The Unidentified Man in the River
After a body is discovered in the Columbia near Coolidge, a desperate search for identity leads to a heartbreaking false alarm.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The body of an unknown man was found floating in an eddy of the Columbia River last Friday by a rancher near Coolidge. Undertaker I. N. Mueller was immediately notified and the body removed from the river and brought to Kennewick Saturday morning. The man was of medium height and build, dark complexion, smooth-shaven, and evidently about 45 years old. The body had been in the water about 30 days. There was no clue to his identity, save for a few trinkets and a wad of paper in his pockets, and the trademark of the Weigle Clothing Company on his shirt. Thinking it might be a Mr. Miler of Burbank who disappeared in January, Mr. Mueller communicated with the family, but they were convinced it was not him. The body was buried Sunday but exhumed Monday at the request of a Mrs. Larson of North Yakima, who hoped it might be her missing son. After viewing the remains, she concluded it was not her son due to the condition of the teeth.
“Owing to the badly decomposed state of the body it was buried Sunday morning in the local cemetery but was exhumed Monday at the request of a Mrs. Larson.”
Unidentified bodies are a grim, recurring tragedy in the history of the Columbia River, often speaking to the isolation of laborers and transients who passed through the region. This story highlights the lack of modern forensic tools, relying instead on personal effects and dental recognition in an era before DNA or national databases.
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