Remains of Pennsylvania teen at center of 1973 cold case identified as investigation continues

LEBANON COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) — In the fall of 1973, 14-year-old Ruth Elizabeth Brenneman of York County, Pennsylvania, left her home to go to school and never returned. Now, more than 50 years later, authorities say they have identified Brenneman's remains.

According to Pennsylvania State Police, after Brenneman's disappearance, two game wardens discovered decomposed remains in a wooded area off Moonshine Road near Ridge and Tomstown Roads in Union Township, Lebanon County, on October 10, 1973.

The remains were found under a plastic tarp and brush approximately 47 miles away from Brenneman's York County home. A manner of death, as well as an identity, were not determined. Brenneman's case then went cold and those remains were laid to rest as a Jane Doe.

Investigators tried to solve her case multiple times over the last five decades, Nexstar's WPHL reports. Officials developed two busts of what the teenager may have looked like and used forensic analysis, as well as other three-dimensional representations, to no avail.

In May 2016, those remains were exhumed from Mount Lebanon Cemetary with the hope of identification.

Investigators got a break in October of this year when, with the help of "good old genealogy research" including interviews and public records research, they were able to positively identify the remains as Brenneman's.

The circumstances regarding her death remain unknown at this time, according to state police, but investigators consider her death suspicious.

"Just because we identified her today, that doesn’t end our investigation," Trooper Ian Keck said at a news conference Thursday, according to the Associated Press. "Learning about her everyday life and who she associated with is a key part of this investigation."

The family of Ruth Brenneman, who also called her Ruthie, provided a public statement expressing gratitude toward investigators who worked on the case.

"Their work has provided us with some closure on questions that have lingered for the past 51 years," the family expressed. Brenneman would have turned 66 on Tuesday, November 26.

A $5,000 reward is being offered for information that solves this case. Anyone with information regarding this case should call PSP Jonestown at 717-865-2194 or PSP Tips Toll Free at 1-800-4PA-TIPS (8477).