CONNELLSVILLE, Pa. — A soldier from Connellsville who was reported missing in action in World War II has been accounted for.
U.S. Army Pvt. 1st Class Harry H. Hosfelt Jr., 20, was killed in action when his unit was engaged by German Forces near the town of Cisterna di Latina, Italy, on Feb. 9, 1944.
Hosfelt’s body was never recovered and the Germans never reported him as a prisoner of war. The War Department issued a finding of death on Feb. 3, 1945.
In March 1945, American Graves Registration Command investigators recovered a set of remains near the small hamlet of Ponte Rotto thought to be associated with Hosfelt. The investigators didn’t have enough identifying data to positively ID the remains at the time, officials said.
While studying unresolved American losses in the Anzio battlefield, a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency historian determined that a set of unidentified remains possibly belonged to Hosfelt. To identify the remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA, analysis, officials said.
In March 1945, American Graves Registration Command investigators recovered remains near the small hamlet of Ponte Rotto thought to be associated with Hosfelt. The investigators didn’t have enough identifying data to positively ID the remains at the time.
Hosfelt will be buried in Connellsville on June 29.
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