Son of Thomas Hogan Abell and Violet A. Ching.
WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings
Name: John T. Abell
Death Date: 10 Jun 1945
Cemetery Tablets of the Missing at Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery
Cemetery Burial Plot Missing in Action or Buried at Sea
Cemetery City Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery Country Belgium
War World War II
Title Private First Class
Rank Private First Class
Service U.S. Army
Service ID33563775
Division 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment
Data Source World War II Honor Roll
****************************************************************
The Washington Post; Washington, D.C., November 26, 2009
Nephew sets out to learn uncle's fate in WWII
At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
Family members of U.S. Army Pfc. Class John Thomas Abell had a memorial service for him Nov. 14, 64 years after he was listed as missing in action in World War II.
Abell, born in Leonardtown on Sept. 2, 1923, joined the Army at 19 and was declared missing in action about two years later. He has never been found. In spite of this, family members said they decided to conduct a service as a way to honor Abell after his nephew David Abell began researching his uncle's past and discovered several clues as to what might have happened to him. At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
"As of today, he is no longer missing in action. He is found, and he has come home," the Rev. John Mattingly of St. Francis Xavier Church in Compton said during the service at Charles Memorial Gardens in Leonardtown.
Abell enlisted in the Army in Baltimore on March 12, 1943, not long after graduating from Margaret Brent High School in Helen, Md.
He was reported missing in action after serving about two years, leaving his family with not much more than the memory of a young man who signed up, like many of his era, to defend his country.
David Abell began looking into a way to memorialize his uncle after he found his name on the World War II monument placed in the Leonardtown town square in 2001."My uncle is the first one that's listed," he said. From the monument, he was able to learn his uncle's serial number.
He had heard his family speak about John Abell over the years, but no one knew much about his circumstances in the war with Germany, nor had a gravesite been established. The only picture he has of his uncle is one of him in an Army helmet holding a rifle, a snapshot David Abell's father carried in his wallet until his death several years ago.
"The family never spoke of [his uncle as] MIA," David Abell said. He contacted the American Battles Monument Commission, which oversees numerous memorials and cemeteries around the world for U.S. servicemen.
The commission told him that his uncle's name appears at the Henri-Chapelle Cemetery in Belgium, seven miles from the German border, as one of 450 World War II servicemen missing in action.
David Abell said he still does not know how his uncle came to be missing in action. Through online research he has discovered some clues: He was a private first class in Company D of the 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment.
He was listed as missing June 10, 1945, about a month after the war in Europe had ended. David Abell is unsure how that date was determined, and said he would like to find out more about what happened to his uncle.
"I'm going to continue to find out about this Company D and the 373rd Division," he said. He learned from Army records that investigations of the missing were conducted in 1946, but no results were found that were connected to John Abell.
During the ceremony Nov. 14, which drew a few dozen family members and friends, two servicemen folded and presented a U.S. flag to John Abell's surviving younger brother, C. Roger Bussler.
"That's what we're here for, to help bring closure," Staff Sgt. Michael Edwards said after playing taps at the ceremony.
Tommy Howe was one of four color guards from the American Legion post in Avenue to participate in the service. He said it was a pleasure to participate in the service with David Abell, who also is a member of the legion.
"I think it's fantastic" to honor a veteran missing in action, even so many decades later, said Howe, a Vietnam veteran.
David Abell said he hopes the story of his search will influence others to begin looking for relatives who are missing in action.
Through a short piece in National Geographic, David Abell learned about the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, based in Hawaii, which works to link remains found at battle sites with DNA from relatives.
David Abell sent DNA swabs from two of John Abell's sisters to keep on file with JPAC. No matches have been found. The agency works on about 700 active cases every month, according to an article in National Geographic's June edition.
The agency says more than 78,000 U.S. service members from World War II are still listed as missing in action, far more than in any war since.
Credit: The Enterprise
Word count: 810
Copyright The Washington Post Company Nov 26, 2009
***********************************************************
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56278918#source
WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings
Name: John T. Abell
Death Date: 10 Jun 1945
Cemetery Tablets of the Missing at Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery
Cemetery Burial Plot Missing in Action or Buried at Sea
Cemetery City Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery Country Belgium
War World War II
Title Private First Class
Rank Private First Class
Service U.S. Army
Service ID33563775
Division 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment
Data Source World War II Honor Roll
****************************************************************
The Washington Post; Washington, D.C., November 26, 2009
Nephew sets out to learn uncle's fate in WWII
At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
Family members of U.S. Army Pfc. Class John Thomas Abell had a memorial service for him Nov. 14, 64 years after he was listed as missing in action in World War II.
Abell, born in Leonardtown on Sept. 2, 1923, joined the Army at 19 and was declared missing in action about two years later. He has never been found. In spite of this, family members said they decided to conduct a service as a way to honor Abell after his nephew David Abell began researching his uncle's past and discovered several clues as to what might have happened to him. At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
"As of today, he is no longer missing in action. He is found, and he has come home," the Rev. John Mattingly of St. Francis Xavier Church in Compton said during the service at Charles Memorial Gardens in Leonardtown.
Abell enlisted in the Army in Baltimore on March 12, 1943, not long after graduating from Margaret Brent High School in Helen, Md.
He was reported missing in action after serving about two years, leaving his family with not much more than the memory of a young man who signed up, like many of his era, to defend his country.
David Abell began looking into a way to memorialize his uncle after he found his name on the World War II monument placed in the Leonardtown town square in 2001."My uncle is the first one that's listed," he said. From the monument, he was able to learn his uncle's serial number.
He had heard his family speak about John Abell over the years, but no one knew much about his circumstances in the war with Germany, nor had a gravesite been established. The only picture he has of his uncle is one of him in an Army helmet holding a rifle, a snapshot David Abell's father carried in his wallet until his death several years ago.
"The family never spoke of [his uncle as] MIA," David Abell said. He contacted the American Battles Monument Commission, which oversees numerous memorials and cemeteries around the world for U.S. servicemen.
The commission told him that his uncle's name appears at the Henri-Chapelle Cemetery in Belgium, seven miles from the German border, as one of 450 World War II servicemen missing in action.
David Abell said he still does not know how his uncle came to be missing in action. Through online research he has discovered some clues: He was a private first class in Company D of the 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment.
He was listed as missing June 10, 1945, about a month after the war in Europe had ended. David Abell is unsure how that date was determined, and said he would like to find out more about what happened to his uncle.
"I'm going to continue to find out about this Company D and the 373rd Division," he said. He learned from Army records that investigations of the missing were conducted in 1946, but no results were found that were connected to John Abell.
During the ceremony Nov. 14, which drew a few dozen family members and friends, two servicemen folded and presented a U.S. flag to John Abell's surviving younger brother, C. Roger Bussler.
"That's what we're here for, to help bring closure," Staff Sgt. Michael Edwards said after playing taps at the ceremony.
Tommy Howe was one of four color guards from the American Legion post in Avenue to participate in the service. He said it was a pleasure to participate in the service with David Abell, who also is a member of the legion.
"I think it's fantastic" to honor a veteran missing in action, even so many decades later, said Howe, a Vietnam veteran.
David Abell said he hopes the story of his search will influence others to begin looking for relatives who are missing in action.
Through a short piece in National Geographic, David Abell learned about the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, based in Hawaii, which works to link remains found at battle sites with DNA from relatives.
David Abell sent DNA swabs from two of John Abell's sisters to keep on file with JPAC. No matches have been found. The agency works on about 700 active cases every month, according to an article in National Geographic's June edition.
The agency says more than 78,000 U.S. service members from World War II are still listed as missing in action, far more than in any war since.
Credit: The Enterprise
Word count: 810
Copyright The Washington Post Company Nov 26, 2009
***********************************************************
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56278918#source
Son of Thomas Hogan Abell and Violet A. Ching.
WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings
Name: John T. Abell
Death Date: 10 Jun 1945
Cemetery Tablets of the Missing at Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery
Cemetery Burial Plot Missing in Action or Buried at Sea
Cemetery City Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery Country Belgium
War World War II
Title Private First Class
Rank Private First Class
Service U.S. Army
Service ID33563775
Division 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment
Data Source World War II Honor Roll
****************************************************************
The Washington Post; Washington, D.C., November 26, 2009
Nephew sets out to learn uncle's fate in WWII
At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
Family members of U.S. Army Pfc. Class John Thomas Abell had a memorial service for him Nov. 14, 64 years after he was listed as missing in action in World War II.
Abell, born in Leonardtown on Sept. 2, 1923, joined the Army at 19 and was declared missing in action about two years later. He has never been found. In spite of this, family members said they decided to conduct a service as a way to honor Abell after his nephew David Abell began researching his uncle's past and discovered several clues as to what might have happened to him. At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
"As of today, he is no longer missing in action. He is found, and he has come home," the Rev. John Mattingly of St. Francis Xavier Church in Compton said during the service at Charles Memorial Gardens in Leonardtown.
Abell enlisted in the Army in Baltimore on March 12, 1943, not long after graduating from Margaret Brent High School in Helen, Md.
He was reported missing in action after serving about two years, leaving his family with not much more than the memory of a young man who signed up, like many of his era, to defend his country.
David Abell began looking into a way to memorialize his uncle after he found his name on the World War II monument placed in the Leonardtown town square in 2001."My uncle is the first one that's listed," he said. From the monument, he was able to learn his uncle's serial number.
He had heard his family speak about John Abell over the years, but no one knew much about his circumstances in the war with Germany, nor had a gravesite been established. The only picture he has of his uncle is one of him in an Army helmet holding a rifle, a snapshot David Abell's father carried in his wallet until his death several years ago.
"The family never spoke of [his uncle as] MIA," David Abell said. He contacted the American Battles Monument Commission, which oversees numerous memorials and cemeteries around the world for U.S. servicemen.
The commission told him that his uncle's name appears at the Henri-Chapelle Cemetery in Belgium, seven miles from the German border, as one of 450 World War II servicemen missing in action.
David Abell said he still does not know how his uncle came to be missing in action. Through online research he has discovered some clues: He was a private first class in Company D of the 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment.
He was listed as missing June 10, 1945, about a month after the war in Europe had ended. David Abell is unsure how that date was determined, and said he would like to find out more about what happened to his uncle.
"I'm going to continue to find out about this Company D and the 373rd Division," he said. He learned from Army records that investigations of the missing were conducted in 1946, but no results were found that were connected to John Abell.
During the ceremony Nov. 14, which drew a few dozen family members and friends, two servicemen folded and presented a U.S. flag to John Abell's surviving younger brother, C. Roger Bussler.
"That's what we're here for, to help bring closure," Staff Sgt. Michael Edwards said after playing taps at the ceremony.
Tommy Howe was one of four color guards from the American Legion post in Avenue to participate in the service. He said it was a pleasure to participate in the service with David Abell, who also is a member of the legion.
"I think it's fantastic" to honor a veteran missing in action, even so many decades later, said Howe, a Vietnam veteran.
David Abell said he hopes the story of his search will influence others to begin looking for relatives who are missing in action.
Through a short piece in National Geographic, David Abell learned about the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, based in Hawaii, which works to link remains found at battle sites with DNA from relatives.
David Abell sent DNA swabs from two of John Abell's sisters to keep on file with JPAC. No matches have been found. The agency works on about 700 active cases every month, according to an article in National Geographic's June edition.
The agency says more than 78,000 U.S. service members from World War II are still listed as missing in action, far more than in any war since.
Credit: The Enterprise
Word count: 810
Copyright The Washington Post Company Nov 26, 2009
***********************************************************
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56278918#source
WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings
Name: John T. Abell
Death Date: 10 Jun 1945
Cemetery Tablets of the Missing at Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery
Cemetery Burial Plot Missing in Action or Buried at Sea
Cemetery City Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery Country Belgium
War World War II
Title Private First Class
Rank Private First Class
Service U.S. Army
Service ID33563775
Division 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment
Data Source World War II Honor Roll
****************************************************************
The Washington Post; Washington, D.C., November 26, 2009
Nephew sets out to learn uncle's fate in WWII
At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
Family members of U.S. Army Pfc. Class John Thomas Abell had a memorial service for him Nov. 14, 64 years after he was listed as missing in action in World War II.
Abell, born in Leonardtown on Sept. 2, 1923, joined the Army at 19 and was declared missing in action about two years later. He has never been found. In spite of this, family members said they decided to conduct a service as a way to honor Abell after his nephew David Abell began researching his uncle's past and discovered several clues as to what might have happened to him. At a cemetery, a simple stone with a cross on top is inscribed with Abell's name, birth date and the date he was reported missing in action, along with the inscription "In memory of," required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for graves that do not contain remains.
"As of today, he is no longer missing in action. He is found, and he has come home," the Rev. John Mattingly of St. Francis Xavier Church in Compton said during the service at Charles Memorial Gardens in Leonardtown.
Abell enlisted in the Army in Baltimore on March 12, 1943, not long after graduating from Margaret Brent High School in Helen, Md.
He was reported missing in action after serving about two years, leaving his family with not much more than the memory of a young man who signed up, like many of his era, to defend his country.
David Abell began looking into a way to memorialize his uncle after he found his name on the World War II monument placed in the Leonardtown town square in 2001."My uncle is the first one that's listed," he said. From the monument, he was able to learn his uncle's serial number.
He had heard his family speak about John Abell over the years, but no one knew much about his circumstances in the war with Germany, nor had a gravesite been established. The only picture he has of his uncle is one of him in an Army helmet holding a rifle, a snapshot David Abell's father carried in his wallet until his death several years ago.
"The family never spoke of [his uncle as] MIA," David Abell said. He contacted the American Battles Monument Commission, which oversees numerous memorials and cemeteries around the world for U.S. servicemen.
The commission told him that his uncle's name appears at the Henri-Chapelle Cemetery in Belgium, seven miles from the German border, as one of 450 World War II servicemen missing in action.
David Abell said he still does not know how his uncle came to be missing in action. Through online research he has discovered some clues: He was a private first class in Company D of the 373rd Engineer General Service Regiment.
He was listed as missing June 10, 1945, about a month after the war in Europe had ended. David Abell is unsure how that date was determined, and said he would like to find out more about what happened to his uncle.
"I'm going to continue to find out about this Company D and the 373rd Division," he said. He learned from Army records that investigations of the missing were conducted in 1946, but no results were found that were connected to John Abell.
During the ceremony Nov. 14, which drew a few dozen family members and friends, two servicemen folded and presented a U.S. flag to John Abell's surviving younger brother, C. Roger Bussler.
"That's what we're here for, to help bring closure," Staff Sgt. Michael Edwards said after playing taps at the ceremony.
Tommy Howe was one of four color guards from the American Legion post in Avenue to participate in the service. He said it was a pleasure to participate in the service with David Abell, who also is a member of the legion.
"I think it's fantastic" to honor a veteran missing in action, even so many decades later, said Howe, a Vietnam veteran.
David Abell said he hopes the story of his search will influence others to begin looking for relatives who are missing in action.
Through a short piece in National Geographic, David Abell learned about the Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, based in Hawaii, which works to link remains found at battle sites with DNA from relatives.
David Abell sent DNA swabs from two of John Abell's sisters to keep on file with JPAC. No matches have been found. The agency works on about 700 active cases every month, according to an article in National Geographic's June edition.
The agency says more than 78,000 U.S. service members from World War II are still listed as missing in action, far more than in any war since.
Credit: The Enterprise
Word count: 810
Copyright The Washington Post Company Nov 26, 2009
***********************************************************
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56278918#source
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