Robert Vernon Estes (1931-1951): DNA and Hope for Military Repatriation

Posted on May 24, 2026 by Roberta Estes

Robert Vernon Estes was my first cousin, my father’s brother’s son. I’m named after him, but I never knew him. He died years before I was born.

Robert, known as Bobby, was born on March 27, 1931 in White County, Indiana. He, along with his unit, were captured near Kunu-ri in North Korea on November 30, 1950, and he died as a prisoner-of-war around January 31, 1951 – at least that’s the date officially assigned to his death.

Truth be told, his death date is an estimate based on the recollections of men who survived the horrific deprivation, freezing temperatures, and starvation endured by the captured soldiers. He was likely buried in a mass grave outside the compound where Bobby, along with most of the other US soldiers who were held there, died.

Bobby was posthumously awarded the rank of Corporal.

The Korean conflict active combat operations ended on July 27, 1953, when an Armistice agreement was signed between the US, North Korea, and China. A demilitarized zone (DMZ) was established, but a peace treaty was never signed, so technically, the US and North Korea are still at war. The two countries do not maintain diplomatic relations, and their relationship could be described as “frosty” at best.

While some military personnel from both the US and our ally, South Korea, have been repatriated, a long history of hostility and other challenges, including the remains of US soldiers being used as bargaining chips, have prevented the return of more than 5300 service members whose remains are still essentially being held hostage in Korea. If I sound bitter, that’s because I am.

Beginning in 1954, some remains have been brought home, but identification from the beginning was difficult, often due to comingled remains resulting from mass burials. Those remains were identified when possible, using techniques available at the time, and all remains were honorably buried.

Recently, due to advances in processing forensic remains and autosomal DNA matching, another 100 people have been identified from 55 boxes of mixed remains turned over following the 2018 Singapore Summit. Those boxes are believed to hold bones from roughly 250 distinct individuals, so the majority have yet to be identified.

By Eric Tessmer – https://www.flickr.com/photos/erictessmer/48041921852/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=79843877

Unidentified remains are buried at the Punchbowl, the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, in Honolulu, Hawaii. More than 800 graves are marked as “Unknown” from the Korean War and await exhumation for advanced DNA testing.

By Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America – National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=115138509

While there is no burial, missing service members are honored in the Honolulu Memorial within the cemetery.

The names of the missing are etched on the walls of the Courts of the Missing.

Bobby’s name was also engraved on the Wall of Remembrance at the National Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington DC when they included the names of the missing in 2022.

Here’s a closeup.

Because Bobby was held above the DMZ, in North Korea proper, in a deserted mining camp called the Pukchin Camp, nicknamed Death Valley, and because the North Koreans were uncooperative, Bobby’s remains were classified as “nonrecoverable” in January 1956.

Hope Rekindled

Unrecoverable in 1956 based on political circumstances and lack of information about which soldiers had been captured, where they were held, when they died, and where burials for that facility occurred, doesn’t necessarily mean unrecoverable forever.

Today, Bobby’s status has been updated to “deferred” which isn’t quite as final and hopeless as “nonrecoverable.”

In 1956, they had no way of knowing about DNA and technology that would become available decades in the future.

Unfortunately, the political environment has remained essentially unchanged now for 70 years, but 70 years isn’t forever.

Yes, I know that identifying Bobby’s remains and bringing him home are both extremely unlikely, but a very low probability is not zero.

As genetic genealogists, we understand that with the passage of generations, the amount of shared autosomal DNA decreases with each generational recombination, so it was important for me to work with AFDIL to preserve my DNA in the hope of one day identifying Bobby – even after I’m gone from this mortal realm.

I might not be able to stand in Arlington, honoring Bobby as he is buried, but maybe my daughter will. Hope springs eternal!

DNA Analysis

The military began collecting DNA samples using bloodstain cards in 1992. For soldiers who served before that and whose remains needed to be identified, various types of forensic analysis were performed.

In the 1990s, when DNA first began to be used for service member identification, DNA matching was performed using mitochondrial DNA because there are hundreds of copies of mitochondria in the cytoplasm of each cell, which means mitochondrial DNA is easier to recover in degraded remains.

This also meant that a sample was needed from the soldier’s mother, sibling, or a relative in the soldier’s direct matrilineal line, not interrupted by a male. Women contribute their mitochondrial DNA to children of both sexes, not intermixed with any DNA from the father, but males do not pass it on to their children.

Around 2010, Y-DNA, passed from father to son, began to be used by AFDIL as well.

At that time, the remains were not processed to extract DNA for autosomal matching, as ancient or forensic DNA extraction technology did not yet exist – and has only been refined for widespread utilization in the past few years. Initially, autosomal matches for repatriation were only used to match immediate family members, so DNA testing was unavailable to cousins of soldiers.

Men who died in WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam may not have immediate family members left – and that number dwindles daily.

Bobby had no children.
Bobby’s mother, Lucille Latta, was born in 1906 and died in 1952. She had only one sibling, a brother who died in 1966, and their mother was adopted, so there was no source to obtain Bobby’s mitochondrial DNA for matching.
Bobby’s only sibling, a brother who had no sons, died in 1986, and their father, Joseph Estes, died in 1994, eliminating the possibility of Y-DNA matching.

This means that there were no immediate or appropriately related family members available for either mitochondrial or Y-DNA testing – effectively slamming the door on the possibility of identification.

The DNA results of soldiers’ remains, and their family members, are held separately from any commercial or law-enforcement databases, so without an appropriately descended family member’s DNA test submitted for this specific purpose, there is no opportunity to identify the soldier.

Until recently, more distant family members were precluded from participating.

The AFDIL Team

In 2023 and 2024, I was privileged to work with the AFDIL team on the Washington Family Project. This was a proof-of-concept project, of sorts. AFDIL undertook this project in the process of refining their methodologies for working with badly degraded remains. The Washington Project was perfect because we knew who was supposed to be buried in each location. The team authored an exciting paper detailing the results.

It gives me cold chills to realize that I was a small part of the effort to open the door for more distant family members to submit autosomal results to identify their missing service members. When we started working together, they had no idea that I’m a Gold Star family member, representing Bobby, and I had no idea the doors this project would open.

Today, those efforts have borne fruit. AFDIL has expanded its family participation policies and guidelines.

Needless to say, I’m thrilled.

Swabbing for Bobby

I requested my swab kit as soon as possible.

I was so excited the day the package arrived.

In addition to swabs, the package included a letter plus several pages of information and instructions.

For notification, be sure that someone living and reliable is listed as the primary contact for your soldier. We discovered that no one was listed for Bobby, but now I’m his official contact and I’m also his closest living next-of-kin.

Oh good, now we’re getting to the DNA swabbing part! Not that I’m anxious or anything!

I had to sit down and really study this chart, which was difficult given my level of excitement. I needed to make sure I really qualified. I mean, I knew I was supposed to – but this was the hard line do-not-pass-go paper right here. A tiny part of me was terrified that something had gone wrong and I wouldn’t be accepted.

The missing soldier is the blue center. I labeled “Me” four images to the right.

AFDIL invested a lot of time in creating this chart that includes autosomal candidates in yellow, mitochondrial candidates with red borders, and Y-DNA candidates with thick dark blue borders.

They had put an oval around “me” on the chart based on their understanding of our relationship from previously submitted documentation. In the paperwork, they asked me to confirm the relationship again.

Next came the swab kit and the labels.

Now I’ve swabbed and labeled everything, following the instructions.

Popping them into the included FedEx envelope.

All I had to do was find a FedEx shipping location and drop the envelope off. I cried as I did the handoff – praying that someday these little vials will provide the key to identifying Bobby.

A week or so later, I received an email stating that my sample had been received and was being processed.

They would be in touch if anything else was needed from me, or, if anything was found.

Now…we wait. Perhaps forever.

But maybe not.

I’ve now preserved the possibility of identifying Bobby’s remains if they are ever returned. And a tiny part of me has my fingers crossed that some of his bones were in that mixed sample, simply waiting for the technology to catch up.

This Memorial Day Weekend

This Memorial Day weekend, in addition to writing this article, I’m working on a wall-hanging to honor Bobby and his ultimate sacrifice.

I’ve been working on this for a while, but it’s so emotionally intense for me that I have to put it away and give myself a break from time to time.

Obviously, I’m working on the layout and I’ve laid these blocks alongside the panel to illustrate. When finished, there will be two rows of stars that function as borders surrounding the center panel.

I’m debating whether I should put a gold star in the center of both sides, or a smaller gold star in the center of a star block, or maybe gold stars of some sort in all four corners. I’m also considering having Bobby’s name, along with his birth and death dates, embroidered near the boots.

After my death and my daughter’s, I’ve left instructions for this quilt to be donated to the Indiana Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, if they want it, where the brick honoring Bobby’s service was laid in the summer of 2021.

You can read more about Bobby in these articles:

Honoring Bobby and Other Unrecovered Soldiers

For years, it has been my dream to attend Bobby’s military burial at Arlington National Cemetery. He has earned that, and it seems that’s the least, the very least, we could do for him. Of course, part of warfare is psychological, not just physical, and refusing to return the remains of those killed is part of that. Even worse is knowing how he was tortured and died.

My heart still bleeds for him and his mother.

We don’t know if Bobby’s remains will ever be “discovered” and brought home. I’d say it’s extremely unlikely.

We don’t know if, by some miracle, Bobby’s remains are among those unidentified mixed samples already buried in Hawaii. That too is unlikely because Bobby was held in a remote location and his remains, wherever they actually lie, are not easily accessible.

As each generation dies, and as Bobby’s bones age, the chance of obtaining a quality DNA match decreases.

While I can’t do anything about the passage of time, nor about Bobby’s bones deteriorating, I can make sure my own DNA is preserved in AFDIL’s Family Reference Database, maintained by the Family Reference Sample Laboratory, a division of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System’s DNA Identification Laboratory (AFMES-AFDIL). You can read more here and here.

You can search for a POW/MIA service member, here.

If you qualify to submit a sample for a deceased service member whose remains have yet to be identified, you can’t order a DNA sample kit directly like we do from testing companies. You need to request a DNA sample kit after providing information about how you and the soldier are related. You’ll be assigned a case number and a case worker.

Click on this link for more information, including websites, or call the appropriate number below to determine if you qualify and to request a DNA kit.

United States Army: (800) 892-2490
United States Marine Corps: (800) 847-1597
United States Navy: (800) 443-9298
United States Air Force: (800) 531-5501
Department of State: (202) 485-6106

This Memorial Day, please remember the sacrifices of our fallen heroes, those veterans who never came home, and their families who never stopped waiting.

Descendants of WWII 92nd Infantry Buffalo Soldiers Sought to Identify Remains

Posted on April 7, 2021 by Roberta Estes

Recently, Fold3 published an article about the 92^nd Infantry Division known as the Buffalo Soldiers – a black infantry division that fought in Italy during WWII and suffered severe casualties.

Fifty soldiers of the 700 lost have never been identified and remain unaccounted for.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is seeking family members of these deceased soldiers to submit DNA for comparison. Details are provided, here.

This is NOT Commercial Testing

Note that testing with any commercial company (such as Ancestry, FamilyTreeDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, etc.) does nothing to identify these remains. If you have already tested there, it doesn’t count for this purpose.

The DNA of the soldiers’ remains is processed in the government forensic lab and is NOT entered in any public database. Family members must contact the Defense POW/MIA Agency and submit DNA specifically for identification of remains. DNA submitted for the identification of remains will not be used for any other purpose.

While this specific ask is for the Buffalo Soldiers of the 92^nd Infantry Division, DNA of family members of all soldiers whose remains have not been recovered and repatriated should be submitted.

Historically, mitochondrial DNA is the easiest to recover from degraded remains, but sometimes they can recover enough autosomal DNA. If you’re a family member, offer regardless. Amazing results are being garnered with forensic samples that wasn’t possible even just months ago.

Trust me, I’m inquiring about submitting my DNA in the hope of identifying my first cousin, Robert Vernon Estes who died as a POW in North Korea.

If your family member’s remains have never been identified, please contact the authorities and volunteer to DNA test. Even if you don’t qualify for whatever reason, you may know or be able to locate someone who does.

Servicemen’s Families Sought

The entire list of unidentified 92^nd Infantry soldiers who gave their life for their country can be found in this article.

The men listed below cannot be identified because there is no DNA sample available from a family member. When attempting to identify the parents and families of these men for this article, I found hints about why the families of these men may not have been located. It appears that some were not living with their birth families or had no siblings.

This makes it even more important for anyone who recognizes these men or these families to contact the Army Casualty office with information. Every soldier deserves to be identified.

Benjamin Davis Jr., 29, Webster, Florida, died February 9, 1945, so born about 1916. Jr. implies that his father’s name was the same, but I was not able to locate his family through census or other readily available genealogical search methods.
Melton Futch, 20, Perry, Florida, born January 28, 1923. Died Dec. 31, 1944. Parents Robert Futch born 1881 in Georgia and Laura Littingham born 1885 in Georgia, married in Taylor Florida on October 15, 1916.
James Thomas Mathis, 22, Fayetteville, Georgia, born there August 9, 1922, died December 27, 1945
Anderson Slaughter Jr., 23, Fulton, Georgia, born August 14, 1921, in Atlanta, Georgia. Died February 11, 1946. Essie Mae Slaughter is given as next of kin in 1942 draft registration. Her name is given as Elsie Slaughter on 1930 census as his mother, age 36 (born 1894), living with her mother Victoria Travelis or Travis or Trarelis (SP) age 59, (born about 1871). Eliga Travis died on October 10, 1920, with his wife listed as Victoria Travis. Jr. suggests Anderson’s name is the same as his father.
Wesley Melton, 20, Chicago, Illinois, born September 26, 1924. Died February 10, 1945. Edna Melton listed as next of kin on his draft registration in 1942. In the 1940 census, Edna, his mother, is listed as a widow, age 39, born about 1901 in Illinois. A woman by that name died July 12, 1972.
Staff Sgt. Henry W. Wilson, 24, Independence, Kansas. Draft registration says he was born December 11, 1919, in Kansas. Next of kin is Carrie Wilson. 1920 census shows Altee (spelled Henry in 1930 and 1940) Wilson (35) born in Oklahoma, father born in Tennessee, and mother in Oklahoma. Wife Caroline (34) born in Missouri, father born in Tennessee, and mother in Missouri. 1930 and 1940 census show two other children, a male, Leroy age 17, and a female, Louise age 13.
James Luther Strong, 34, Covington, Louisiana, born September 23, 1910, in LeCompte, Louisiana, died November 10, 1945. He was married when he enlisted in 1943. He listed his residence as St. Tammany, Louisiana but enlisted in Houston, TX. His draft registration card in 1940 gives his next of kin as Mrs. Kattie Bogany, his aunt. Who lived in Beaumont, Jefferson Co., TX.
Herbert Taylor, 23, Salisbury, Maryland, died February 12, 1946, so would have been born in 1923. 1930 census shows a person by his name, age 11, so born 1919, with Charles and Hattie Handy, listed as an adopted son. He was born in Virginia but both parents born in Maryland. There is a draft registration for Herbert Taylor, born May 8, 1915, in Newport News, VA who lists Nanie Duncan as his mother. He works for the Seaman Elridge Orchestra in Baltimore. Another registration for Herbert Lee Taylor who lists his wife as Adeline Taylor. None of these align well.
James Edward Warren, 19, Pelahatchie, Mississippi, born June 17, 1925, same location. Lists Lennie Macelroy, his mother, as next of kin who lives in the same place. Died February 6, 1945.
Maceo Aquinolda Walker, 20, New Rochelle, New York, born December 11, 1924, in Baltimore. Next of kin is Louis Walker of New Rochelle, same address. Died February 10, 1945. In the 1940 census he is listed with parents Louis Walker, 40 (born 1900) in Maryland and Patricia, 38, (born 1902) in Virginia. In 1930, Richard Shelton, brother-in-law is living with the family in NYC, age 22. No other children.
Cleo Penny, 23, New York. Died February 11, 1946. The 1930 census shows a Cleo Penny born in 1924 in NC. If this is the right family, there are 3 sisters and a brother.
William Thomas McFadden, 24, Olanta, South Carolina/Baltimore, MD. Died February 10, 1945. The 1930 census shows a person by this name in Motts, Florence Co., SC with parents Thomas L. McFadden (3) and wife Annie (28). If this is the correct person, there are 2 sisters and a brother. Also living in the residence is the sister-in-law, Elizabeth Nelson, age 13. His draft registration card in Baltimore, MD in 1942 shows that he was born in Olanta, SC on July 18, 1920, and that Catherine Dickey is his next of kin, with no relationship given.
Robert Williams, 26, Richmond, Virginia. Died February 8, 1945, so born about 1919. Several men by this name are found in the Richmond area.
1st Lt. John M. Madison, 32, Washington D.C. Died April 5, 1945. The 1940 census shows him, age 27, a math teacher. The census says he is living with some family but his father is clearly not age 30. Something is amiss with the census. The house number suggests he is living alone.
Jose A. Lopez, 29, Washington D.C./Palmira, Cuba. Died February 8, 1945. Born 1915, not a citizen when enlisted in 1942.

For all we know, the bones of these men have already been tested in the Army forensic lab in Hawaii and are just waiting for a family member to match their DNA. If you are related to these men, please contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490 to arrange to submit a DNA sample.

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