LEBANON, Tenn. (WKRN) — For nearly 80 years, an unknown Marine laid in the grave of Capt. Glenn Walker from Lebanon, Tennessee. Now, Walker’s family finally has closure after learning the identity of the Marine who laid in his place for so many years.
“To kind of finally close the book on this, it’s been exciting for me, but it’s also good to now know the entire story,” Walker’s nephew, Lane Martin, said.
In 2020, Martin was contacted by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). Through dental records, the DPAA had positively identified remains which belonged to Walker.
Due to delays during the pandemic, Walker’s family received his correct remains in 2021 and he was properly laid to rest. The other remains were shipped back to Hawaii.
Last spring, Martin said the DPAA reached out, identifying the remains buried in his uncle’s place as Marine Corps Pvt. Eugene Miller from Utah. Two weeks ago, Miller’s nephew, Mike, reached out to Martin, letting him know his family was on their way to the Punch Bowl to see his uncle buried.
“He [Mike Miller] actually gave his DNA to the DPAA over 10 years ago. He said basically he had forgotten it, and then they contacted him last year and he was certainly very excited just like we were,” Martin said.
Walker and Miller both died in the Battle of Tarawa in World War II. Although the two had fought from opposite sides of the island, Walker said their remains were somehow laid next to each other. Walker’s dog tags were placed near Miller’s body, which caused the mix up. However, had Miller’s nephew not submitted his DNA to the DPAA over a decade ago, he might have never been identified. Martin praised the DPAA’s work and advancements in DNA identification.
“For Private Miller, they would have never been able to identify him, and we would’ve lived the rest of our life wondering, ‘Who was this man?’” Martin said.
Martin shared a picture with NewsNation local affiliate WKRN of his uncle’s remains lying next to Miller’s, reuniting once again after being laid next to each other in Tarawa back in the 1940s. Another photo showed the Marine salute as Miller’s remains were put on the plane that would take him back to Hawaii.
Martin made it his mission to reunite the remains of the Marine who sat in his uncle’s place for so many years. He recounts the women in his family visiting and sometimes even crying over his uncle’s grave. Martin wants Miller’s family to know his years of service spanned far beyond his death.
“You know, my mother would become emotional even in her 70s after my uncle had been dead 30-40 years,” Martin said. “If they thought that he was somewhere out there still in the Pacific, unknown, that would have been so hard on my mother and on my grandmother. So in effect, Miller was serving my family all these years and we owe him a debt of gratitude.”
Walker was 26 years old and a student when he went to serve in World War II. Miller was 19 years old at the time. Martin said both men went voluntarily to serve their country.
