Korean War Vet's Remains Go Home, 6 Decades Later

George Conklin, 18 when killed, gets buried this weekend in upstate NY
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 7, 2013 4:05 PM CST
Korean War Vet's Remains Go Home, 6 Decades Later
This undated photo provided by the U.S. Department of Defense shows Army Pvt. George Conklin. He was promoted to corporal posthumously.   ((AP Photo/Department of Defense))

George Conklin was all of 18 when he got killed fighting in the Korean War in 1950. More than six decades later, the Army corporal is finally back home for burial in upstate New York, reports AP. His were among the remains recovered near North Korea's Chosin Reservoir in 2004, and a military lab recently identified Conklin thanks to a DNA sample given years ago by a now-deceased brother.

“It’s closure," a niece tells the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. "He's coming home.” Conklin will be buried with full military honors on Saturday in Phelps, next to his parents. The teen enlisted at 17, was reported missing after the Chosin battle, then listed as killed in action when the war ended. Hundreds greeted his casket when it arrived in Phelps yesterday. "It was a phenomenal sight," says the funeral home owner. "It was amazingly silent. It was like a peace come over everybody." (More uplifting news stories.)

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