Local hero recognized

New Rockford's Edward Dale Johnson, Navy Fireman 1st Class, was among the thousands of American heroes who tragically passed away during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Johnson, age 24, had been assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was among several vessels moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor when Japanese aircraft attacked, plunging the country into a second world war.

According to a September press release from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), the battleship suffered several torpedo hits and quickly capsized, resulting in the deaths of 429 crewmen, Johnson included.

Johnson was born in Hurdsfield, N.D. in 1917.He enlisted into the U.S. Navy in 1939 and listed New Rockford as his hometown.

Until recently his remains were considered "non-recoverable," leaving him unidentified for over half a century.

An early attempt was made to identify the fallen sailors of the USS Oklahoma in 1947, when the American Graves Registration Service (ARGS) transferred several of the fallen sailors to the Central Identification Laboratory.

"The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time," states the press release from the DPAA. "The AGRS subsequently buried the unidentified remains of 46 pilots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.

In October, 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including Johnson.

However, thankfully for Johnson and his family, decades later the DPAA still hadn't given up on identifying Johnson and his fallen comrades.

Between June and November of 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the unknown soldiers of the USS Oklahoma from the Punchbowl, and scientists from DPAA anthropological analysis, as well as the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System, used new technologies – such as mitochondrial DNA analysis – to identify Johnson and several other sailors.

"Johnson's name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are missing from WWII," states the DPAA Press Release. "A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for."

Johnson was buried at the Punchbowl with his fellow sailors on Thursday, Oct. 25.

For his service during Pearl Harbor and for his dedicated service to the U.S. Navy, Johnson accumulated a number of accolades and awards, including:

• Purple Heart Medal

• Combat Action Ribbon

• Good Conduct Medal

• American Defense Service Medal (Fleet Clasp)

• Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal (with Bronze Star)

• American Campaign Medal

• World War II Victory Medal

• Rifle Marksman

According to local cemetery records, Johnson's parents, Frank and Matilda Johnson, are buried at the Prairie Home Cemetery just north of New Rockford.

For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at http://www.dpaa.mil, find them on social media at http://www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1193.