Who is the Man from the Suitcase?

Recently I stumbled on a fascinating website. I love how events unfolded. An Instagram user called ManFromTheSuitcase gave one of my Instagram photos a heart. I like to see the photos of anyone who likes one of mine, and the name intrigued me so off I went to his/her profile page. 

A brief note on the page read "Years ago I purchased a suitcase for $10.00 Inside was a large collection of artifacts from one man's life. Who is the man from the suitcase?"

I was hooked! The website URL was there so of course I clicked on it. This is what I saw on the landing page:

"Many years ago, I bought a suitcase at an antique mall for $10.  Inside the case was a large collection of letters, poems, photos, negatives and artifacts from one man’s life…much of which centered around his service in the Armed Forces during the 1940’s.

 I hoarded these artifacts for the next 10 years, occasionally bringing them up for air on slow afternoons.

Having buried this man’s story for 10 years, it’s about time for him to be let out of his silk-lined case.  Hopefully, he will be reunited with whoever is missing him.

I am about to embark on a treasure hunt to find an answer to the question:
Who is the man from the suitcase?"

The suitcase apparently contained over 300 medium format negatives and several developed rolls of 35mm film. There are family photos, pictures of dogs who were presumably family pets, and photos of Paris in the 1940s.  

Such a fascinating story!  Read more and see the photos and join the hunt at The Man From the Suitcase

Of course I did more research using information found on The Man From the Suitcase but I am not publishing it here. I contacted the person who owns the suitcase through Twitter and do not want to spoil his/her telling of the story and his/her findings. Here is a very small bit - a teaser - of what I found about the man from the suitcase.

Source: SSDI (Social Security Death Index)

Name: John P. Jones
SSN: 409-44-2303
Last Residence: 37215 Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee, USA
BORN: 9 Oct 1912
Died: 30 Mar 1995
State (Year) SSN issued: Tennessee (Before 1951)

Source: U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946

Name: John P Jones
Birth Year: 1912
Race: White, citizen (White)
Nativity State or Country: Michigan
State of Residence: Tennessee, Conscientious Objector
County or City: Davidson
Enlistment Date: 29 Jul 1943
Enlistment State: Georgia Enlistment City: Fort Oglethorpe
Grade: Private
Civil Life Education: 4 years of college
Civil Occupation: Managers and officials, n.e.c.
Marital Status: Married

Source: U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
Name:     John Paul Jones
[John P Jones]
SSN:     409442303
Gender:     Male
Race:     White
Birth Date:     9 Oct 1912
Birth Place:     Cedar Springs, Michigan
[Cedar Spring]
Father Name:     John K Jones
Mother Name:     Vesta I Covert
Death Date:     30 Mar 1995
Type of Claim:     Original SSN.
Notes:     Apr 1946: Name listed as JOHN PAUL JONES; 06 Apr 1995: Name listed as JOHN P JONES

Image Credit: https://www.instagram.com/manfromthesuitcase/