The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child Finally Has a Name
On a cold February day in 1957, a young man who was checking his rabbit traps made a discovery that would haunt Philadelphia for more than six decades. Fearing that the police would confiscate his traps, he did not report what he had found. A few days later, a college student spotted a rabbit running into the underbrush. Knowing that there were animal traps in the area, he stopped his car to investigate and discovered the body of a small boy in a cardboard box.
On December 8, 2022, Philadelphia Police Department Commissioner Danielle Outlaw announced a breakthrough in the case. The boy found dead in 1957, she said, was Joseph Augustus Zarelli. After 65 years, America's Unknown Child finally had a name.
A Grisly Discovery in Fox Chase
On February 25, 1957, Zarelli's body, wrapped in a plaid blanket, was found in the woods off Susquehanna Road in the Fox Chase neighborhood of Philadelphia. The child had been nude, covered in bruises, and had been dead two to three days by the time he was found. The boy, likely between ages 4 and 6, was wrapped in a faded plaid blanket, and his body was placed in a large cardboard box that once held a baby bassinet.
What investigators found was deeply disturbing. Joseph appeared to have been cleaned and freshly groomed, with a recent haircut and trimmed fingernails, although he had suffered extensive physical attacks prior to his death, with multiple bruises on his body. He was also severely malnourished. An investigation of his body revealed that his sandy hair had been recently and crudely cut — clumps of hair were still on his body — leading some to believe that his killer had tried to disguise his identity.
His body was covered with scars, some of which were surgical, and his feet and right hand were "pruny," suggesting he'd been in water. The medical examiner determined that the cause of death was homicide by blunt force trauma. Despite the violence he had endured, someone had taken care to bathe and groom the child before placing him in the box, a detail that would puzzle investigators for decades.
The Investigation Begins
In the months after the boy's body was discovered, investigators received hundreds of tips from Philadelphians and out-of-towners. By April 1957, more than 50 people from outside the city, as well as 85 city dwellers, attempted to identify the boy, and police received 500 letters in relation to the case.
The investigation became one of the most extensive in Philadelphia's history. The crime scene was combed over and over again by 270 police academy recruits, who discovered a man's blue corduroy cap, a child's scarf, and a man's white handkerchief with the letter "G" in the corner, all clues that led nowhere.
Police took to sending out circulars with photos of the boy and the blanket he was wrapped in, as well as a detailed description of his body and where he was found. The week he was discovered, police sent 4,000 circulars to city physicians, and 10,000 more to police departments throughout Pennsylvania and other Eastern states. A few days later, they prepared 25,000 more.
The publicity campaign was unprecedented. The Philadelphia Inquirer printed 400,000 flyers depicting the boy's likeness, which were sent out and posted across the area, and were included with every gas bill in Philadelphia. Police then sent out 300,000 circulars alongside Philadelphia Gas Works and Philadelphia Electric Co. bills in what The Inquirer called "the greatest circularization in the history of this city".
Despite this massive effort, no one came forward to identify the child or report him missing. This absence of any missing person report became one of the case's most baffling aspects.
Decades of Dead Ends and False Hopes
As years turned into decades, investigators pursued countless leads, each offering hope before ultimately leading nowhere. The case attracted numerous theories, some more credible than others.
One of the most persistent theories involved a foster home located approximately 1.5 miles from where the body was found. In 1960, Remington Bristow, an employee of the medical examiner's office who doggedly pursued the case until his death in 1993, contacted a New Jersey psychic, who told him to look for a house that matched the foster home. When the psychic was brought to the Philadelphia discovery site, she led Bristow directly to the foster home.
Upon attending an estate sale at the foster home, Bristow discovered a bassinet similar to the one sold at J. C. Penney. He also discovered blankets hanging on the clothesline that were similar to the one in which the boy's body had been wrapped when they discovered him. Bristow believed that the boy was the son of the stepdaughter of the man who ran the foster home, and that they disposed of his body so the stepdaughter would not be exposed as an unwed mother.
However, the police established that all the foster children were accounted for, and a reexamination by police investigators confirmed that the family were likely not involved. In 1998, Philadelphia police lieutenant Tom Augustine, who was in charge of the investigation, and several members of the Vidocq Society (a group of retired policemen and profilers), interviewed the foster father and the stepdaughter (whom he had married). The foster home investigation was closed.
Another significant theory emerged in 2002. A woman identified only as Martha, or "M", accused her mother of acquiring and killing the child. Police considered her story to be plausible but were troubled by her testimony, as she had a history of mental illness. She said that her mother and father purchased a boy named Jonathan (whom she claimed was "The Boy in the Box") from his birth parents in the summer of 1954, after which he was beaten to death and his body left abandoned inside a box outside of town.
Despite Martha's detailed knowledge of aspects of the case known only to police, neighbors who had access to Martha's house during the stated time period denied that there had been a young boy living there and dismissed Martha's claims as "ridiculous".
Scientific Advances and New Hope
As forensic science evolved, investigators hoped new technologies might finally provide answers. In 1998, his body was exhumed for the purpose of extracting DNA, which was obtained from a tooth. However, the technology of the late 1990s was limited, and investigators extracted a type of DNA from his teeth because it tends to be well-preserved. Called mitochondrial DNA, it is passed down through the mother. But that type of DNA represents just a small fraction of a person's overall genetic makeup, and there were no immediate hits when the sample was entered into the few databases available at the time.
By 2019, geneticists had developed a variety of statistical techniques for filling in the gaps in degraded DNA samples. The body was then exhumed yet again in 2019 to retrieve additional DNA samples. This second exhumation would prove to be the key to finally solving the mystery.
"It took 2½ years to get the DNA in shape, it was so bad," forensic genealogist Colleen Fitzpatrick said. The degraded DNA samples from a 65-year-old body presented enormous challenges, but advances in genetic genealogy offered new possibilities.
The Breakthrough
The case broke open through a combination of cutting-edge science and old-fashioned detective work. When the boy's remains were discovered in February 1957, no one had any inkling of identifying him by his DNA. It had been just four years since scientists famously discovered the structure of this genetic molecule, in 1953.
In the case of the Boy in the Box, investigators said they identified cousins as well as half-siblings on his mother's and father's sides. When investigators got in touch with possible relatives, Fitzpatrick said, they were able to assemble a family tree. "There were cousins on both sides of the family that could only funnel to that one individual," she said.
When they finally recovered a snippet of genetic data, they were able to match it to a distant cousin who had uploaded a profile to Ancestry.com using an at-home kit. This match led investigators down a genealogical path that would finally give the unknown boy his identity.
After obtaining a court order for vital records related to the child's suspected mother, they found Joseph's birth certificate. The investigation revealed that Joseph Augustus Zarelli was born on Jan. 13, 1953, and lived near 61st and Market Streets in West Philadelphia for his short life. His lifeless body was found badly beaten and dumped in February 1957, 15 miles northeast of where he lived in Philadelphia's Fox Chase neighborhood.
Justice Remains Elusive
While identifying Joseph was a monumental breakthrough, it was only the beginning of a new phase in the investigation. Authorities still don't know how he died, or who killed him. "The job is over 65 years old now," Captain Jason Smith said. "It's definitely going to be an uphill battle for us to definitively to determine who caused this child's death".
Police say Zarelli has siblings on both his maternal and paternal sides. Many are still in the area. His mother and father are deceased. Police declined to release their identities. The investigation revealed painful family secrets spanning generations, but investigators remain tight-lipped about specific details to protect the ongoing investigation.
Captain Jason Smith, leader of the Philadelphia Police Department's homicide unit, said in 2022 that authorities were hoping for an "avalanche of tips" after the boy's identification. "I'm hopeful that there's somebody who is in their mid-to-late 70s, possibly 80s, who remembers that child," said Smith. "There would have been somebody out there that would've seen this child. Perhaps another family member that hasn't stepped forward, possibly a neighbor that remembers seeing that child, remembers whatever occurring at that particular household. That's what I'm hoping comes out of this".
A Legacy of Persistence
The Boy in the Box case represents more than just a cold case solved through technology. It stands as a testament to the dedication of countless investigators who refused to let an unknown child be forgotten. By July 1957, the boy's identity was still unknown and his body had laid in the city morgue for months. So, detectives held a funeral for the boy, taking up a collection to pay for the associated costs, and receiving help from the Funeral Directors Association of Philadelphia.
Detective Samuel Weinstein became particularly devoted to the case, visiting the boy's grave regularly and working on it long after his retirement. "It's something you don't forget," Elmer Palmer, the first officer to arrive on the scene, told the Philadelphia Inquirer in 2007. "This one was the one that bothered everybody".
Joseph Augustus Zarelli was originally buried in a potter's field. In 1998, he was reburied at Ivy Hill Cemetery in the Cedarbrook section of Philadelphia, which donated a large plot. The coffin, headstone, and funeral service were donated by the son of the man who buried the boy in 1957.
For 65 years, his headstone bore only the inscription "America's Unknown Child," with the words "Heavenly Father, Bless This Unknown Boy" beneath. On January 13, 2023, which would have been Joseph's 70th birthday, a new memorial containing his full name and image was unveiled, along with the addition of his name to the existing headstone.
The Investigation Continues
Despite finally having a name for the victim, the case remains open. At a December 2022 press conference, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Outlaw stated that Joseph's death is "still an active homicide investigation and we still need the public's help".
The identification of Joseph Augustus Zarelli represents a significant victory for forensic science and criminal investigation, but it also highlights the ongoing challenges in solving decades-old cases. While DNA technology has revolutionized cold case investigations, the human element remains crucial. Someone, somewhere, may still hold the key to understanding what happened to this four-year-old boy in the final days of his life.
"This child's story was always remembered by the community," Commissioner Outlaw said at the December 2022 press conference. "His story was never forgotten". Indeed, Joseph's story has transcended its tragic origins to become a symbol of the importance of never giving up on justice, regardless of how much time passes.
The case of Joseph Augustus Zarelli reminds us that behind every cold case is a human being whose life mattered, whose death deserves explanation, and whose memory deserves to be preserved. In Philadelphia, this unknown child will never be forgotten, and the search for his killer continues.
Sources
The Philadelphia Inquirer - "'Boy in the Box' DNA used to crack 1957 Philadelphia cold case"
People Magazine - "'Boy in the Box Case' Still Haunts Philadelphia 2 Years after Boy Was ID'd"
Wikipedia - "Murder of Joseph Augustus Zarelli"
The Philadelphia Inquirer - "'Boy in the Box': Philadelphia homicide case history"
The Line Up - "The Boy in the Box: Philadelphia's Decades-Long Child Murder Mystery"
CBS Philadelphia - "How Philadelphia police identified 'The Boy in the Box'"
NBC Philadelphia - "After 65 Years, Philadelphia Police Identify 'The Boy in the Box'"
