World War II Veteran's Remains to be Returned to New Hampshire

MILFORD, NH - A Marine veteran of World War II is finally heading home to New Hampshire after more than 70 years. According to the Washington Post, Marine Corps sergeant David Quinn's remains were recently identified and are set to be returned.

Quinn was killed on Nov. 20, 1943 at the Battle of Tarawa. Funeral services with full military honors will be held at the Temple Congregational Church on May 5.

Quinn died on Nov. 20, 1943, the first day of the three-day Battle of Tarawa, as Marines landed against strong Japanese resistance on the tiny, coral reef-ringed island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands. Approximately 1,000 Marines and sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded.

His parents and siblings all died before the family discovered a letter to his widow from a Marine veteran disproving the claim that his body was lost at sea. In the early 2000s, they were contacted by military scientists that said DNA was available to identify Quinn.

It would be about a decade, in 2012, until a DNA kit was sent to two of his nieces to match the mitochondrial DNA that was collected from the remains. Five years later, in November of last year, they received notice that the remains were accounted for.

Check out the full article at the Washington Post.