By Julio-Cesar Chavez and Rich McKayREADING, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - A leather-skinned mummified man - a longtime curiosity lying in an open coffin in Reading, Pennsylvania and known only as "Stoneman Willie", got two things Saturday he went without for 128 years - a burial and his real name.
A group of funeral home employees and well-wishers, said in unison, "Rest in peace, James," as they unveiled his tombstone, with his real name in small letters below large type reading, "Stoneman Willie."
Because Murphy gave a fake name when arrested, local officials were unable to locate relatives, said local historian George Meiser.
"Weeks passed, months passed, years passed and no one claimed the remains," Meiser said at the service.
(Reporting by Julio-Cesar Chavez in Reading, Pennsylvania, writing and additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; editing by Diane Craft)
Persons:
Julio, Cesar Chavez, Rich McKay, Stoneman Willie, James Murphy, James, Murphy, Kyle Blankenbiller, Theo C, George Meiser, Weeks, Meiser, Stoneman, Pastor Robert Whitmire, Diane Craft
Organizations:
Reading, Auman Inc
Locations:
Pennsylvania, Reading , Pennsylvania, New York, Reading, Atlanta