We can sometimes forget that adults aren't the only unidentified persons. |
45UFMS - UP12191During the night of December 3-4, 1982, truck drivers along I-10 flooded their CB radio channels reporting sightings of an obviously distressed woman carrying a small child and walking on the side of the interstate in Jackson County Mississippi. They also reported that the woman, who was wearing a blue plaid shirt and blue jeans, would not accept help from those who offered. On December 5, 1982, a truck driver called police to report seeing a body, wearing a blue plaid shirt and jeans, floating in the Dog River. By the time authorities arrived, the woman's body was nowhere to be found, but the body of a small child was located in the river, thought to have been thrown from the I-10 bridge. |
She would later be given temporary identifiers 45UFMS (Doe Network) and UP12191 (NamUs) to make do until she's identified. Thankfully, there are some amazing people working with the NCMEC who were able to make the composite seen above to aid in the search for her name.
What We Know:
1-2 years old
2' 5" - 2' 6"
20 - 25 lbs
Strawberry blonde hair
12 of her baby teeth had come in
She was wearing a pink and white Cradle Togs dress that buttoned in the back,
and a disposable diaper
1-2 years old
2' 5" - 2' 6"
20 - 25 lbs
Strawberry blonde hair
12 of her baby teeth had come in
She was wearing a pink and white Cradle Togs dress that buttoned in the back,
and a disposable diaper
What could have led this mother to take her toddler, in the middle of the night, and journey down the side of a major highway? Furthermore, what made her throw her daughter from a bridge, down into the river, then jump in herself? We know that neither the mother or the child survived, but the mother's remains have never been recovered. Undoubtedly, having the mother's remains would make identifying this beautiful little girl less challenging, but you can't get stuck in the "if only" mindset. It's been 37 years since this little life was lost, and she has yet to be reunited with her identity. Certainly she had other family, neighbors who had at least seen the mother and child, or friends in the area that would notice them missing. Alas, if those people exist, they either didn't report the pair missing or were not successful in attempts to have authorities file missing persons reports. Either way, the little girl was given a proper funeral and burial by a Jackson County Sheriff's Deputy and his wife, a sorrowful event attended by more than 200 people from the community. They came together in a difficult time to lay this Baby Jane to rest, now the rest of us need to step up and do what we can to help bring her case to a close.
If you want to know more about her case, or if you have any information to report to authorities, you can use one of the buttons below.
Emily
True crime, cold case, long-term missing/unidentified, and all things mystery. I've always been interested, but now I'm involved in the search.
Archives
June 2023
July 2022
October 2021
September 2021
March 2021
June 2020
January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
Categories
All
1980s Unidentified
2010s
Missing Military
South Carolina
Televangelist's Daughter
UP12594
West Virginia
Young Janes
Photos used under Creative Commons from Jinx!, Damian Gadal