were black "Engineer Boots", size 12 5/8, and that they were 10 and a half inches high. These boots would have been pull-on, heavy work boots with no laces, but with a strap and buckle running forward across the boot from ankle to ankle, and maybe another at the top of the boot. These boots are of the type often favored by motorcycle riders.

I asked him what the wear pattern was like on the boots, and he said that he will check it out to see if there was a lot of walking wear, or if there were marks from a motor cycle starter on them.

The inventory stated that black dress socks were found at the site, but I am not sure if he was wearing them, or if they were in his knapsack.

Aparently, the man had quite a few other things not stated on the Doenetwork file.

He, or someone had removed all labels from his clothing, and there was no identification on him.

Because there were so many printings of two of the books, he will be looking at the date page and determining what the earliest time might have been for his death.

Will post more as I receive it.

 

[upallnite]

Yesterday afternoon, I spoke with the State Police Investigator by phone regarding this case. I asked him a few questions and forwarded comments from this thread.

One thing that I asked was about his shoes/boots. He looked in the inventory of personal effects and said that they were black "Engineer Boots", size 12 5/8, and that they were 10 and a half inches high. These boots would have been pull-on, heavy work boots with no laces, but with a strap and buckle running forward across the boot from ankle to ankle, and maybe another at the top of the boot. These boots are of the type often favored by motorcycle riders.

I asked him what the wear pattern was like on the boots, and he said that he will check it out to see if there was a lot of walking wear, or if there were marks from a motor cycle starter on them.

The inventory stated that black dress socks were found at the site, but I am not sure if he was wearing them, or if they were in his knapsack.

Aparently, the man had quite a few other things not stated on the Doenetwork file.

He, or someone had removed all labels from his clothing, and there was no identification on him.

Because there were so many printings of two of the books, he will be looking at the date page and determining what the earliest time might have been for his death.

Will post more as I receive it.

Great Work Richard!!!!! Now everyone has a little more to work on. Did he say what else was found with the man? I'm very excited to hear this news!!!!

 

[Richard]

Great Work Richard!!!!! Now everyone has a little more to work on. Did he say what else was found with the man? I'm very excited to hear this news!!!!

He did not read the entire inventory to me, but rather looked through it to try to answer my questions. He said that the inventory is in a handwritten form, and was hard to read in places. He said that the man was well equipped to live off the land for a while, and obviously there were more items on the inventory than had been included in the news article.

One thing I asked was if the book referred to in one article as "Reading Poems" was its full title. He looked and told me No, that the full title in the inventory was "Reading Poems: Introduction to Critical Study". He did not have the author or publisher, or date info on the inventory list, but said that he intends to go to the evidence locker and look through those books more carefully. This, to me seems like the title of a text book. Does anyone have any information on it? The other two books had a wide distribution and almost yearly reprintings. Perhaps this one was more limited in distribution.

It seems to be the opinion of investigators that this John Doe intentionally did not want to have any identification on him. Also, based on the poor condition of his teeth - after the expensive dentaly work had been done, that he had probably been "on the road" as a drifter for some time, maybe since 1955 or earlier.

I have e-mailed him with most of the comments and questions brought up in this forum, and have provided him with links to various sites as well.

This morning I called the office of Navy Absentee Collection (the office that maintains records on Navy missing personnel who have been declared deserters), and spoke with an investigator about the case. He provided me with contact numbers for similar offices in the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps. I forwarded all to the PA State Police Investigator.

 

[Marilynilpa]

He did not read the entire inventory to me, but rather looked through it to try to answer my questions. He said that the inventory is in a handwritten form, and was hard to read in places. He said that the man was well equipped to live off the land for a while, and obviously there were more items on the inventory than had been included in the news article.

One thing I asked was if the book referred to in one article as "Reading Poems" was its full title. He looked and told me No, that the full title in the inventory was "Reading Poems: Introduction to Critical Study". He did not have the author or publisher, or date info on the inventory list, but said that he intends to go to the evidence locker and look through those books more carefully. This, to me seems like the title of a text book. Does anyone have any information on it? The other two books had a wide distribution and almost yearly reprintings. Perhaps this one was more limited in distribution.

It seems to be the opinion of investigators that this John Doe intentionally did not want to have any identification on him. Also, based on the poor condition of his teeth - after the expensive dentaly work had been done, that he had probably been "on the road" as a drifter for some time, maybe since 1955 or earlier.

I have e-mailed him with most of the comments and questions brought up in this forum, and have provided him with links to various sites as well.

This morning I called the office of Navy Absentee Collection (the office that maintains records on Navy missing personnel who have been declared deserters), and spoke with an investigator about the case. He provided me with contact numbers for similar offices in the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps. I forwarded all to the PA State Police Investigator.

You mentioned that the labels were cut out of his clothing. Perhaps he purchased them at a thrift store or similar place. My uncle passed away a couple of years ago, and he had lived out on the streets many years. When we went through his clothing, many items had the labels cut out. I know he got a lot of his clothing from Salvation Army and St. Vincent de Paul Society. That would tie in with the "drifter" possibility.

 

[shadowangel]

One thing I asked was if the book referred to in one article as "Reading Poems" was its full title. He looked and told me No, that the full title in the inventory was "Reading Poems: Introduction to Critical Study". He did not have the author or publisher, or date info on the inventory list, but said that he intends to go to the evidence locker and look through those books more carefully. This, to me seems like the title of a text book. Does anyone have any information on it? The other two books had a wide distribution and almost yearly reprintings. Perhaps this one was more limited in distribution.

"Reading Poems: An Introduction to Critical Study" was originally published in 1941, with reprintings in '49, '51, '54, '56....It is, in essence, a review of English and American poems. It certainly could be on the reading list of a college course, however it seems an odd choice for someone living off the land: this monster is nearly 800 pages.

Perhaps an educated man with mental issues, possibly stemming from the Korean War or the escalating Cold War, who became a survivalist as did some of those soldiers who returned so incredibly changed by the Viet Nam War.

I had the thought to check Purple Heart recipients from the Korean War, especially from the Chicago area. This would likely be a very disillusioned person, explaining why the man stopped caring for himself.

 

[Richard]

"Reading Poems: An Introduction to Critical Study" was originally published in 1941, with reprintings in '49, '51, '54, '56....It is, in essence, a review of English and American poems. It certainly could be on the reading list of a college course, however it seems an odd choice for someone living off the land: this monster is nearly 800 pages.

Perhaps an educated man with mental issues, possibly stemming from the Korean War or the escalating Cold War, who became a survivalist as did some of those soldiers who returned so incredibly changed by the Viet Nam War.

I had the thought to check Purple Heart recipients from the Korean War, especially from the Chicago area. This would likely be a very disillusioned person, explaining why the man stopped caring for himself.

I have a feeling that you are probably right on several things regarding this guy. He was probably pretty intelligent and intellectual, yet here he was living in the open as a drifter. He is armed for a firefight, yet carries poetry and philosophy books.

I wonder if he might have written something in those many pages, which may have gone unnoticed all these years?

The Korean War Veterans were largely ignored upon their return home. The returning Prisoners of War, had been treated terribly by their captors. Then an Army Committee was appointed to investigate Communist methods of interrogation, indoctination, and propaganda efforts, and alleged American POW misconduct. They were to come up with "lessons learned" for future training.

Although the "lessons learned" resulted in the establishment of a Code of Conduct, and much better Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training, many veterans were demoralized by the stories of alleged American collaboration with the Communists. To some, the very idea of the Army conducting such an inquest, was cause for disillusionment. The official report stated that "Only one out of 23 American POW's was suspected of serious misconduct". Imagine the effect a statement like that might have on someone who had gone to hell and back for his country.

Could this man possibly have been a returned Veteran, maybe even a POW, who decided to strengthen his mind against Communism, while at the same time, vowing never to be captured (again)?

The US military used service numbers from World War I (1917-18) up until about 1969, when they started to use social security numbers for identification purposes. Army and Air Force service numbers consisted of 8 digits, sometimes preceded by a letter or two. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard service numbers consisted of 1 to 7 digits (usually 6 or 7). I have suggested that the investigator look at all clothing and equipment for any number that might possibly be a service number. If one turns up, I have a strong feeling that this man's identity can be learned through Veteran's Administration records.

 

[shadowangel]

Could this man possibly have been a returned Veteran, maybe even a POW, who decided to strengthen his mind against Communism, while at the same time, vowing never to be captured (again)?

I believe that is a very good possibility. POWs of the Korean and Viet Nam Wars experienced tremendous difficulty in readjusting to civilian life. Also keep in mind the events themselves of the Korean War.
In the wake of WWII, the US military was ill-equipped to engage in another overseas ground war. When North Korea invaded South Korea, MacArthur ordered a small group of the 24th Infantry, stationed in Japan, to "spearhead" the US military effort. Task Force Smith, as it was known, was doomed from the beginning and displayed a level of arrogance on the part of military leaders that is appalling even today. 400 troops, poorly trained and equipped, were sent to face down some 130,000 troops the North Korean Army had poised. The US military leaders reportedly expected the North Koreans to break and run at the sight of American soldiers. They were wrong. The North Koreans were tough, battle-hardened men, supported by 3,000 Soviet advisors. By contrast, only about 70 of the 400 men of Task Force Smith had seen combat.
Task Force Smith was sent forth to meet the enemy, while the rest of the 24th Infantry was still getting organized far to the south. The North Koreans attacked TF Smith on July 5th, 1950. It was a short, one-sided engagement. The retreat of TF Smith became a rout. Of the original 400 men, only 185 survived.
There was also much disillusionment among the members of the Reserves, who were called to duty. This man appears to have been of an age to have served in WWII. The veterans of WWII, on Inactive Reserve, were the first called to duty in Korea. These men (and women), who had already served their country in Eurpoe, Asia, and Africa, felt it patently unfair that they be pulled from the lives they had built in the wake of WWII to serve while the members of the ACTIVE reserve were kept out of combat so they could be better trained.
Could this man, intelligent and thoughtful, have been a veteran of WWII, who had returned from years of combat and began an academic career as either a student or instructor, only to be pulled away again? Possbily captured and tortured? His mind, though changed by the events of war, trying to hold to the memories of the life he was trying to build?
Suicide does not seem so far-fetched in light of these possibilities.

 

[Richard]

I believe that is a very good possibility. POWs of the Korean and Viet Nam Wars experienced tremendous difficulty in readjusting to civilian life. Also keep in mind the events themselves of the Korean War. ...

Could this man, intelligent and thoughtful, have been a veteran of WWII, who had returned from years of combat and began an academic career as either a student or instructor, only to be pulled away again? Possbily captured and tortured? His mind, though changed by the events of war, trying to hold to the memories of the life he was trying to build?

Suicide does not seem so far-fetched in light of these possibilities.

The US Army at the start of the Korean War was not well trained or equipped to fight that sort of war. NOT that they didn't put up a good fight against tremendous odds, but in that there had been a tremendous downsizing following WW II. All of the weapons and equipment used in Korea were WW II Surplus.

I found the following information on a Korean War Veterans website, which I thought interesting and possibly pertenant to this discussion. Although this man might not have been a Veteran, he was very obviously suffering mentally from some sort of stress.

------------------------------
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been around for a very long time. Military medicine had recognized this condition with a variety of labels. During the Civil War the condition was called "Soldier's Heart." By WWI, it was re-named "Shell Shock," and during WWII, "Battle Fatigue." Korean War veterans were diagnosed with "War Neurosis," and "Vietnam Syndrome" was the label for that generation of veterans. The Veterans Administration (VA) was service-connecting former combatants with a "Nervous Condition" or some other type of disorder prior to the advent of PTSD.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a condition recognized by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Criteria for diagnosing PTSD are published in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (commonly referred to as the DSM-IV). PTSD first appeared in this manual, published by the APA, in 1980 after significant research studies with Vietnam combat veterans.
PTSD may occur after a person has been exposed to a traumatic event in which the person experienced or witnessed an event that involved death, serious injury, or mass destruction. This could include events that occur in war, natural disasters, and acts of terrorism, crime or abuse.

For veterans, in particular, stressful traumatic events include combat zones, peacekeeping missions, training accidents, disasters, medical emergencies, and assaults. These events cause the survivor to react with intense fear, helplessness, hopelessness and horror.

Symptoms of PTSD include, but are not limited to:
- Recurrent, intrusive, and distressing thoughts about the event
- Recurrent dreams, nightmares (sometimes called "night-terrors") about the event
- Flashbacks (a sense of reliving the event)
- Distress caused by reminders of the event (sights, sounds, smells)
- Alienation, isolation, and avoidance of people and places
- Emotional numbing
- No sense of future
- Survivor guilt (for having survived when others did not, or for behavior required for survival)
- Difficulty falling or staying asleep
- Anger and rage
- Difficulty concentrating or remembering
- Hyper-vigilant, or survivalist behavior
- Exaggerated startled response (usually to loud noises)

These symptoms may lead to substance abuse or other self-destructive addictive behavior.

 

[Richard]

.... I have located an "A Active" Key and Lock Service in Chicago (following up on a suggestion of Richard's) and also an "A Active" Pawn and Jewelers in Chicago. Street names may have changed in the intervening years...

I was able to locate A Active Key and Lock, as well as two more possibilities in the Chicago area:

A Active Key & Lock Svc
2953 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 773-935-3251

Active Lock & Key
107 E Central Rd, Arlington Hts, IL 847-398-0034

Active Lock & Key Svc
107 Central Ave, Roselle, IL 847-240-9395

Has anyone been able to locate other "Active" key and lock businesses in other cities?

 

[docwho3]

I was able to locate A Active Key and Lock, as well as two more possibilities in the Chicago area:

A Active Key & Lock Svc
2953 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 773-935-3251

Active Lock & Key
107 E Central Rd, Arlington Hts, IL 847-398-0034

Active Lock & Key Svc
107 Central Ave, Roselle, IL 847-240-9395

Has anyone been able to locate other "Active" key and lock businesses in other cities?

I ran the searc line :
"Active Key & Lock" or "Active Lock & Key"
through www.dogpile.com
and I got 3 pages of results.

 

[shadowangel]

One of the things puzzling me-the contacts that were found were traced to the manufacturer then on to the prescribing optometrist. Why, then, would this seemingly excellent lead end up as a "dead end"?

It seems likely, given any truth to the scenarios we have developed, that this man may very well have been under care at a VA hospital. Is there any way to view records from thse facilities?

Richard-Do you think you contact would be able to scan and e-mail the evidence log? I'm supposing this is allowable, as he is giving you part of the list over the phone. I certainly believe there may be something there that LE has overlooked, or missed the significance of...

 

[Richard]

One of the things puzzling me-the contacts that were found were traced to the manufacturer then on to the prescribing optometrist. Why, then, would this seemingly excellent lead end up as a "dead end"?

It seems likely, given any truth to the scenarios we have developed, that this man may very well have been under care at a VA hospital. Is there any way to view records from thse facilities?

Richard-Do you think you contact would be able to scan and e-mail the evidence log? I'm supposing this is allowable, as he is giving you part of the list over the phone. I certainly believe there may be something there that LE has overlooked, or missed the significance of...

The person I spoke to is the PA State Police officer assigned to investigate the case. He brought up the same point regarding the Contact Lenses. Evidently, many years ago someone traced the lenses to the manufacturer and from there to the specific Eye Doctor in Chicage. They, however, did not go to him or contact him for what ever reason. Years later (more recently), Investigators began looking into the case again and that is one of the loose ends that they tried to follow up on.

By then, the doctor had sold the business and had died. They spoke with the doctor's elderly widow to see if she knew where the records went. She told them that they transferred with the business, but further investigation learned that all of those older records had been destroyed or disposed of in some manner. So, it was known that this man was a patient of that Doctor in Chicago, at a certain time, but nothing more was available to identify him.

With that in mind, it is possible that this man had dental work done in Chicago, and maybe was treated in a VA hospital, or another hospital there. The problem is that without a name or some other identifying information, it is almost impossible to go through old records to try and find him. Because of Federal Privacy Act constraints on all of the records that would have to be looked through, there would likely be legal issues attatched to such a search.

IF... investigators were to find a name and/or military service number in all of the evidence, it would be actually pretty quick and easy to check and see if he had ever received any Veterans Benifits of any kind, because the VA has a very large and centralized data base.

As to getting a list of evidence released - that might be possible, but I do not know police procedures regarding it. One would think, however, at this late date that it could not hurt and might help.

 

[shadowangel]

I don't know if this is related in any way...While checking the archives, I found a report of a Marine sergeant, Robert Wright, Jr, who was murdered along the turnpike near Bedford in July of '52. He had been beaten death with a hammer. I could find no record that his murder was ever solved.

There was also a series of attacks and murders of truckers along the turnpike in the early '50s. A 28 year-old handyman/drifter, John W, Wable, was finally convicted of one of the murders (on circumstantial evidence) and sentenced to death in 1954.

And...in May of '55, boys on a hunting trip found 45 year-old Ray Fitz hanging from a railroad trestle near Waynesboro, PA. He had two notes on him, but neither dealing with his death.
Fitz was last seen leaving his job at an ordnance depot. Waynesboro is sixty miles from Bedford.

 

[Richard]

I don't know if this is related in any way...While checking the archives, I found a report of a Marine sergeant, Robert Wright, Jr, who was murdered along the turnpike near Bedford in July of '52. He had been beaten death with a hammer. I could find no record that his murder was ever solved.

There was also a series of attacks and murders of truckers along the turnpike in the early '50s. A 28 year-old handyman/drifter, John W, Wable, was finally convicted of one of the murders (on circumstantial evidence) and sentenced to death in 1954.

And...in May of '55, boys on a hunting trip found 45 year-old Ray Fitz hanging from a railroad trestle near Waynesboro, PA. He had two notes on him, but neither dealing with his death.
Fitz was last seen leaving his job at an ordnance depot. Waynesboro is sixty miles from Bedford.

It would be interesting to learn more about these and other similar crimes. The guy on the trestle probably was either a suicide, or a murder made to LOOK like a suicide to police investigators. The details would provide the clues.

The death of the Marine Sergeant sounds like a murder, as it would be hard to kill oneself with multiple blows to the head with a hammer. Was he robbed? Was he hitch hiking or driving a vehicle. Was the vehicle stolen?

The investigator of the 1958 John Doe case will be checking dates on the books and possibly on the currancy to see what the "no earlier than" date might be. While estimates place his death 6 months to two years prior to the October 1968 discovery, it could have been earlier. Each of those books was re-printed almost annually, so maybe there will be a valuable clue there.

He will also check the boots to see what wear pattern is on it. If there is significantly worn "kick start" mark on the Engineer boots, then maybe he was killed for his motorcycle and the murder made to appear as a suicide. If it was a suicide, then what became of his vehicle?