Boy in Iron Coffin Identified as William White died 1852

A body in a cast iron coffin found by utility workers in Washington in 2005, has been identified.

Dozens of individuals used census records, obituaries in newspapers and DNA Testing to identify the remains as 15-year-old William Taylor White, who died in 1852.

William Taylor White was buried in the Columbia College cemetery and it appears he was simply left behind when the cemetery was moved.

White, from Accomack, Virginia was a descendant of Anthony West, one of the Jamestown settlers

The team of scientists working on finding who was buried in the coffin found an obituary published in the Daily National Intelligencer newspaper of Washington on Jan. 28, 1852, confirming White died Jan. 24, 1852, after a short illness.

Clothing historians were able to determine that he was dressed in a shirt, vest and pants that are consistent with clothing styles of the early to mid-1850s.

Read the online story