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Outlaw Bones Get The Heave Ho

March 3, 2009

There’s a human skeleton in the basement of the Historical Museum in Northfield, Minnesota. It was displayed, years ago, in a glass-topped coffin. That’s when the museum thought that it was Charlie Pitts, who robbed banks with Jesse James.

Now DNA testing says otherwise.

According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the skeleton isn’t Charlie. However, only one of its bones was tested, and experts conceded that the rest of the skeleton could still be Charlie (apparently two sets of bones were mixed at one point). But the museum really doesn’t want to display the skeleton, and is happy to have a reason to keep it in the basement.

So where is Charlie Pitts? According to one of the analysts, “He is probably out there somewhere as a medical specimen.” Or maybe he ended up in a spook house like fellow outlaw Elmer McCurdy. Or maybe he went to college.

The Press didn’t mention the status of the museum’s other special display: a human ear sewn to a piece of cardboard. We would guess that it’s been banished to the basement as well, although visitors might want to ask if they can take a peek.

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