Mystery Solved: Boy killed in Georgetown finally identified after 96 years

After 96 years, a boy killed by a train in Georgetown is finally going home.

Todd Matthews, director of case management and communication for NamUs, a national centralized repository and resource for missing persons and unidentified decedent records, identified the boy as Frank A. Haynes of Bronston. Matthews identified the boy Thursday near his grave in Georgetown Cemetery.

Haynes died April 1, 1921, when he was struck in the head by a train in Georgetown. At the time, officials tried to identify him and buried him before he was positively identified. He was buried in Georgetown Cemetery with the tombstone that simply reads, “Some Mother’s Boy.” He was about 19.

In March, Haynes’ body was exhumed and the remains were sent to the FBI for DNA testing. Part of the reason why the body was exhumed after so long was because of an impending lack of federal money for projects such as this. Matthews also had an interest in the case.

However, Matthews said identifying the body was a low priority for the FBI and there was a chance Haynes might not have been identified.

Matthews said he was able to identify Haynes’ without DNA identification because of other evidence, including a 1921 news article in the Georgetown Times identifying the boy as Haynes and testimony from living family.

Matthews, who knew about the case for all of his adult life, was happy to see it come to an end.

“This is a lifetime event for me,” Matthews said. “It was on my bucket list. It really was.”

Matthews suggested that a plaque be placed in Georgetown Cemetery where the boy was buried for 96 years.

“Some parts of him will always be here,” he said. “He’s in the soil here.”

Now Haynes’s remains, in a baby casket, will be taken back to Pulaski County where he will be buried.

This story was originally published June 15, 2017 at 3:24 PM with the headline "Mystery Solved: Boy killed in Georgetown finally identified after 96 years."