The place was Sandtown Road, once known as the Sand Town Trail, near the West End in Atlanta where a man's skeleton was found. It was a swampy area, some distance from the road in a dense area of cane growth. Most noted that it was an "admirable spot for a murder."
Atlanta, April 12, 1897
The bones were found by a policeman's young son, and soon crowds flocked to the place. All believed the person was a victim of murder, with the body not fully decomposed. He appeared to have been a man of means. Near to the remains was a piece of a gold chain, a small silver ring and a dainty gold locket, which was in the man's pocket, and not discovered by his attacker, if theft was the motive.