Remains Found Likely From 1800s Chinese Immigrant

Authorities say a lower jawbone and loose teeth that were found in a bag at a trash collection site in northwestern Montana were those of a Chinese immigrant who was most likely working in the late 1800s as a miner or on the construction of the railroad.

The Lincoln County Sheriff's Department says the Montana State Crime Lab determined the likely origin of the remains after about two months of analysis. A University of Montana anthropologist helped with the investigation.

The bone was found in Trego on Aug. 22, and a search of the trash bins and the garbage truck that services the site didn't turn up any other remains.

Before they bury the bone, authorities are seeking more information about how it ended up at the site.

They also are stressing that this is not a criminal investigation.

Associated Press