Windy Buchanan

For thirty-six years, she was known only as “Penny Doe,” a young woman found murdered in rural Pennsylvania, her name and story lost to time. In August 2026, through the tireless work of investigators and the power of genetic genealogy, she was finally given her name back: Windy Buchanan. A 19-year-old female, Windy was remembered by her family as a fierce, kind, and loving soul who was creative, artistic, and had a deep affection for horses and animals. Born in Kentucky in October 1970, she was the oldest of five siblings and often took on the role of their protector. Her younger sister, Tania Buchanan Boyd, recalled that Windy was always there for her. She was convinced that horseshoes and finding a penny heads-up brought good luck, a poignant detail in a story that would be defined by the coins found in her pockets.

On July 22, 1990, four children picking berries in Monroe Township, Clarion County, Pennsylvania, made a devastating discovery. In a culvert stream near a railroad trestle, they found the skeletal remains of a young woman. Investigators from the Pennsylvania State Police responded to the scene. An autopsy determined the victim had been killed by blunt force trauma to the right side of her skull approximately six to eight weeks before her body was found. She had brown, shoulder-length hair and was wearing size 9 black Gitano Express jeans, a black button-down shirt with an attached floral vest made by Stop Light of California, and size 7 Fruit of the Loom underwear. In the pockets of her jeans, investigators found pennies, which led to her being called “Penny Doe.”

The investigation into Penny Doe’s identity and murder spanned more than three decades. Over the years, the Pennsylvania State Police pursued countless leads, ruling out over 100 missing persons as potential matches. Various forensic techniques were employed, including fingerprint analysis and early DNA tests. Clay reconstructions, artist renderings, and computer-generated images of what she might have looked like were distributed to the public, but none of the resulting tips led to her name. Despite the constant effort, the case grew cold. The mystery of Penny Doe’s identity seemed impenetrable, her story a silent testament to an unknown tragedy.

The breakthrough came after decades of dead ends. In 2022, the Pennsylvania State Police, in collaboration with Mercyhurst University's Department of Forensic Applied Science, submitted forensic evidence to Othram, a private lab specializing in advanced DNA testing. Using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing®, scientists built a comprehensive DNA profile from the degraded remains. This profile allowed forensic genealogists to construct a family tree, leading them to a woman they believed could be Penny Doe’s sister. Police contacted the woman, who provided a DNA sample for comparison. It was a match. In August 2026, Clarion County District Attorney Drew Welsh announced that Penny Doe was Windy Buchanan.

Windy’s family had endured decades of uncertainty. They had searched for her after she was last seen at a highway off-ramp. Her last words to them were, “Bye, Dad, I’m leaving.” They never saw her again. At a press conference, her sister Tania expressed the family's relief and continued pain. "For many years we did search for Windy. We prayed that she would somehow be found, or that she might return to us one day," she said. "One of our deepest and longest-held prayers has finally been answered. But it’s not over. We know where she was at, but we don’t know what happened to her."

The identification of Windy Buchanan marked a major milestone, but it also opened a new chapter in the investigation: the hunt for her killer. With her name and story now known, investigators hope to generate new leads from people who may have known Windy or have information about her disappearance and death in 1990. "It was easy for you to stay silent when it was an anonymous Penny Doe. Those days are done," District Attorney Welsh stated, urging the public to come forward. "Now, you must speak." Her sister echoed the plea for truth, stating, "Windy deserves the truth, and our family deserves all of the answers."

As of September 2026, the homicide of Windy Buchanan remains an active and unsolved investigation. The Pennsylvania State Police are seeking any information that could help them piece together the final weeks of Windy's life and identify the person or persons responsible for her death. A reward of $5,000 is being offered for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Pennsylvania State Police in Clarion at 814-226-1710.