BREANNA HANLEY/FOR THE EXPRESS James T. Baumgratz latest book “Unsolved Cold Cases from the Pennsylvania Wilds” is pictured above.

The author of other Pennsylvania-centric mysteries such as “Murders & Mysterious Deaths in PA Wilds” and “Missing in the Pennsylvania Wilds,” has published a new book centered around cold cases in the region.

In his eighth book, James T. Baumgratz focuses his attention on over 40 unsolved cases of homicides in the Pennsylvania Wilds spanning 13 counties.

The unsolved cases are from Clarion, Potter, Tioga, Elk, McKean, Warren, Jefferson, Forest, Cameron and Clearfield Counties; including four cases in Lycoming County, three cases in Centre County and two cases in Clinton County.

With each individual case, Baumgratz lays out the facts he was able to uncover from multiple sources — from newspapers of the time, court records, police reports and, in some cases, even familial connections.

Notably, Baumgratz sticks to the factual side of storytelling — sticking to the facts presented by the documents found and not sensationalizing the actions of those in his stories.

One of the cases highlighted in the book, the abduction and murder of Kathy Wilson, was actually what kickstarted the interest in writing about this topic.

Baumgratz had been working on his upcoming ghost book, which led him to a remote section of Warren County.

“While surveying the area, I remembered being in the same locale some 30 years prior regarding the murder of Kathy Wilson of Jamestown,” said Baumgratz, “The skeletal remains of Wilson were found in this remote area back in 1989, and it was a case that spawned a book by former McKean County Commissioner Harold Beck. I had followed that case back then, and the arrest and trial of an individual who was eventually rightfully acquitted.”

The reminder sparked his interest once more, and he decided to look it up.

“I was amazed to find the case was reopened recently, and a seemingly innocuous tip received from a witness who never came forward back in 1988 shifted the investigation to a previously unidentified suspect and brought new life to the unsolved homicide. This revelation shifted my attention from the supernatural to cold cases,” he said.

From there, his attention shifted to another unsolved case, Mickey Buck of Elk County.

“The fact that the Kathy Wilson case has reopened with a furor following a seemingly minor observation has led me to wonder how many other “witnesses” in cold cases have never come forward for one reason or another. Does someone hold the key that will solve the Mickey Buck case?” said Baumgratz.

“(These are) the type of observations I hope will be uncovered and maybe one of these cases will be brought to a successful resolution. The goal of this book is to have at least one ‘witness’ come forward on any of these unsolved cases (in) Clinton and Lycoming Counties and provide any information no matter how insignificant they may feel the information is,” he explained.

Baumgratz chose both modern and historic cold cases for the books, especially ones that have been advertised by “Crime Stoppers.”

“This is my first time writing about recent cases and although the investigators have not released much information, the potential “witnesses” could still have fresh observations in their minds. It should be noted that I had the unsolved 2019 case of Shawna Carlson from Clearfield County in my files and when I went to include the information of the case in this book I looked for updates and found arrests and the recent conviction of one of the perpetrators that exposed the fact that a cold case can always be brought to a successful conclusion,” he said.

Another mysterious case that fascinated Baumgratz was the 1992 case of Edward Batula whose partial remains were found in Montoursville. The man’s remains — a partial skull and two vertebrae — were found three months after he was last seen under just a foot of ground 400 or so yards from the gift shop he owned.

According to research, the car he was driving was also missing for three months, but was found after his remains were found in the Johnstown area — around 100 miles away from the gift shop.

“Batula’s business partner at the time stated that Batula never appeared at the gift shop the day he disappeared and had no plausible explanation as to why the remains were found buried behind the gift shop. So many questions including, where are the rest of the bones? And on and on and on. Still unsolved and a current $5,000 reward is being offered,” said Baumgratz.

Baumgratz pointed out that he included several ‘equivocal deaths’ in the book, meaning deaths where the cause is known but how the person received those injuries is unknown or suspicious.

Two of the cases discussed, the cases of Howard Laveling and Wayne Dippold, were brought to Baumgratz’s attention by relatives.

“After researching the cases and finding the same questions the families have, I included them in the book. I had many more deaths brought to my attention by family members but the length of the book would have been too large had I included all of them. A book on equivocal deaths may be in the future,” said Baumgratz.

A few of the cases included in the book are ones Baumgratz has previously explored, but have received major updates since.

“I received (major updates) when families of the victims contacted me and provided previously unknown material. I think of the 1925 New Years murder of Vito Malfara in Johnsonburg. Vito had a wife and two children living in Italy when he met his untimely death. The trip to Johnsonburg on a cold March day in 2021 was the culmination of an almost 100-year search for the location of their grandfather’s death and burial,” said Baumgratz.

Though this book will be the last he writes centered around cold cases in the Pennsylvania wilds, Baumgratz is excitedly researching ghost towns for his upcoming book.

“This will be the only book for this specific category, the same as my missing book, one and done. I am now back fervently writing my next book: “Ghosts, Ghost Towns & off the Beaten Path in the Pennsylvania Wilds” with great hopes of having the book completed before Halloween. Of course before Christmas will work also,” he joked.

If you’d like a chance to meet Baumgratz, he will be holding a book signing at the Otto Bookstore in Williamsport on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 9. He will also be presenting a program on this book at the Thomas Taber Museum in Williamsport on Sunday, Oct. 19, at 2 p.m. You can obtain more information on Baumgratz and his books at Elkcountymurder.com on Facebook or through this link, www.facebook.com/p/Elkcountymurdercom-100041629275563.

Baumgratz puts updates on his new books and speaking engagements on this Facebook page, so keep an eye out!