Salem Mayor Nic Farley read a statement at the end of Monday’s city council meeting updating the effort to identify the unknown person buried in East Lawn Cemetery following the 1971 Tonti train wreck.
He reported work to identify the body was continuing after it was exhumed from the cemetery last spring.
“The city has been advised that genetic testing and genealogy research are progressing and that preliminary findings provide reasons to remain hopeful that it may ultimately be possible,” Farley said. “However, there has not been any confirmation. The relationship of any DNA relative remains unknown, and there is no reliable timeline for completion. Everyone involved remains optimistic, but the work continues and there is no set timeframe for when or if an ultimate identification will be made.”
Farley says further updates will be provided as the effort to identify the remains continues.
