After decades of uncertainty, the remains of U.S. Army Private First Class Robert L. Bryant have been identified, bringing closure to his family and a testament to the enduring efforts of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency.
A soldier who vanished during an amphibious operation in World War II has finally been accounted for, according to military officials. U.S. Army Private First Class Robert L. Bryant, 23, served with Company B of the 4th Ranger Battalion, a group known as Darby's Rangers , the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency ( DPAA ) reported. This battalion, trained by Colonel William Darby, laid the foundation for the modern-day United States Army Rangers .
Active in the Mediterranean Theater, which encompassed Italy, North Africa, and the Middle East, Bryant was among 170,000 Allied servicemen involved in Operation AVALANCHE, a series of amphibious landings in Italy between September 9th and 18th, 1943.After reaching the shore, Bryant engaged in combat near the Chiunzi Pass on the Sorrento Peninsula. On September 23rd, 1943, he was reported missing in action after encountering a four-man German patrol near Pietre, Italy. Despite extensive searches, Bryant's body was never recovered, and German forces never listed him as a prisoner of war. The War Department officially declared him non-recoverable on July 19th, 1949. His parents received a formal telegram informing them of his death in action, according to a local newspaper clipping provided by the DPAA. Bryant left behind his parents, five brothers, and his wife. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, another news clipping revealed. His name was inscribed on the Walls of the Missing at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery in Nettuno, Italy. Following World War II, the American Graves Registration team initiated efforts to locate missing American personnel worldwide. In 1947, investigators from the team discovered remains in a cemetery in the Italian village of San Nicola. Designated as X-152 Naples, these unidentified remains were interred at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery due to the inability to connect them with any nearby casualties. In 2019, a DPAA historian researching American losses during Operation AVALANCHE found records indicating that Bryant was likely lost in the vicinity where the X-152 remains were discovered. In 2022, the remains were exhumed and sent to the DPAA laboratory for identification. Scientists utilized anthropological and dental analysis, along with mitochondrial DNA analysis and circumstantial evidence, to confirm the remains as Bryant's. Research assistance was also provided by descendants of World War II Rangers Inc., Associazione Salerno 1943, and the staff of the National Archives at College Park, according to the DPAA. Bryant's surviving family members have been informed of his identification. A rosette will be placed next to his name on the Walls of the Missing at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery to signify that he has been accounted for. His remains will be laid to rest in April 2025
WWII Missing Soldier Identified DPAA Operation Avalanche Rangers Italy
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