Another Returns

| January 19, 2020

DPAA has identified and accounted for the following formerly-missing individual..

From World War II

PVT Pearl F. Barrow, US Army, assigned to F Company, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, was lost in Hurtgen, Germany, on 20 November 1944. His accounting was announced on 16 January 2020.

From Korea

None

From Southeast Asia

None

Welcome back, elder brother-in-arms. Our apologies that your return took so long.

Rest easy. You’re home now.

. . .

Over 72,000 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,600 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; over 1,500 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia (SEA); 126 remain unaccounted for from the Cold War; 5 remain unaccounted for from the Gulf Wars; and 1 individual remains unaccounted for from Operation Eldorado Canyon. Comparison of DNA from recovered remains against DNA from some (but not all) blood relatives can assist in making a positive ID for unidentified remains that have already been recovered, or which may be recovered in the future.

On their web site’s Contact Us page DPAA now has FAQs. One of those FAQs describes who can and cannot submit DNA samples useful in identifying recovered remains. The chart giving the answer can be viewed here. The text associated with the chart is short and is found in one of the FAQs.

If your family lost someone in one of these conflicts and you qualify to submit a DNA sample, please arrange to submit one. By doing that you just might help identify the remains of a US service member who’s been repatriated but not yet been identified – as well as a relative of yours, however distant. Or you may help to identify remains to be recovered in the future.

Everybody deserves a proper burial. That’s especially true for those who gave their all while serving this nation.

Category: No Longer Missing

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ninja

PVT Pearl Francis Barrow of Oklahoma was 36 years old when he went Missing in Germany during WWII.

He came from a large Family:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56296576/pearl-f-barrow

You were never forgotten, PVT Barrow. Rest In Peace. Salute.

Bring Them All Home.

5th/77th FA

Welcome Home Warrior. We Salute your Service and pay Honors to your Sacrifice. Unknown no longer.

Thanks for the linky ninja. It always adds a whole lot when we can see some of the “rest of the story.” PVT Barrow seems to be an exception to the rule given his age. From most of my readings, there weren’t too many mid 30s privates on the front lines. I could be mistaken on that. Looking at his family I wonder if some of his other brothers may have served. One was a 1923 model which was just a year younger than my Papa. Pops was inducted in Jan of ’42 and served in the 741st FA. A Lady Friend’s Dad was drafted into the Army at age 36 in ’42 and served attached to the Navy doing radio relay. He was well to the rear with the gear. And a goodly number of his mates were in that age bracket too.

ninja

KoB:

It was a bit sad when I discovered PVT Barrow enlisted in the US Army on 22 January 1944 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He was married to Elizabeth and had a 6 year old son name Robert when he went missing in November 1944.

Makes me wonder if Robert is still alive to welcome his Dad home.

Thank You again for sharing about your Dad. You followed in his Footsteps since your Dad was KoB as well.

Never Forget.

5th/77th FA

Wow. That info just make me ask more questions. I was thinking earlier that PVT Barrow may have enlisted earlier for economic reasons, but in Jan ’44 there were more jobs than there were men to fill them. ‘specially in the mid west. If it had not of been for Rosie the Riveter, our industrial might would not have been able to provide manpower for troops and workers. I’m like you, hoping that Robert is alive to know that his Daddy has been accounted for. Maybe some grandchildren too. Side note on Pops; he could have gotten a deferment from the draft because he was the “primary bread winner” for the family and a farmer. His Mama was a widow, younger brother was a teenager, baby sister had polio, and older sister working her way back from harvesting work in the Great Plains. He made out an allotment of his entire pay to be sent to his Mama, knowing that he would be fed, clothed, and housed. The family actually had more real cash from that than they had ever had. Odd how the pay of a PFC in the 1940s was more than a man with a 3rd grade education could make as a share cropping farmer. His older sister made it back to Georgia and was a Rosie at the Naval Ordnance Plant in Macon, GA. His younger brother enlisted in ’44 as soon as he turned 17 and served in the Army’s Island hopping campaign in the Pacific. Pop’s allotment allowed the Baby Sister to get the special shoes and braces that enabled her to learn how to walk. Up until then, she had to be toted every where she went. They were indeed the Greatest Generation and I shudder to think what would happen if we were to be involved in another truly global conflict such as WWII became. Would there be enough young’uns to step up as our parents did? Or would they take the opportunity to join with the other domestic enemies of our Republic to destroy us from within. Eternal Vigilance. Never Surrender,… Read more »

OWB

Pvt Barrow is also reported to have been born in Sedgwick County Kansas and enlisted in Wichita, Kansas. https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=44158

Both sources agree on the date of his birth – 27 Nov 1907.

AW1Ed

Welcome home.

Sparks

Welcome home Brother. Rest in peace in your home soil now.

Club Manager, USA ret.

Learned from Senator Boozman’s staff member at the Arkansas Veterans Coalition meeting the reason for the increase in identified returns, in addition to new technology, is a team visits cities and collects DNA from NOK and relatives. So they have a data base when remains are discovered.