An overdue ending for a Patriotic story from WWII

This story started for most of us when last year at our McIntosh Memorial Day program, a  German man named Theo Scheytt spoke to the crowd gathered at the Community Center about another man, Herbert Wayne Harms. 

The story came to us in McIntosh because a community member, Darlene Dierkes hosted Theo's grandsons as foreign exchange students. When the Dierkes' went to visit the family in Germany in 2014, Theo shared this incredible story.

He told us that a series of changed (of divine) occurrences lead him on an expedition in 1994 to help solve the mystery of what happened to U.S. Army soldier Herbert Harms of Rutland, Illinois. Herb was the tail gunner in a plane that was shot down in August 1944 near Leipzig, Germany. 

Theo's story is as much  his as another man's, Chris Unitt. Chris, a British pilot, told the story to Theo while meeting him on holiday. A story that so intrigued Theo that he took up the search with Chris.

In 2014 Theo had the opportunity to meet Herb's family in Illinois and tell them first-hand what happened to their brother-in-law and uncle, and how Herb gave the ultimate sacrifice for our Country.

The plane that Herb was in was shot down, Herb tried to get out, and as the aircraft was very low, he had no chance. Herbert Harms was killed because his parachute didn't open.

In the end, he was buried in the cemetery in Meineweh in the corner, and so ends his life in Meineweh. In the summer of 1945, one year later, came an American Inquisition command from the U.S. Army, to all the villages and towns. They wanted to know what happened with missing Americans. They exhumed his body and had it transported to the collective cemetery in Liege, Belgium. There is a memorial stone where it is written, “Herbert Harms, missing in action over Germany, 16 August 1944.”

Recently, a nephew of Herb's was able to submit DNA through a Marine Corps Initiative to find matches for unidentified remains. His family was hopeful for results as Herb was still officially listed as MIA and the family had no way to recover his remains.

Here is the update, provided to us by Darlene Dierkes.

By using DNA provided by relatives. Herbert Harm's body was positively identified by the U.S. Military and returned to his home in Rutland, Illinois. 

Here is the press release from Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency from September 2018.

Airman accounted 

for from World War II

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, killed during World War II, have been identified as those of Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. Herbert W. Harms. Harms, 28, born in Rutland, Illinois, was accounted for on August 31.

In August 1944, Harms served as a B-17 tail gunner with the 569th Bombardment Squadron, 390th Bombardment Group, 13th Combat Bombardment Wing, 3rd Air Division, 8th Air Force. On Aug. 16, 1944, Harms’ aircraft was struck by anti-aircraft artillery during a bombardment mission to Zeitz, Germany. The aircraft crashed just outside the village of Cauerwitz, Germany. Eight of the nine crewmembers of the “Dottie III/Green Banana” safely bailed out of the aircraft, were captured and held as prisoners of war before being returned to duty. None of the surviving crewmembers reported seeing Harms leave the aircraft, though most believed he jumped before the crash. A German report listed Harms as having died in the crash.

In June 1947, American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) personnel disinterred the remains of one unknown American from a corner of the civilian cemetery in Thierbach, Germany. According to the Narrative of Investigation, the AGRC team had learned from the cemetery caretaker that a plane had crashed and local residents had found remains. Following the exhumation, the remains, which could not be identified, were buried at U.S. Military Cemetery at Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium, as X-5882 Neuville. In 1948, the remains were disinterred for reprocessing, and were again declared unidentifiable. They were subsequently reburied.

In September 1947, an AGRC team visited Cauerwitz, Saxony-Anhalt to investigate Harms’ loss. The team examined the crash site with the local Burgermeister (mayor) who told investigators that the aircraft had come from the direction of Zeitz and some crewmembers parachuted from the aircraft. The team did not learn about any burials of American casualties in nearby towns. The AGRC compared previously collected X-file remains to Harms’ medical records, but a positive match could not be made. Based on a lack of information regarding the location of Harms’ remains, he was declared non-recoverable on May 10, 1950.

In 2016, based on a request from independent researcher Mr. Christopher Unitt, a DPAA historian reviewed documents of remains recovered from the area near Thierbach, including X-5882 Neuville. Historical documents indicated that Harms was likely associated with X-5882.

Based on the historical analysis, X-5882 was recommended for disinterment. On Sept. 5, 2017, a team from U.S. Army Regional Mortuary-Europe/Africa exhumed the remains from Neuville American Cemetery and accessioned the remains to the laboratory for identification.

To identify Harms’ remains, scientists from DPAA and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis, anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.

DPAA is grateful to the German government, U.S. Army Regional Mortuary Europe/Africa, the American Battle Monuments Commission and Mr. Christopher Unitt for their partnerships in this recovery.

Of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II, more than 400,000 died during the war. Currently there are 72,866 service members (approximately 26,000 are assessed as possibly-recoverable) still unaccounted for from World War II. Harms’ name is recorded on the Tablets of the Missing at the Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Hombourg, Belgium, along with the others missing from WWII. Although interred as an unknown, Harms’ grave was meticulously cared-for for more than 70 years by ABMC. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

For information on funeral services, contact the Army Service Casualty office at (800) 892-2490.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or call (703) 699-1420/1169.