Cold Case #2, “The Boy in the Box”
The story about the “boy in the box” was in 1957 about a 3-6 year old boy found in a bassinet box.
In sometime in February of 1957 a man was checking a muskrat trap in the 700 block of Susquehanna Road, near Pennypack Park, Philadelphia. As he was checking on his traps, he found the body of a young boy. While muskrat traps being illegal at the time and him not wanting his traps taken away, he did not report the body. The next day, he was listening to the radio when he heard a report about a missing 4-year-old girl. He contacted police thinking maybe the body he found was the missing girl but after tests, they found out it was not her.
The autopsy of the boy found that he suffered blunt force trauma before he died, as there were four round-shaped bruises on his forehead. His face was wrinkled by water and blood-drained. There were bruises all over his body, his lips were dry and bloody, and his body was so small that his ribs were showing through his skin. This appeared to be from what looked like years of abuse. It was suspected that the boy died as a result of being drowned.
After he was killed, the killer wrapped the body in a flannel blanket sold at JCPenney and put him in a white bassinet case that was sold also at JCPenney. He was nude and only his shoulders and head sticking out. Whoever killed him placed the buys hands gently on his body and wrapped him in the blanket as if he was trying to keep him warm. A corduroy blue cap was found at the crime scene along with a tan child’s scarf, and a small handkerchief with the letter “G” in the corner that appeared to belong to the boy.
A little while after no one came forward about knowing about the boy and he was buried, the John Doe’s remains were exhumed to extract DNA for testing. It was taken from the enamel from one of his teeth and was sent to the University of North Texas and entered into both national and local databases. Unfortunately, nothing came back. After the tests came back, John Doe was buried back in a potter’s field in Holmesburg, Pennsylvania, next to Mechanicsville and Dunks Ferry Road. His tombstone read, “Heavenly Father, Bless This Unknown Child.”
The case was eventually featured on America’s Most Wanted, and while numerous people called in, no leads resulted.
If you would like to know more about his case or understand it in further detail feel free to check out the links i have below!
https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2020/04/24/the-boy-in-the-box/
https://themissingandthelost.com/theboyinthebox/
https://www.inquirer.com/philly/blogs/real-time/the-boy-in-the-box-1957-DNA-philadelphia.html