Alta Jane Doe.

MUS-2026-0492

Index entry. Case details compiled from public reporting; our researchers have not verified this file yet.

Partial skeletal remains of a woman, 37 to 47 years old and about 5 feet tall, were found scattered in a steep ravine at a roadside dump near the Interstate 64 Alta exit in Alta, West Virginia, on May 9, 2001. She may have been left handed, bore at least one child, and may have been a smoker, with a healed fracture of the left humerus and a chip in a lower tooth. Her cause of death is unknown, with dental charting and DNA available but no identification. In 2002 Greenbrier County officials said no identity had been obtained for the Alta woman or for two other unidentified women found in the county since 1999. The Doe Network page was last updated January 26, 2024, and still presents the case as an unidentified female, NamUs 2159, with cause of death unknown.

1. 2001

   On May 9, 2001, a WV Paving employee scavenging a roadside dump for mason jars comes across a human skull, and skeletal remains are found scattered in a steep ravine one mile west of Route 60 from the Interstate 64 Alta exit.

2. 2001

   Estimated date of death is 1998 to 2001, with remains partial skeletal and not recognizable.

3. 2001

   Physical profile: White female, 37 to 47 years old, about 5 feet tall, who may have been left handed, bore at least one child, and may have been a smoker, with a healed fracture of the left humerus and a chip in a lower tooth.

4. 2001

   Identifiers: dental charting available with photographs, radiographs, and charting, plus a history of quality professional dental care; DNA available; fingerprints not available; no clothing or jewelry found.

5. 2002

   Greenbrier County officials say no identity has been obtained for the Alta woman or for two other unidentified women found in the county since 1999.

6. 2024

   On January 26, 2024, the Doe Network page is last updated and still presents the case as an unidentified female, NamUs 2159, with cause of death unknown.

This case is with the West Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. If you know something, say something to them. For public-record leads for our researchers, use the tip line on any open file.

• Doe Network: Alta Jane Doe
• Charleston Newspapers: 2002 article on unidentified women