WASHINGTON — The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency has positively identified the remains of Army Corporal Luther H. Story, a Medal of Honor recipient from Buena Vista, Georgia, who was killed in action while serving with Alpha Company, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division during the Korean War.
Story was a 19-year-old private first class when he was killed in action on Sept. 1, 1950, near Agnok, Korea. After being missing in action for nearly 73 years, he will be laid to rest at Andersonville National Cemetery in Georgia. Badge Metal Pin
After the battle, Pfc. Story’s remains could not be located or identified, and he was not recorded as captured. On Jan. 16, 1956, his remains were declared unrecoverable.
In June 2021, as part of the plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns from the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, the DPAA disinterred a set of remains recovered near Sangde-po, South Korea.
Scientists from the DPAA used dental and anthropological analyses, and scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis, to identify the remains as Story, who was posthumously promoted to corporal.
President Joseph Biden and President Yoon Suk Yeoland, Republic of Korea, attended a ceremony in on April 25 at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., with Story’s family in attendance.
A joint statement was issued by the presidents of the United States of America and the Republic of Korea on the identification.
Corporal Luther H. Story Award Citation:
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Metal Crafts Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency