Who Killed The Boy in the Box | America's Unknown Child

Vaccine scars were common in the 50s. They used a gun-type device to administer the smallpox vaccine, which left a small, round scar.

He wasn't necessarily disabled because he wasn't verbal. For children to develop speech they need to be exposed to a lot of language input( speaking around them) and it is common for kids in abusive or neglectful circumstances to have delayed speech because they aren't exposed to enough language to learn. This would likely b the case for a young kid that is being kept in a basement. That trauma can also affect development and delay speech.

I was trafficked for a year or so by my cousin, he’d assault me and allow others to assault me for drug money in the early 2000’s. This assault was never addressed by my grandmother who new it was happening as she thought he was “just too sweet to ever hurt me that bad” I suffer from severe c-ptsd, depression, anxiety, and episodes of psychosis. I am currently completing my bs in biology in one of the most vigorous pre-med schools in New York State. My main goal is to become a pediatric neurologist. So I think even if she was extremely traumatized she’d still be very capable of obtaining those degrees.

To know that his adoptive parents supported each others disgusting ways is sickening. Wished they would have been caught.

There was a trade of babies during that time. My grandmother was a black market baby in Delaware Valley. I was told she was informed she was bought, but even though she was not thiers biologically, they treated her just as good as they biological kids. They all had to do work. I often think of how lucky she was to have been taken care of and not treated like the boy in the box. I do not know my ancestry from her, but I randomly show Norwegian, Finnish, and Scandinavian DNA. I think that is from her since it does not fit anywhere else.

I don’t think most people don’t realize just how much the way your parents act shapes your view of what is “normal” when you’re growing up. I didn’t figure out until my junior year in high school that your dad finishing a 30 pack of Budweiser every night wasn’t normal. I grew up until the age of 16 or 17 believing everyone’s dad drank that much every night because to me that was normal. It’s crazy the things you can think are normal if you grow up around them long enough

Regarding the Joseph/Jonathan-discrepancy: I am not at all surprised that someone willing to buy a child will assign them a new name. Possibly the person that sold the child never even communicated the original name to the buyer.

I know this theory isn't confirmed, but I've always felt in my gut "M" was telling the truth despite her story usually being presented as a far fetched side story...and I will feel so vindicated for her if it is confirmed. She has likely played a large role in this being solved in 2023 and telling his story. It must have felt horrible having something you needed to confess to and having people doubt your trauma. It's unfortunate she didn't get to live long enough to be told "we believe you".

For Em saying Joseph was very quiet, never recall him speaking, things like that. This could potentially be explained by him having no real interaction with toys or anything that would give stimulation as a child. My husband could explain it better, but basically, when an infant grows up without any toys or anything to give any form of stimulation, they can become “flat” I believe is the term used. Where they don’t really smile, speak, they don’t do much of anything really. So this would make sense given that the child was sold to another family, if they’re going to sell the kid, why would they spend the money on toys for the child to play with?

I think it's possible Martha's parents didn't call the boy the correct name. Maybe they forgot his name and he was too little to correct them. My son is two and can't say his own name yet. This whole case just makes me sick.

Good god, this is exactly what I feared had been the case for the boy in the box...That he was unloved and abused his whole life before being murdered. The way we even have a name for this boy after all this time. All love to Joseph's soul...

It's common for children not to understand how messed up their family life is. It's all they've ever known, and their parents convince them it's normal. Kids might not realize it's not normal until they're teenagers. We don't know he's nonverbal just because the girl never heard him talk. Maybe he just didn't talk around her. It also may have had to do with him being traumatized, neglected, etc. But language disabilities (related to autism or not) aren't uncommon, so it's possible.

I'm glad Joseph has finally been identified and can be laid to rest under his real name, but it sucks that the people responsible for his neglect and death won't face justice

been following the case for a few years. saw the news in a magazine literally just 20 minutes ago. i'm so glad that joseph's name can finally be engraved on his tombstone

Please cover the girl in the box from Philly also. Everyone has forgotten about her. Found may 3rd 1962 in the river in a milk box tied down with a line. She was black and around 4 to 6 yrs old. Poor thing was headless with other injuries. Same coroner pushed so hard to keep boy in the box active but forgot about her😢

To be born into this world to be sold and abused is so horrifying. RIP little guy.

as someone who grew up less than five miles outside of chase, im so glad we've finally identified this child. of course murder isn't too unusual here in philly but this one little boy managed to stick in everyone's mind due to how long it was unsolved and the fact we couldn't even id him. i hope that soon joeseph can finally rest in peace with a headstone bearing his own name.

The fact that this child was never reported missing is very telling. He was probably “illegitimate” and not treated well by either of his biological parents. Unless they did not keep him and whoever adopted or bought him abused/killed him.

As a survivor of these types of crimes and situations, I want to sincerely say thank you for mentioning that sociopaths and awful people mask their behaviour because that is what they do. Your segment saying that you're not alone and your pain is valid made me tear up, because although I have nothing to do with these people, I've been through similar things, and I just wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart, thank you Lore Lodge. You guys are fantastic and I love every video you put out

As for Martha being dismissed by some because she had a "mental illness" and was seeing a psychiatrist, her childhood would likely have resulted in what is known today as "complex PTSD". This is not a mental illness, but a condition of the mind that results from childhood trauma, abuse, neglect, among other things. Her being traumatized by her family dynamics could have been suppressed for awhile, then surfacing, but regardless, people with this condition can be highly functioning in their adult lives, while still carrying the damage if the trauma. So, I don't dismiss Martha's account at all. Also, her description of where they got Joseph- houses close together and close to the street, sounds like the "row houses" in Philly. I'm familiar with this as I spent summers in the 1960s in Philly at my grandparent's, which was a row house. Usually these neighborhoods were largely blue collar, lower income families, rather than the neighborhood of single family homes like Martha's. I found your account of this story excellent, so am a new subscriber. As for completely relying on those public records- the 1950 census lists my Dad, named John, as "Joan", a daughter, but the sex is "M" for male, so, yeah... .You did a great job. My heart hurts for both Joseph and Martha. Good thing those parents are dead, and I think we can all agree they ain't in heaven!