Identified! PA - Philadelphia - 'Boy in the Box' - 4UMPA - Feb'57 - Joseph Augustus Zarelli #4

I can't speak to the organized crime aspect of things, but my paternal great grandfather murdered someone over a hundred years ago and never faced justice. To this day, my remaining paternal aunts won't talk about it. My guess is my late grandmother harbored him as a fugitive on and off until he died. I think my aunts were complicit in it, and they're scared they'll get in trouble for helping her do it. So, even a hundred year old murder has my paternal family still looking over their shoulder.
I have someone similar in my family tree. Honestly, it's the part I'm most interested in and the part no one will discuss, lol.
 
Ah. That's probably true. Now I feel kinda stupid, lol.:oops:

You're not stupid! It was an interesting idea. In my own very limited experience with "mob types" (who knows if they were actually connected, but it was plausible), it seemed like they were actually very protective of children and concerned about keeping them away from shady stuff.
 
What part? I admit it's farfetched and I don't know much about how that sort of thing "works."
They don't kill children to send a message. Most people killed by the mafia are members of the mafia or associates themselves.
Now there are innocent people affected by the mafia, but it usually goes like this, "You wanna us to leave you alone? You keep this cigarette vending machine in your business". So, there is this go along to get along attitude. The mafia would boycott businesses that did not put their machines in. The boycotts were often strong enough to put a businesses under. It's always about money.

Most of it involved petty stuff.

People killed were usually "insiders" who threatened the mafia's existence.

There are a few hard-head anti-mafia types who butt heads and end up in trouble, but for the most part, the cigarette machine would go up and the business owner would shrug.


BTW: Alot of cops are Italian, so there's always room for other sides of the coin
 
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If she is married, then the father's name will be the husband. If she is not married, then the mom and dad must fill out an affidavit (with ID of course) for the father's name to be on birth certificate. This is the state of Florida. Years ago things were different and caused confusion and many lawsuits. That's why an unmarried dad must supply ID and sign affidavit before his name is entered on birth certificate. I included a link because it's been a while since I worked LDRP, but nothing's changed that I can see.
My Pennsylvania BC from 1956 only indicates that I'm legitimate under the "For health and medical use only" section. It was filled by the doctor. The section also includes info about syphilis, prenatal care, birth weight and stuff like that. There does not appear to be an affidavit connected to this.

_______________________________

Legitimacy is sort of a weird thing that I learned going back on an old family tree. (From 1827 - North Carolina) I won't discuss it because I did a few pages back and don't want to get off topic.

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Legitimacy may have been in the health section in my 1956 birth certificate to determine: "Would social services need to be contacted?" When I worked in newborn in the 1990s, sometimes children of prostitutes got automatic social service referrals. Additionally, infants born to teens under 16, automatically received social service referrals.
__________________________________________________

Saw this site How to Go About Finding Your Illegitimate Ancestor's Father
Mexico had various degrees of legitimacy: hijo natural de, adulterino, (not married) espurio (fake father's name or unknown), bastardo, or ilegítimo.

Also different states based their laws on other locales. Texas has bits of Mexico in their laws. It's complicated!
Also noting Mexico, which was Spanish, which was Catholic and since Zarelli is Italian with recent immigration...maybe they had similar conventions in Italy?? Anyway, it's a gray area. I think investigators are very fortunate to have this information on Joseph's parentage.
 
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They don't kill children to send a message. Most people killed by the mafia are members of the mafia or associates themselves.
Now there are innocent people affected by the mafia, but it usually goes like this, "You wanna us to leave you alone? You keep this cigarette vending machine in your business". So, there is this go along to get along attitude. The mafia would boycott businesses that did not put their machines in. The boycotts were often strong enough to put a businesses under. It's always about money.

Most of it involved petty stuff.

People killed were usually "insiders" who threatened the mafia's existence.

There are a few hard-head anti-mafia types who butt heads and end up in trouble, but for the most part, the cigarette machine would go up and the business owner would shrug.


BTW: Alot of cops are Italian, so there's always room for other sides of the coin
Thank you for explaining. I'm not going to ask how you know. o_O
 
Did you try finding an older date in Google maps? I've had luck with that area and older pictures. Obviously Google wasn't around but sometimes there are pictures. Can you tell me the address of the garage area?
Historic Aerials dot com has the answers -
Historic Aerials has aerial photos showing that the rowhouses at 61st and Market in 1953 and 1958 are essentially the same as they are today - the neighborhood wasn't entirely leveled and "redeveloped". If you look close you can see little white blobs that are cars parked on the street. Below are aerial photos from 2008 and 1958, with the intersection of 61st and Market circled on both.

2008.png
1958.png
 
My impression of the homes in the 61st and Market area are "NYC style rowhouses", not much room for vehicles. No garages, no alleys either. Homes are about 100 years old. St Donato's Church was founded in 1910.

Between 1910 and 1950, Philadelphia was the third most populated city in the US. (Aka: a mass transit city)

Currently there are "garages" a block away, but we don't know if those are converted storefronts and what they were in the 1950s. When I saw the documentary about St Donato's, I had a hard time imagining those 1950's Italian working class families not owning vehicles.



However, wikipedia does give reference to garages in this area, although I don't really see them. There is street parking though and people and I assume many people who live there now own vehicles.

I believe this describes the homes in the general area:
The western reaches of West Philadelphia included miles of two-story rowhouses with bay windows above classical columned front porches. What resulted was a collection of Colonial Revival houses with Arts and Crafts influences, which reflect the sophisticated tastes of post-World War I Philadelphians. For the first time in West Philadelphia, houses had garages.
An image in the wikipedia entry shows a rowhouse with a bay window that looks just like the homes in the area of 61st and Market. (It's the second to the last image of a home structure)
The Sanborn maps available through the Library of Congress give us a pretty solid clue as to what the buildings in that area were in the 1950s - though the maps were originally drawn in the 1910s, very little changed between then and the 1950s. Unfortunately the map for this exact intersection is not available from the LOC online, I was able to get one from a mile east on Market street - they were pretty much all storefronts on the ground floor with dwelling units above and possibly behind. Garages would have been built with new construction only, this area was all rowhouses likely built before WWI. Businesses that were of high fire risk and/or occupying the ground floor with dwelling units above are notated - bakery, movie theater, hardware & paint store, etc.

It would have been extremely risky, suspicious, and physically difficult to transport a dead child to the other side of the city on mass transit, so I agree that they must have had a car, even though the "elevated railway" was just down the street. I think not having a garage to obscure neighbors' view makes it even more likely that Joseph was carried from the home to the car in the box - "Oh we're just taking this old bassinet to my sister's house, nothing to see here"


SanbornPhilly.png
 
My Pennsylvania BC from 1956 only indicates that I'm legitimate under the "For health and medical use only" section. It was filled by the doctor. The section also includes info about syphilis, prenatal care, birth weight and stuff like that. There does not appear to be an affidavit connected to this.

_______________________________

Legitimacy is sort of a weird thing that I learned going back on an old family tree. (From 1827 - North Carolina) I won't discuss it because I did a few pages back and don't want to get off topic.

_________________________________
Legitimacy may have been in the health section in my 1956 birth certificate to determine: "Would social services need to be contacted?" When I worked in newborn in the 1990s, sometimes children of prostitutes got automatic social service referrals. Additionally, infants born to teens under 16, automatically received social service referrals.
__________________________________________________

Saw this site How to Go About Finding Your Illegitimate Ancestor's Father
Mexico had various degrees of legitimacy: hijo natural de, adulterino, (not married) espurio (fake father's name or unknown), bastardo, or ilegítimo.

Also different states based their laws on other locales. Texas has bits of Mexico in their laws. It's complicated!
Also noting Mexico, which was Spanish, which was Catholic and since Zarelli is Italian with recent immigration...maybe they had similar conventions in Italy?? Anyway, it's a gray area. I think investigators are very fortunate to have this information on Joseph's parentage.
I'm not sure when affidavits became necessary. And only the birth certificate with person claiming to be bio dad, if unmarried, is sent to the mom's or primary caretaker's home via mail. I know years ago, women could name the father without the father's presence. I remember a particular case when a woman named a famous singer as the father and there was a subsequent court case against the singer that eventually was dropped by the news media so I don't know what happened as there was no internet then for searching. Also when I worked LDRP, I would explain this to parents along with the point that any man without an ID could claim he was any name, even someone he didn't like. People claiming to be bio dads were a lot more compliant when they were given the rationale that we were given by the hospital regarding birth certificates. It was a happy day when the hospital where I worked hired clerks to do birth certificates.
 
I'm not sure when affidavits became necessary. And only the birth certificate with person claiming to be bio dad, if unmarried, is sent to the mom's or primary caretaker's home via mail. I know years ago, women could name the father without the father's presence. I remember a particular case when a woman named a famous singer as the father and there was a subsequent court case against the singer that eventually was dropped by the news media so I don't know what happened as there was no internet then for searching. Also when I worked LDRP, I would explain this to parents along with the point that any man without an ID could claim he was any name, even someone he didn't like. People claiming to be bio dads were a lot more compliant when they were given the rationale that we were given by the hospital regarding birth certificates. It was a happy day when the hospital where I worked hired clerks to do birth certificates.
Here is part of mine from 1956. It is from PA. When I went to a genealogy site, I found out one reason for asking about legitimacy was to determine whether the mother had a means of support for her child. In the 1950's, social services were available (As opposed to "poor houses") OTOH single women need a means to support themselves and lack of employment opportunities would have been an issue. Hence, it would be for "health reasons" since social service consults began at the hospital. Also listing the father could establish a source of financial support BC 4.jpg
 
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The Sanborn maps available through the Library of Congress give us a pretty solid clue as to what the buildings in that area were in the 1950s - though the maps were originally drawn in the 1910s, very little changed between then and the 1950s. Unfortunately the map for this exact intersection is not available from the LOC online, I was able to get one from a mile east on Market street - they were pretty much all storefronts on the ground floor with dwelling units above and possibly behind. Garages would have been built with new construction only, this area was all rowhouses likely built before WWI. Businesses that were of high fire risk and/or occupying the ground floor with dwelling units above are notated - bakery, movie theater, hardware & paint store, etc.

It would have been extremely risky, suspicious, and physically difficult to transport a dead child to the other side of the city on mass transit, so I agree that they must have had a car, even though the "elevated railway" was just down the street. I think not having a garage to obscure neighbors' view makes it even more likely that Joseph was carried from the home to the car in the box - "Oh we're just taking this old bassinet to my sister's house, nothing to see here"


View attachment 389030
They lived in the "vicinity" of 61st and Market. Go north about 5 blocks, then go west about 6 blocks. Look for St Donato Church/Cabrini Regional School. They lived a few blocks east of St Donato's. They're two story duplex type row houses. No alleys. Still very few garages. However, families had jobs that required transporting of tools and equipment, so I believe they had vehicles.

Wikipedia describes home construction as post WWI...So, it was at a time when autos were popular.

I read the rowhouse was a holdover from British style construction. Philly natives on DU have stated they parked on streets and have mastered parallel parking! By contrast, inner city Chicago has 120 year old homes with alleys and garages. Every home in a Chicago has them! Even the most rundown. So, it's an "east coast" thing.

61st and Market is a business district. I believe LE gave that address to protect current residents who reside near St Donatos...JMO
 
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Hmm, not sure. Maybe I’m wrong cuz this could have been a great clue if the bassinets came in different colors.

Unlike today......... there were simply not the variations of styles, colors, flavors etc.
i would truly bet on the "colors" being the pads, and not the basinette.
 
Historic Aerials dot com has the answers -
Historic Aerials has aerial photos showing that the rowhouses at 61st and Market in 1953 and 1958 are essentially the same as they are today - the neighborhood wasn't entirely leveled and "redeveloped". If you look close you can see little white blobs that are cars parked on the street. Below are aerial photos from 2008 and 1958, with the intersection of 61st and Market circled on both.

View attachment 389021
View attachment 389019

Hi MapsGeek, I'm really glad you joined us. I think maps are an important part of this case, especially as it pertains to how Joseph's killer, or the people moving his body if they aren't the same people/person, got him from where he lived to where he was later found. To me, that's a huge aspect of the mystery. Thanks for your insight!
 
Here is part of mine from 1956. It is from PA. When I went to a genealogy site, I found out one reason for asking about legitimacy was to determine whether the mother had a means of support for her child. In the 1950's, social services were available (As opposed to "poor houses") OTOH single women need a means to support themselves and lack of employment opportunities would have been an issue. Hence, it would be for "health reasons" since social service consults began at the hospital. Also listing the father could establish a source of financial support View attachment 389041

Thanks for sharing this, Friday Fan. I'm intrigued to see the field about the month of first visit for prenatal care. My birth certificate (Georgia, 1970's) does not include that.
 
The Sanborn maps available through the Library of Congress give us a pretty solid clue as to what the buildings in that area were in the 1950s - though the maps were originally drawn in the 1910s, very little changed between then and the 1950s. Unfortunately the map for this exact intersection is not available from the LOC online, I was able to get one from a mile east on Market street - they were pretty much all storefronts on the ground floor with dwelling units above and possibly behind. Garages would have been built with new construction only, this area was all rowhouses likely built before WWI. Businesses that were of high fire risk and/or occupying the ground floor with dwelling units above are notated - bakery, movie theater, hardware & paint store, etc.

It would have been extremely risky, suspicious, and physically difficult to transport a dead child to the other side of the city on mass transit, so I agree that they must have had a car, even though the "elevated railway" was just down the street. I think not having a garage to obscure neighbors' view makes it even more likely that Joseph was carried from the home to the car in the box - "Oh we're just taking this old bassinet to my sister's house, nothing to see here"


View attachment 389030
This Sanborn map is from 1925. General area. Residential block in upper left. It has one garage with a capacity for 9 cars. (LOL) Street name must have changed. I notice that a garage exists a block to the south and east with a capacity for 50 cars (LOL) The garage is now a gas station and laundromat. So even back in 1925, there were automobile accommodations. The accommodations were just "different" than many homes built at the same time in other cities like Chicago. CONTENTdm
Screenshot Capture - 2022-12-21 - 12-26-57.png
 
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This Sanborn map is from 1925. General area. Residential block in upper left. It has one garage with a capacity for 9 cars. (LOL) Street name must have changed. I notice that a garage exists a block to the south and east with a capacity for 50 cars (LOL) The garage is now a gas station and laundromat. So even back in 1925, there were automobile accommodations. The accommodations were just "different" than many homes built at the same time in other cities like Chicago. CONTENTdm
View attachment 389101
I'm actually very familiar with Chicago and it's "coach houses" - lived there for many years myself. Some of them were, genuinely, carriage houses from the 1800s - there was even an ancient horse barn in the alley on my old block. The size of the "back yards" on these blocks does make me think people may have parked in them if it didn't upset their neighbors too much.

However, I do think the rowhouses in this area were constructed pre-WWI, it was likely an earlier "streetcar suburb" - I suspect that the garage on this map was built well after the houses, either on an undeveloped spot or where another structure had burned down.

Car ownership is definitely not dependent on the availability of off-street parking! I certainly agree that in order to have transported the body they would have had to have a car, or at least borrowed one.
 
Wikipedia describes home construction as post WWI...So, it was at a time when autos were popular.
It does also talk about earlier development in the area - because of the proximity of major streets and the elevated line (the 60th street station opened in 1907), I think it's very likely it was developed pre war because of the rapid transit.
 

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