Annie Carolyn Jenkins : “Memphis Teen Missing Since 1974 Identified as Maury County Jane Doe”

MAURY COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — After almost five decades of mystery, the identity of the “Maury County Jane Doe” has finally been revealed. On Wednesday, May 8, the Maury County Sheriff’s Office and DNA Doe Project announced that the remains have been positively identified as those of 19-year-old Annie Carolyn Jenkins from Memphis.

The discovery of the teen’s remains dates back to Valentine’s Day in 1975 when they were found by hunters on Joe Brown Road near I-65 in eastern Maury County. Initially estimated to be in her late teens or early 20s, the victim showed signs of trauma.

Following the discovery, her remains were sent to the University of Tennessee Department of Anthropology in Knoxville, where they have been stored for over 48 years. Despite multiple investigations, the authorities were unable to ascertain her identity.

In 2012, Lt. Jerry Williams, now retired, spearheaded further forensic tests and interviews in an attempt to uncover more information. Despite following numerous leads of missing persons matching the description, no matches were found.

It wasn’t until 2019 when investigators turned to the DNA Doe Project, a volunteer-driven nonprofit organization dedicated to identifying unidentified individuals, to employ investigative genetic genealogy in the case.

Thanks to the generous donations to the organization, the necessary DNA profiling was carried out on the severely degraded remains of the Maury County Jane Doe. The task involved the collaboration of four forensic labs over three years before a breakthrough was achieved in the summer of 2022.

Kevin Lord, the Director of Lab Logistics, expressed the challenges faced in extracting enough DNA for a workable profile, stating that it took three samples over two years to build the profile. With the help of Astrea Forensics, the DNA profile was successfully created and uploaded to GEDmatch.com.

The volunteer investigative genetic genealogists at DNA Doe Project managed to trace one side of the Jane Doe’s family tree early on. However, progress halted when they encountered difficulties in identifying the other side of her lineage.

After over 530 hours of genealogical research, a handful of close family members were identified. Detective Keith Wrather from Maury County made contact with a woman who turned out to be the missing link. She revealed that her sister, Annie Jenkins, disappeared in the fall of 1974 after visiting relatives in Chicago.

Subsequent DNA testing confirmed the woman’s identity as a full sibling of Annie Jenkins. The team leader, Traci Onders, expressed gratitude for being part of the effort to bring closure to Jenkins’ family.

With the identification now confirmed, Jenkins’ remains will be returned to her family. While many individuals connected to the case in 1975 have since passed away, an active homicide investigation is ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding her death.