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The Independent
4 days ago
- Science
- The Independent
Remains found washed up on Jersey shore identified as missing 19th-century boat captain
A decades-old cold case at the Jersey Shore has been cracked after experts confirmed that skeletal remains found on three beaches belong to a 19th-century ship captain. Undergraduate student researchers at Ramapo College of New Jersey used advanced DNA technology to determine that bones from a leg, arm and fragments of a cranium all belonged to Captain Henry Goodsell - who died at sea 181 years ago at age 29. The bones were found separately on Ocean City, Margate and Longport beaches between 1995 and 2013. New Jersey State Police turned them over to researchers at the college's Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center last year. "We kind of kept going back and forth between, are they historic? Are they not historic?' NJSP Forensic Anthropologist Dr. Anna Delaney told NBC New York. "This is absolutely amazing because after all of this time, Henry has his name." While examining New Jersey shipwreck records, students uncovered newspaper articles from December 20 and 24, 1844. They learned that the Oriental, captained Goodsell, was carrying five crew members and 60 tons of marble to Philadelphia for Girard College when it sank near Brigantine Shoal in 1844, killing everyone on board. Researchers traced Goodsell's genetic relatives back to the 1600s and built family trees, revealing ancestral ties to Connecticut. They eventually located Goodsell's great-great-granddaughter in Maryland, whose DNA sample confirmed the captain's identity. Goodsell's family said they do not want his remains, so they will stay at a state repository indefinitely. 'Identifying human remains is one of the most solemn and challenging responsibilities law enforcement is charged with,' said Chief of County Detectives Patrick Snyder at the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office in a news release. 'Law enforcement works hard knowing that behind every case is a promise: that no one will be forgotten, and that we will pursue the truth until families have the answers they deserve,' he added.
Fox News
6 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
Mysterious bones that washed up on Jersey Shore finally identified 180 years after tragedy
Bones that mysteriously washed up on the Jersey Shore over the past three decades were recently identified, thanks to cutting-edge technology and diligent students. Ramapo College announced the discovery in a May 21 press release. The remains were identified as belonging to Henry Goodsell, a captain who died in an 1844 shipwreck off the coast of South Jersey's Brigantine Shoal. (See the video at the top of this article.) The ship was carrying 60 tons of marble for Girard College, a preparatory school, when it sprung a leak and sank. Goodsell's bones didn't wash up until over a century later, when they were found on various beaches in the Garden State. "A skull washed ashore in Longport in 1995, and more bones were found in Margate in 1999, both in Atlantic County," Ramapo College's statement noted. "In 2013, additional remains were found in Ocean City, Cape May County." "Scattered Man John Doe went without a name for 30 years since traditional methods of investigation could not deliver an identification." Cairenn Binder, assistant director of the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG) Center, told Fox News Digital that her team conducted traditional DNA testing to find a matching profile in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), a national DNA profile database. "More identifications like these will be made now that we have advances in technology." "While there was no missing person sample on file that matched with the profiles from the bones, the bones all matched one another, so that's how [the New Jersey State Police] learned they were all connected before we began working on the case," she said. Over the past several months, Ramapo students have gleaned various details about Goodsell's life from old newspapers. He was 29 years old when he died, and his ancestors were among the earliest settlers in Connecticut. "Capt. Goodsell's ancestors lived in Litchfield and Fairfield Counties in Connecticut and had all been there since the 1600s – some of the earliest European Americans," Binder said. "He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, but lived in Boston from at least the late 1830s." Goodsell also left behind a wife and two children when he perished; his family was financially devastated by the shipwreck. "The news reported that his family was left in 'very embarrassed' circumstances after the captain's death," Binder said. "There was a fundraiser held for Capt. Goodsell's widow a year after his death," she also said. Reports were that "she was destitute." Five or six other crew members were on the vessel, Binder noted, and all of them are believed to have died. One was found and buried while the others were lost at sea. Binder described the discovery as "extremely rare," noting that Ramapo researchers have not been able to find an older case where IGG was used to successfully identify remains. "There are a handful of cases where remains more than 100 years old have been identified with IGG, but this is the oldest we have been able to find," she said. "We believe that more identifications like these will be made now that we have the advances in technology to make them happen," she added. Authorities from various New Jersey law enforcement offices were also involved in the research. In a statement, Cape May County prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland said the same technology is used to "bring offenders to justice." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP" "The hard work of Ramapo College's IGG Center and working with the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit has demonstrated the power and accuracy of this new technology combined with classic detective work in solving complex cold cases that will bring offenders to justice and provide closure to victims' families," he noted.
Miami Herald
24-05-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
Bones that washed up on New Jersey beaches are identified as the captain of a 19th-century ship traveling to Philly
PHILADELPHIA - Skeletal remains that washed up on several South Jersey beaches starting in 1995 have been identified as a 19th-century ship captain who was commanding a schooner bound for Philadelphia at the time of his death, bringing an end to a three-decade mystery. The remains were those of 29-year-old Henry Goodsell, who died in the wreck of a ship dubbed the "Oriental" off the coast of Brigantine in 1844, the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center said in a statement. The schooner was transporting about 60 tons of marble to be used in the construction of Girard College when it went down, according to reports from the time. Goodsell's remains began washing ashore in 1995, when his skull was discovered on a beach in Longport, Atlantic County. More bones were discovered in Margate in 1999, and additional remains washed up in Ocean City, Cape May County, in 2013. Due to their wide dispersal, the remains came to be known as "Scattered Man John Doe," a nickname that stuck for years as investigators failed to determine their owner's identity. But in 2023, the New Jersey State Police partnered with Ramapo College's genealogy center in Mahwah to crack the case. The center sent a sample to a forensics lab, which later uploaded its results to genealogy databases. As part of that effort, Ramapo genealogy students found ancestral ties for the remains dating back to the 1600s in Connecticut. The students also began investigating reported shipwrecks off the New Jersey coast, and found the wreck of the Oriental referenced in two newspaper reports from the time - one in the York Democratic Press, and another in the Boston Daily Bee. According to those reports, the Oriental began its journey from Connecticut to Philadelphia in December 1844. Onboard were five crew members, along with the marble slated for Girard College, when the ship began to leak. It sank about a mile from the shoreline off the coast of Brigantine Shoal, killing everyone aboard. The ship sank on Dec. 4, 1844, according to records maintained by the New Jersey Maritime Museum. Only one crew member's body, a man named John Keith, was discovered following the wreck, the Boston Daily Bee reported at the time. It was not clear how the wreck impacted Girard College, which was under construction when the Oriental went down. The school opened in 1848, and by June 1845 - six months after the wreck - work on the facility was "proceeding with a considerable degree of activity," according to a Public Ledger report from the time. Following the students' discoveries, New Jersey police in March collected a genetic sample from one of Goodsell's great-great grandchildren. Authorities confirmed Goodsell's identity in early April, bringing an end to the mystery, which is considered to be among the oldest cold cases solved using investigative genetic genealogy, Ramapo College said. "Identifying human remains is one of the most solemn and challenging responsibilities law enforcement is charged with," said Patrick Snyder, chief of county detectives at the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office. "Law enforcement works hard knowing that behind every case is a promise: that no one will be forgotten, and that we will pursue the truth until families have the answers they deserve." The students' work, Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland said, not only identified Goodsell, but revealed a piece of local history, and showed how genetic genealogy techniques can be used in solving difficult cases. The work of the college and New Jersey State Police "has demonstrated the power and accuracy of this new technology combined with classic detective work in solving complex cold cases that will bring offenders to justice and provide closure to victim's families," he said. Goodsell's case, however, is not the first that Ramapo College's genealogy center has been a part of. The center, in fact, has consulted on some 92 cases, including identifying the partial remains of Maria Quinones Garcia, which were discovered in Pohatcong Township, N.J., in 2017, three years after she went missing from Allentown. ______ Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bones Began Washing Up on New Jersey Beaches 30 Years Ago. How College Students Helped Solve the Mystery
New Jersey college students helped solve the mystery of the skeletal remains that washed ashore at a series of local beaches between 1995 and 2013 New Jersey State Police worked with the Ramapo College of New Jersey Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center to identify the remains Authorities have announced that the bones belong to a 19th century schooner captain who died in a shipwreckA group of New Jersey college students helped identify skeletal remains that began washing ashore at a series of local beaches 30 years ago. Authorities announced on Wednesday, May 21, that the bones have been identified as belonging to captain Henry Goodsell, who died at 29 alongside all of his crew members about 180 years ago. 'Identifying human remains is one of the most solemn and challenging responsibilities law enforcement is charged with,' Chief of County Detectives Patrick Snyder at the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said in a statement. 'Behind every case is a promise: that no one will be forgotten, and that we will pursue the truth until families have the answers they deserve.' Of course, unraveling the mystery took decades. The remains initially known as "Scattered Man John Doe" began appearing in 1995. First, a skull washed ashore in Longport, and then years later, more bones were found in 1999 and 2013 in Margate and Ocean City. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. In the fall of 2023, state police began working with the Ramapo College's Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center. That November, officials sent a sample to Intermountain Forensics, a nonprofit organization that uploaded the information to a variety of different databases the following February. After that, Ramapo College students began diving in to help, including by looking up historic shipwrecks around the New Jersey coast. As part of their research, according to the press release, they found two newspaper articles from December 1844 detailing a shipwreck of 19th century schooner Oriental, which sank off the coast of Brigantine Shoal on its way from Connecticut to Philadelphia. A newspaper clipping suggested the ship, which was trying deliver 60 tons of marble for Girard College. likely leaked and sank less than a mile from shore. Armed with evidence, the students sent Goodsell's information to the New Jersey State Police, who collected a family reference sample in March 2025 from one of his great-great grandchildren. Police confirmed his identity on April 8, 2025. 'Using modern genealogy testing to identify bone fragments from the 19th century is a powerful reminder of our unwavering commitment to resolving cases no matter how old,' New Jersey State Police Superintendent Colonel Patrick J. Callahan said in a statement. He added, "The ability to bring answers to families — even generations later — shows how far science and dedication can take us.' Read the original article on People
CBS News
23-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Skeletal remains found on New Jersey beaches decades ago identified as captain of doomed 19th-century ship
Skeletal remains found on New Jersey beaches decades ago have been identified as those of a 19th-century schooner captain, thanks to the investigative efforts of college students. The ship, the Oriental, sank in 1844. The schooner was transporting 60 tons of marble from Connecticut to Philadelphia to be used in the construction of Girard College, which still operates today. The ship likely sprung a leak, according to a news release announcing the identification of the remains, and sank off the coast of Brigantine Shoal. All five crew members aboard the ship died. The skeletal remains, including a skull, were found on a number of South Jersey beaches between 1995 and 2013. The set of remains became known as "Scattered Man John Doe." Police efforts to identify the bones failed. In 2023, the New Jersey State Police partnered with Ramapo College's Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center. A sample from the bones was uploaded to genetic genealogy company Intermountain Forensics, which submitted it to DNA matching sites in February 2024. Meanwhile, students at Ramapo used the profile for research. They found ancestry matches dating back to the 1600s, including genetic relatives from Connecticut. For the next year, students continued to find ties to Connecticut, and eventually they started looking at shipwrecks off the coast of New Jersey. They came upon two articles about the sinking of the Oriental. One article named the crew members aboard at the time of the sinking and another detailed the wreck itself. "The storm was so tremendous that no help could be given from the shore," said the article, which was published in the Boston Daily Bee in December 1844 and described an account from a Connecticut publication. According to the article, one crew member was "decently buried" after his "corpse was thrown on the shore." No other bodies were discovered immediately after the sinking. A clipping from the Boston Daily Bee. Ramapo College of New Jersey The circumstantial evidence and genetic ancestry led the students to believe "Scattered Man John Doe" might be the captain of the ship, Henry Goodsell. Goodsell was 29 at the time of his death, and left a wife and three children, according to the Boston Daily Bee. The New Jersey State Police collected a family reference sample from one of his great-grandchildren in March 2025. In April 2025, the NJSP confirmed that "Scattered Man John Doe" was Goodsell. This has become one of the oldest cold case identifications using investigative genetic genealogy, Ramapo said. "Identifying human remains is one of the most solemn and challenging responsibilities law enforcement is charged with," said Chief of County Detectives Patrick Snyder at the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office. "Law enforcement works hard knowing that behind every case is a promise: that no one will be forgotten, and that we will pursue the truth until families have the answers they deserve." The Ramapo College IGG Center has consulted on 92 cases, Ramapo said. Two months ago, the program was credited with helping identify the remains of a woman who disappeared in 2014. In November 2024, student research led to an arrest in a decades-old cold case.
