The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing from the Korean War, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
Army Cpl. Jules Hauterman, Jr., 19, of Hampden, Massachusetts, will be buried March 31 in Holyoke, Massachusetts. In late November, 1950, Hauterman was a medic with the Medical Platoon, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, when his unit was attached to the 31st Regimental Combat Team as one of its infantry battalions for the mission. The 31st RCT advanced to occupy the east side of the Chosin River. For four days, the unit battled the 80th Division of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces (CPVF). The 31st RCT finally conducted a fighting withdraw south for relative safety at the Marine Base in Hagaru-ri. The convoy was eventually destroyed by the CPVF, and while some escaped across the frozen reservoir, more than 1,300 were captured or killed. Following the battle, Hauterman could not be accounted for and he was reported missing in action as of Dec. 2, 1950.
The CPVF and North Korean People’s Army periodically provided lists of prisoners of war during the war, but none listed Hauterman. Additionally, no returning American prisoners of war reported to have any information regarding Hauterman as a prisoner of war. Based on the lack of information regarding his status, the U.S. Army declared him deceased.
On Sept. 15, 1954, a set of remains reportedly recovered from the East Chosin Reservoir were sent to the Central Identification Laboratory in Kokura, Japan and attempted to make an identification. The remains, identified as X-15904, were declared unidentifiable in 1955, and were transferred to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.
On June 13, 2016, the remains identified as “Unknown X-15904” were disinterred and sent to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Hauterman’s remains, scientists from DPAA used laboratory analysis, to include dental and anthropological analysis, which matched his records, as well as circumstantial evidence.
Today, 7,757 Americans remain unaccounted for from the Korean War. Using modern technology, identifications continue to be made from remains that were previously returned by North Korean officials or recovered from North Korea by American recovery teams.
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 www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420.