Corporal Curtis James Wells

Corporal Curtis James Wells was born March 14, 1931, to Wilbert and Emma Wells. He spent most of his life in Harbor Beach, Michigan, where he attended school until joining the army. Corporal Wells never completed high school because he convinced his parents to sign papers for him to join the army at the age of 17. Corporal Wells siblings consisted of a sister Betty (Bob) Liedke, and brothers Bill (Judy) Wells, and H. Dale (Lucille) Wells. , Corporal Wells was part of the C Company, 65th Engineer Combat Battalion, 25th Infantry Division in the U.S. Army. Upon the outbreak of the Korean War, the 25th Infantry Division was deployed to Korea and further attached to Task Force Wilson (TF Wilson) for operations in the vicinity of Unsan, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (D.P.RK.). The engineers' typical mission was to provide tactical support, but it was not uncommon to also use them as infantry when needed. C Company was ordered to secure the TF Wilson's left flank on Hill 222 near the Kuryong River while they reorganized. A large group of Chinese People's Volunteer Forces (CPVF) overwhelmed the soldiers, resulting in a retreat to Hill 218 and ultimately south to Ipsok, and then Yongbyon as the CPVF launched a counterattack of 300,000 soldiers to the United Nation's 110,000- soldier influx. Corporal Wells was Missing in Action (MIA) on November 27, 1950, at Yongpodong, D.P.R.K.., The U.S. Army was unable to provide the Corporal Wells' family with much detail regarding the battle and circumstances causing Corporal Wells to become MIA. However, theydid offer his parents a soldier's name from the state of Washington who was with Corporal Wells during the skirmish on Hill 222. Well's parents contacted the soldier, then a civilian, and learned that when they were ordered to "pull back," Wells stayed on the hill and kept firing. That was the last Corporal Wells was reportedly seen. , In September 1998, a Joint Recovery Operation began in Kujagn County, North P'yongan-Pukto Province, D.P.R.K. Human remains and material evidence were excavated the end of October 1998, initiating the process of identifying the remains. In 1999 the U.S. Army petitioned a group to perform DNA testing to assist in identifying remains of all missing soldiers that may be discovered from the Korean War. , This allowed relatives of these soldiers to have some closure. Both of Corporal Wells' brothers provided DNA, not expecting any results. However, in September 2016, 66 years after his MIA, Curtis J. Wells' remains were returned to Harbor Beach for burial., Corporal Wells' funeral was attended by 17 different American Legion Posts, a number of Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) posts, and American Legion Riders groups. Over 200 people attended the special service at Rock Falls Cemetery, where Corporal Curtis J. Wells is now laid to rest with his parents and other family. , During the funeral service, a bald eagle was observed circling the ceremony, adding a sense of, "Welcome home soldier. You have served your country with honor. “