FORT KNOX, Ky. – The remains of Army Pfc. Joseph R. Travers, who died a prisoner of war, during the Korean War, will be interred March 29 at Cedar Knoll Cemetery, Taunton, Massachusetts. O’Keefe-Wade Funeral Home will perform graveside services preceding the interment.

A native of Taunton, Travers was a member of Dog Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action April 22, 1951, after his unit engaged enemy forces near the village of Undam-Jang, Republic of Korea Nov. 30, following the Battle of Ch’ongch’on. Travers reportedly died a prisoner of war December 1951 at age 24.

He was accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency June 20, 2024, after his remains were exhumed in August 2019 from the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific – also known as the Punchbowl – Honolulu, Hawaii, for laboratory analysis and identification.

The Past Conflict Repatriations Branch, under the Army Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations Division at the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky, plays a key role in the process of locating Family members of missing Soldiers from WWII, the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

The process begins with locating the Family member most closely related to the missing Soldier, known as the primary next of kin, followed by a request for Family reference samples or DNA, which are used as a main source in identifying remains.

Once a Soldier has been identified by the Armed Forces Medical Examiner, the PCRB notifies and briefs the Family about the results of historical, forensic and DNA reports, benefits and the mortuary process, including burial with full military honors.

For additional information about Pfc. Travers. go to: https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/ID-Announcements/Article/4034584/soldier-accounted-for-from-korean-war-travers-j/

Media interested in covering and/or obtaining more information about the funeral and interment should contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490 and/or O’Keefe-Wade Funeral Home, 508-823-3371.

-30-