The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1931-07-09
BODY FOUND In THE YOUCH
IDENTIFIED AS OAKLANDER
Disappearance From Home of
Franklin Griffith Leads Son to
Drag River for Shotgun
LAST SEEN HERE JUNE Fl

Inc hndlng OF MS shotgun, winch ne
was known to have taken with him
when he left home more than two
weeks ago, was responsible for the
Identification of the body which was
found in Little Yough River last week
as that of Frank Griffith, aged 6S, of
near Oakland.
The body, in a badly decomposed
state, was found on Monday after
noon, June go, by several boys who
were swimming at what is known as
the "pen-stock" swimming hole east
of Oakland near the Baltimore and
Ohio railway tracks. Venturing a lit
tie distance up stream from the swim
ming hole several members of the
party discovered the body and imme-
diately notified the States officers.
AS stated in last Thursdays issue of
The Republican coroner's jury was
summoned and the jury after view
ing the body, which was so badly de-
composed that Identification could not
be established, rendered a verdict to
the effect that death was due to the
infiction of a blow on the head of the
man by some manner to the
jury then unknown. While is was
the opinion of a number of the
members of the jury that the man
had been struck by train and his
body hurled into the river, yet States
Attorney Dawson and Sheriff w. H.
Haenftling were Of the opinion that
the man had come to his death as the
result of a shotgun charge fired at
close range.
Last Seen Sunday Night, June 81
Mr. Griffith was last seen alive on
Sunday night, June 81, by ]. W. Nc
Cue, at whose residence on Oak street
Mr.. Griffith had spent the entire day,
leaving the McCue home at about $3.50
o'clock that evening. According to
Mr.. McCue, Mr.. Griffith had been in
the habit of visiting him every Sun
day, arriving at his home usually on
Sunday morning and remaining all
day, and while at the time of his last
visit Mr.. McCue stated, he noticed no
particular difference in his humor or
manner as on other occasions, yet
since the finding of the body he real
ICES that he was more or less melan-
choly on that occasion.
The disappearance of Mr.. Griffith
from his home became alarming to
his family a week ago, but search had
not been made in a general way until
Saturday when his son Joy Griffith
went to the river where the body OF
the then unidentified man had been
found, and after searching the banks
of the stream for the gun his father
was known to have had, and meeting
with no success, he returned to the
spot on Sunday in company with sew
eral young men and after dragging
the river bed with hooks for a short
time the firearm was found on the
rivers bottom near the spot where the
body had been discovered nearly a
week before.
Mr.. Griffith is survived by the fol-
lowing sons and daughters, his wife
having died several years ago: Joy G.
Griffith, former deputy sheriff Of Gar
rett county; Mrs. Charles Reckard
and Mrs. Porter Dewitt, all of Oak
land; Mrs. w. J. Cole, Elmira, N. Y;
Webster Griffith, Morgantown, w.
Va; Cletis Griffith, Cleveland, o., and
Ralph Griffith, Jersey City, N. j.
The body of the dead man, which
had been inferred in the county. lot at
the Oakland cemetery, will be moved
to the family lot in the same burying
ground in few days.