Current:Home > reviewsPoinbank:'Our friend Willie': Final day to visit iconic 128-year-old mummy in Pennsylvania -MoneyMatrix
Poinbank:'Our friend Willie': Final day to visit iconic 128-year-old mummy in Pennsylvania
Oliver James Montgomery View
Date:2025-04-08 22:33:49
A man known as "Stoneman Willie,Poinbank" who died at a Pennsylvania jail over a century ago, has been identified through mummified remains.
After a thorough investigation, Auman's Funeral Home has successfully identified the "Stoneman Willie" body that has been on display for visitors since 1895. The funeral home is now fully prepared to bury the body on Oct. 7, properly.
Visitors can pay their respects to the deceased at Auman Funeral Home from 6-9 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 6. The man's name will be unveiled on his tombstone during the ceremony at a local cemetery.
The deceased's body will be transported to the gravesite, accompanied by a police escort, for the funeral ceremony.
"I think it's the honorable thing to do," the funeral home's director, Kyle Blankenbiller, told ABC News. "It felt good to finally find his identity."
The man was an alcoholic who died of kidney failure at Berks County Prison, Reuters reported. After being arrested for pickpocketing, he provided a fake name and was later referred to as "Stoneman Willie" upon his arrival at the funeral home.
The website Berks Nostalgia reported that the name he gave when he was arrested was "James Penn."
Stoneman Willie boldly admitted to the prison physician, just before his passing, that the name he had provided, James Penn, was a false one. He had given this name to protect the reputation of his brother and sister, Berks Nostalgia reported.
Since the police did not know the man's identity, they could not find family members to take his body, so he was released to Auman's Funeral Home in Reading, Pennsylvania.
He was then accidentally mummified in an attempt to experiment with novel embalming techniques, Reuters said.
Pennsylvania authorities gave Auman's Funeral Home permission to keep Stoneman Willie's body, rather than burying it, to keep monitoring the effects of the embalming technique.
The funeral home informed Reuters that Willie's hair, teeth, and skin are well-preserved.
"We don't refer to him as a mummy," Blankenbiller told Reuters. "We refer to him as our friend Willie. He has just become such an icon, such a storied part of not only Reading's past but certainly its present."
In tribute to his public viewing, Stoneman Willie was clothed in 19th-century garb, a Facebook post from the funeral home mentioned.
During his burial on Oct. 7, Stoneman Willie's real name will be publicly revealed and inscribed on his headstone.
More:Oklahoma woman sentenced to 15 years after letting man impregnate her 12-year-old daughter
veryGood! (67)
Related
- This was the average Social Security benefit in 2004, and here's what it is now
- Support for legal abortion has risen since Supreme Court eliminated protections, AP-NORC poll finds
- More Americans say college just isn't worth it, survey finds
- Biden’s support on Capitol Hill hangs in the balance as Democrats meet in private
- US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
- Joe Bonsall, celebrated tenor in the country and gospel group the Oak Ridge Boys, dies at 76
- Gun violence over July 4 week dropped in 2024, but still above 2019 levels
- Biden’s support on Capitol Hill hangs in the balance as Democrats meet in private
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- More Americans say college just isn't worth it, survey finds
Ranking
- Trump issues order to ban transgender troops from serving openly in the military
- Coast Guard suspends search for missing boater in Lake Erie; 2 others found alive, 1 dead
- Melissa Etheridge connects with incarcerated women in new docuseries ‘I’m Not Broken’
- Spain vs. France: What to know, how to watch UEFA Euro 2024 semifinal
- Federal appeals court upholds $14.25 million fine against Exxon for pollution in Texas
- The inspiring truth behind the movie 'Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot'
- SpaceX launches Turkey's first domestically-built communications satellite
- Coast Guard suspends search for missing boater in Lake Erie; 2 others found alive, 1 dead
Recommendation
Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
Target stores will no longer accept personal checks for payments starting July 15
The 'Bachelorette's Trista and Ryan are still together. Fans need it to stay that way
John Force moved to California rehab center. Celebrates daughter’s birthday with ice cream
Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
Under pressure from cities, DoorDash steps up efforts to ensure its drivers don’t break traffic laws
Beyoncé Cécred scholarship winner says she 'was shocked' to receive grant
Behind Upper Midwest tribal spearfishing is a long and violent history of denied treaty rights